Christmas Notebook

Like many other families, I’m sure, we made deviled eggs with the leftover Easter eggs this week.

When I make deviled eggs, I don’t use a recipe. I just throw ingredients together. But I tried to keep track of what I did this evening, so I could share a recipe.

This recipe is for 12 deviled egg halves (6 boiled eggs).

• 8 boiled eggs (yes, two extra)
• 3 T. mayonnaise (light mayo is fine)
• 2 tsp. lemon juice (or you could use cider vinegar)
• 2 tsp. yellow prepared mustard
• 2 tsp. pickle relish
• 1 T. fresh parsley (minced) or use 1 tsp. dry parsley
• 1/4 tsp. poppy seeds
• a sprinkle of paprika
• salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

To boil eggs: Put them in a pan of cold water, with an inch or so of water over them. Bring to a boil, stirring (gently!) now and then to keep the yolk in the middle of the egg. Reduce heat and simmer for one minute. Remove from the heat and let set 12 minutes. After the 12 minutes are done, drain the eggs and put them into a bowl of ice water until cooled. I always boil two more eggs than I plan to serve and add those, both the whites and the yolks, to the yolk mixture to make sure I have plenty of filling to over stuff the egg whites.

Peel the boiled eggs. Halve them with a sharp knife and put the yolks into a mixing bowl. Doesn’t have to be a large bowl. And you don’t need a mixer. After the eggs are peeled, decide which of the egg white halves look the least appetizing and add four of those to the yolk mixture.

Add all the ingredients to the egg yolks. Stir and mash with a fork until the mixture is well blended.

Using two spoons, scoop and scrape the mixture onto the egg whites, filling the indentions and covering the tops.

Garnish with a sprig of parsley and/or sprinkle with paprika.

We had the eggs with pecan-crusted salmon, steamed sugar snap peas, and mashed potatoes. Delicous!

The recipe can be changed to suit your own tastes. Try adding any of the following to deviled eggs: crispy bacon, chopped tomato, cilantro, green onion, celery seed, chopped chives, dill, smoked salmon, or shredded cheese, just to mention a few options.

~~Rhonda