Michael's Genuine Food & Drink Deviled Eggs

This recipe threw me off in about half a dozen ways. It appeared in a recent Chicago Tribune column that a reader sent to me, but, according to the column, it's a recipe from Michael Schwartz from Michael's Genuine Food & Drink in Miami, FL (http://www.michaelsgenuine.com/). Not sure why the Chicago Tribune is printing a recipe from a Miami restaurant, but that's what it did. (A google search couldn't determine if the story originally appeared in another paper first).

There was one unique aspect to this recipe, and it referred to a two-word phrase I heard long ago: "proportion control." Or something like that. This recipe specifically states to hard-boil eight eggs, then use the yolks of all eight eggs in the filling... but fill only six of the egg white cups. I've noticed that a lot of the recipes I've tried are sort of skimpy when you fill all the eggs, and this idea addresses that issue. Further, if you have a hard-boiled egg or two that don't have the yolk in the center, or break when peeling, or anything else... well those become one of the two discard yolks. In fact, in the future, I might try hard-boiling seven or eight eggs at a time when trying to make only six eggs (12 deviled eggs).

I also have developed a renewed appreciation of paprika as a deviled egg garnish. I was making a conscious effort to try recipes that did NOT use paprika as a garnish because I was thinking that paprika was sort of a lazy garnish - it's easy, cheap, and ultimately very simple. However, after trying this recipe, I have a new appreciation for paprika. It IS easy, it IS cheap, and it IS simple... but it also looks cool and provides a unique flavor aspect. I want to try some recipes that incorporate different types of paprika - maybe a hot Hungarian paprika or a smoky paprika.

But that's about where the coolness of this recipe ends. After that, it's pretty boring.

Here is the recipe:

8 hard-boiled eggs

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

freshly ground pepper

1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1. Peel and slice eggs in half.

2. Scoop out the egg yolks and place only 12 egg white halves on a tray. (I recommend using the 6 eggs or 12 egg white halves that look the best, with the yolks centered, etc.).

3. Mash yolks and add mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

4. Fill the 12 egg white halves (from 6 eggs) with the filling of all 8 eggs.

5. Sprinkle with parsley and paprika.

6. Allow eggs to refrigerate for at least an hour so flavors may blend.

Above: adding the mayonnaise and lemon juice

Above: adding the coarse salt and fresh ground pepper

Above: the finished product, garnished with both parsley and paprika

So here's where I was DOUBLY thrown off. The end of this recipe has what should be a simple note. However, the note says that the "yolk mixture may be seasoned with 1 teaspoon minced thyme, parsley, chives, or dill; 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard; 1 1/2 teaspoons sherry vinegar and/or, for a more 'deviled' flavor, 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper."

What the hell? What do they serve at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink? Does their recipe have any or all of those herbs? Or mustard? Or vinegar? And/or ground red pepper? I guess you can make it to your preference, but then it's hard to grade. This just totally threw me off. If YOU have been to Michael's Genuine Food & Drink in Miami, and YOU know what they put in their deviled eggs, please let me know!

Here are the scores:

Overall: 69 out of 100

Texture: 15 out of 20

Flavor: 10 out of 20 (might be better with some of those alternate ingredients)

Uniqueness: 10 out of 20

Appearance: 17 out of 20 (I like both the parsley and paprika as garnishes)

Ease of preparation: 17 out of 20

Comments?