Nothing Evil About Eggs

My daughter and I love to  shop. She’s a fine cook and definitely more willing than I am to try something new.

Thanks to her, I've tried many recipes and foods that I would never have tried on my own. Ah, youth.

We love our local  on sample days. The best sample day ever? The day the store was giving out tiny, bite-sized tastes of cake and . It was like attending an elf birthday party. We were in heaven.

But I digress. A few weeks ago we were shopping on sample day while a very nice lady was offering two types of sweet mustard. She had cubes of cheese on toothpicks, and you dipped the cheese in the mustard. Our test of the first mustard was OK, but our second (the hot and sweet) was pure taste-bud happiness. We popped a jar in our cart.

Coincidentally, we were having company that week, which was why we were shopping, so we figured the mustard would be a great addition to our poolside munchies. Instead of cheese for dipping, we bought our favorite honey wheat pretzel twists.

Fast forward to the next day. Wende and I decided we wanted to make as much food as possible in advance so we didn’t have to spend too much time cooking while our company was here. Deviled eggs were on our list; they're not only a great snack or side dish but also .

When I have summer company, I like to fix a tray of deviled eggs, bacon, strawberries and bagels with a pot of coffee on the side and have an easy breakfast or brunch at the pool.

So we were bustling about the kitchen, dipping pretzels in our addictive new mustard, when I thought, "Hm, this mustard would make great deviled eggs."

In a nutshell (or maybe an eggshell) I like deviled eggs so much because you can stuff them with pretty much anything. From the most basic recipe of a bit of mayo, a pinch of mustard powder and salt and pepper, to more exotic ingredients such as seafood or anchovies and capers, stuffed eggs are very versatile.

They also make terrific leftovers, and there's .

Eggs are easy to boil. Use older eggs; they peel more easily. Good egg growers know that. At , where I buy all my eggs, they have the eggs arranged by date: freshest eggs on the top left, oldest eggs -- best for boiling -- on the bottom right.

Put eggs in a pot and cover with water. Bring water to a boil and boil for a minute or two. Remove pan from heat and cover. Let sit for 20 minutes. Cool immediately in cold running water. Peel when cool, or refrigerate and peel later. That's it. From there, deviled eggs are just a few steps away.

My daughter, of course, being from a generation that loves technology, does not do it that way. She uses a West Bend Electric Egg Cooker. I bought it for poaching, but she uses it for hard boiling. She says it's faster. It might be, but with my way you need one pan with one lid, and it doesn't really even need to be washed afterward.

Just dump the water and dry the pan. With the egg cooker, there are three or four separate parts that need to be washed after use. Plus you have to prick the eggs before boiling them and measure out the water.

Progress? I think not. Sometimes mother really does know best. 

Recipe: Deviled Eggs

All these recipes start with six boiled eggs cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out the yolks, place in a small bowl and mash with a fork. Then mix the mashed yolks with these ingredients:

Basic Deviled Eggs

• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise, salad dressing or bottled cole slaw dressing
• ½ teaspoon dry mustard
• salt and pepper to taste

Deviled Eggs with Spicy Hot Mustard

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons Miller's hot and sweet mustard

Spinach-stuffed Deviled Eggs

• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 4 to 6 ounces spinach, steamed or parboiled, then drained and chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh Parmesan cheese, grated