The BEST Deviled Eggs

  

If we get married, will you still make your deviled eggs?"  When my husband and I reached a serious point in our relationship he asked me this question.  I just smiled and laughed, but a few days later he opened the fridge to find 2-dozen deviled eggs, all placed neatly, forming the shape of a heart.  If there's one compliment I can count on, it's my eggs. The funny thing is, I'm not a big egg fan.  I've just made them so often for friends and family that it's reached a point where I really need to share this concoction...as well as many others.  It's a beautiful addition to your table.  So here it is, in the only form I know how to give it: 

You will need:

as many hard-boiled eggs as you'd like

good, quality mayonnaise (Hellman's or Best Foods is fine)

prepared mustard 

worcestershire sauce

dry dill weed

ground mustard seed

ground turmeric

salt (any fine salt will do, I use  red Hawaiian alaea)

pepper (preferably a 5-spice blend of pepper)

fresh chopped chives or spring onions or Italian flat leaf parsley for garnish 

paprika or red pepper powder for garnish

1)  Slice eggs lengthwise placing yolks in a bowl.  Lay your whites on a presentable platter. 2) Mash yolks with large fork until light and powdery. 3)  Mix in a heaping tablespoon of mayonnaise.  Continue adding in more mayo until you have a nice, smooth, consistent paste -- a little at a time though, or your paste will be too thin.

4)  Add a 'dallop' of mustard.  The idea is to give your eggs a bit of color with only a slight tang in flavor. 5)  Add a few dashes of  worcestershire sauce.  6)  The dill weed is a key ingredient.  I use a full heaping teaspoon to about a dozen eggs and sometimes more.  Mix it in gently.  7)  Sprinkle in a small amount of dry mustard, a touch of turmeric, small pinch of salt and pepper.  The turmeric will enhance color slightly -- it doesn't take much and too much will give a bitter taste to your eggs.  The same goes for the dry mustard.  This is where you get to start tasting your mixture to your approval.  A few more grains of salt?  Another drop of worcestershire?  Maybe slightly more dill weed?  It's all up to you.  8)  Once your egg paste is up to your standards, begin filling your whites using two kitchen teaspoons; one to scoop up some mixture, the other to scoop it off with.  9) To garnish your eggs start by giving them a light sprinkle of more dill weed.  Top them off with chives or spring onion greens, and some *red pepper powder or paprika.

*  I discovered red pepper powder at the Asian grocer.  Don't let the name fool you, as I find it extremely mild in flavor, yet bursting with color.  I use it mainly for garnish in our meals -- our preschooler never complains.  (If you'd like to be daring, sprinkle red pepper flakes instead).  I buy Hawaiian Red Alaea salt from Atlantic Spice

See:  How to Hard Boil Eggs Perfectly

See:  Jasmine Fried Rice

Note:  I use these same ingredients when making potato salad.