Deviled Eggs

There's something so cool about deviled eggs. Classic cocktail party appetizer comes to mind, but I've seen them popping up on the menus of some pretty hip joints lately.

Apparently they originated in Ancient Rome and have been wildly popular in North America since the 1940's.

They are easy to make and can be quite sophisticated, especially with some fun garnishes. I made them this year for Christmas Day. On some I put chopped sweet pickles and on others I planted crispy bacon strips that I had sprinkled with brown sugar and cayenne pepper before cooking. The traditional dusting of smoked paprika is nice too.

Boy, did they go fast!

Basic Deviled Eggs

• 8 jumbo (xlarge) eggs, hard boiled* and peeled
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 tsp yellow or Dijon mustard
• 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 (depending on how much tang you prefer) tsp white wine vinegar
• kosher salt
• fresh ground black pepper
• smoked paprika, chopped sweet pickles, crispy bacon (optional)

In a medium-sized bowl add the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper.

Whisk until the ingredients are well combined, smooth and creamy. Carefully cut eggs in half. Arrange egg whites cut side up on a serving plate, remove the yolks and add them to the mixing bowl. Mash yolks with fork into the mayonnaise mixture until smooth. Add more salt and pepper to taste if desired.

Spoon or pipe (from a pastry bag) a little bit of the mixture into each egg white half, dividing mixture as evenly as possible between the eggs. Right before serving, sprinkle eggs with smoked paprika and add some toppings if desired. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

*To hard boil eggs, I like to place the eggs in a pot. Fill the pot with cool water until an inch above the eggs. Bring water to a boil, turn down the heat and cook for 2 minutes on a low boil. Then turn off the heat and cover. Let sit for a half hour. Then drain and let eggs cool.