1. In previous blog entries, I've bashed butter as a deviled egg ingredient.http://thebestdeviledeggs.blogspot.com/2007/08/decadent-deviled-eggs.html and http://thebestdeviledeggs.blogspot.com/2008/04/beckys-deviled-eggs.html However, when used correctly, butter works - less as a flavoring agent and more as a textural ingredient that thickens up a deviled egg filling. In this recipe, it definitely works.
2. I've also been critical of recipes that don't have any "heft" to them, and I define heft as some sort of meat. Doesn't matter if it's chicken, bacon, prosciutto, whatever... I like recipes with meat and have been critical of recipes that tend to rely on herbs for the flavoring. But after the disaster that was the deviled ham in the filling (http://thebestdeviledeggs.blogspot.com/2008/05/double-deviled-eggs.html), I guess I was ready for something new. And this one delivers.
3. Lastly, I've been open about wanting to try a series of recipes that use something other than paprika as a garnish. It started here - http://thebestdeviledeggs.blogspot.com/2008/02/hells-eggs.html. So I've tried recipes that use parsley, herbs, all sorts of stuff, as a garnish. This recipe suggested either parsley or parsley sprigs as a garnish, and I went half and half. The parsley really didn't add much except visual appeal, but frankly, I really liked the paprika! It looked kind of cool, it added a bit of bite, and it was very easy. So... a new appeciation of paprika as a deviled egg garnish has been developed, and I'm going to try to test a few recipes that use DIFFERENT types of paprika. To be continued...
But back to this recipe. A reader sent me this recipe, which is credited to the classic magazine Southern Living, and it worked well on a warm spring day. In fact it worked so well, I made it TWICE - once for testing, and once just to enjoy. When you write a deviled egg blog and have a backlog of about 75 recipes to try, it's a rare occurance to make a deviled egg recipe just for your own personal enjoyment. That says a lot about the quality of this recipe. The capers added a nice crunch, but didn't dominate the flavor. And again, I like the fact that I can use the fresh chives out of my herb garden.
Here is the recipe:
6 hard-boiled eggs
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon butter, softened
2 teaspoon drained capers
1 teaspoon fresh chives, chopped
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste
paprika (optional)
fresh parsley sprigs (optional)
1. Mash egg yolks.
2. Sit in mayonnaise, butter, capers, chives, and mustard.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Fill egg whites with yolk mixture.
5. Garnish with paprika or parsley.
6. Cover and chill at least 1 hour or until ready to serve.
Above: adding the mayonnaise, butter, and capers
Above: adding the chives and dry mustard
Above: the finished product, half with paprika as a garnish and half with the parsley
This recipe surprised me with how good it was. The butter made the texture sort of thick and manageable, a problem I've had in other recipes where the flavoring is basically herbs. The capers were crunchy and flavorful, but not dominant, and the chives were a nice seasonal hint. Also, the mustard was just BARELY there, but was very good. This recipe really combines and uses all of its ingredients well in every way.
Here are the scores:
Overall: 77 out of 100 (a very good score for an herb-based recipe)
Texture: 18 out of 20
Flavor: 15 out of 20
Uniqueness: 15 out of 20
Appearance: 13 out of 20
Ease of preparation: 16 out of 20
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