Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs

I've been trying to move away from the deviled egg recipes that just incorporate different quantities of the standby ingredients - mayonnaise, mustard, pickle juice or something, salt and pepper, etc. The last one, which I really enjoyed, has some finely diced chicken thrown in the mix. This one adds some smoked salmon. Although I'm not usually a fan of smoked salmon, I was very impressed with this recipe for some ancillary reasons. Here goes:


6 hard-boiled eggs
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons French Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons smoked salmon, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons scallions, finely chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
capers, for garnish (can also be garnished with caviar)


Combine the mashed egg yolks with the sour cream, cream cheese, and mustard. Stir in the smoked salmon and scallions. Season to taste. Fill the egg whites with mixture and garnish each deviled egg with a couple of capers (or some caviar).



Above: adding the sour cream, cream cheese, and Dijon mustard. Note: I microwaved the cream cheese for a few seconds so it was soft enough to fully incorporate into the egg mixture.


Above: adding the smoked salmon (which must be VERY finely chopped) and the scallions


Above: the final product, with each deviled egg garnished with 2 capers


As I said, I'm not a huge fan of smoked salmon. But this recipe was actually very good. First of all, the texture was great. Rather than the typical mayonnaise base, this recipe uses a base of sour cream and softened cream cheese. I realize that the sour cream is part of the base because of how well it matches with the smoked salmon (which is the intended dominant flavor), but adding the softened cream cheese to thicken the mixture is a stroke of genius. The second reason this recipe is so good is that each of the ancillary ingredients serves to enhance the flavor of the dominant flavor, the smoked salmon. Adding scallions, the sour cream, even the touch of Dijon mustard really help to accent the smoked salmon flavor. And the capers as a garnish, while not only kind of cool looking, also add to the flavor. I didn't use caviar as a garnish, as the recipe said was possible, but I am sure it would be just as good as the capers.

Overall: 79 out of 100
Texture: 19 out of 20 (again, nearly perfect, like the Chicken Deviled Eggs)
Flavor: 12 out of 20
Uniqueness: 19 out of 20 (bonus points for the cream cheese in the mix to help the texture)
Appeareance: 18 out of 20
Ease of preparation: 11 out of 20

Cream Cheese Deviled Eggs

First of all, a follow-up to the "Sour Cream, Lemon, and Herb Deviled Eggs" recipe I prepared last week. These are the FIRST deviled egg recipe I have ever tried where I had to actually throw out the product because people wouldn't eat more than one. Perhaps it's because I'm not in a lunchtime garden club.

Now, on the the next recipe: Cream Cheese Deviled Eggs. This recipe reminds me of a classic Match Game episode. These deviled eggs are just "blank." Here is the recipe:

Cream Cheese Deviled Eggs

6 hard-boiled eggs

1/2 block softened cream cheese

sale and pepper to taste

1. Crumble egg yolks in a bowl.

2. Add softened cream cheese (if cream cheese is not soft enough to mix, microwave it for 10 or 15 seconds).

3. Combine yolks and cream cheese and add salt and pepper to taste

4. Fill egg whites with filling.

Above: adding the cream cheese; the finished product

Review: Seriously, these are the most basic recipe ever. Only egg yolks, cream cheese, and a little salt and pepper. However, the texture, because of the cream cheese, is SO different than any recipe I've ever tried. VERY thick - the cream cheese is taking place of the traditional mayonnaise/Miracle Whip/sour cream. I actually was excited while I was making these because I was also making a GREAT new snack-type appetizer that smelled great and was wonderful. (If you want that recipe, e-mail me!) It would be interesting to try a deviled egg recipe that involves cream cheese but ALSO some other flavorful ingredients - maybe mustard, relish, stronger spices, even bacon (of course).

Overall: 40 out of 100

Texture: 8 out of 20 (if only because it's so unique)

Flavor: 2 out of 20

Uniqueness: 10 out of 20

Appearance: 5 out of 20

Ease of preparation: 15 out of 20

Comments?