Deviled Eggs On The Go!

      Like many of you, I travel for the holidays and also like many of you, I cook for the holidays. The kitchen can get crowded with one or more cooks so I like to do as much as I can at home and bring it along and this year I brought the eggs.
      I couldn't decide on just one kind so I made the Traditional, Greek and Bacon Dill. I really liked the shrimp ones but I think I will have to save those ones for my family in Idaho, these guys don't like shrimp... weirdos.

     I packed my little decorative bits, dill, and paprika because I don't count on Pam to have anything I might need for my recipes. She doesn't like to cook but if you need craft supplies, she is your woman! And I of course forgot it at home...

     I made the eggs and then put the yolk mixture into ziplock bags. You could just but the yolks and other ingredients in the bag and smash it up all at once then cut the corner and fill you eggs but I like to dirty a bowl and fork and let my dog lick it in between recipes. I mean he is the absolute best dish washer money could buy and he LOVES his job.

     So the eggs made it to Birmingham however, they are not all going to last until Easter, some sampling has already started. It's just so easy when the mix is in a bag.

Deviled Eggs, 6 Different Ways.

      My family has a kind of unofficial deviled egg competition each year for Easter and each year everyone swears that their own, are the best. Unless of course my great grandma has made eggs that year, hers are the best.
       The younger crowd is what has made this competition interesting. Bringing in new and exciting flavors and relying heavily on presentation, as far as those categories go, its in the bag, piping bag that is.
        I am going to bring this family tradition to my family in Alabama now and I am really wanting to start it off well. So Ryan and I had six different kinds of deviled eggs for dinner that were all extremely different and extremely tasty.

      I started by gathering ingredients, basically anything goes, it was a little like making pizzas, 6 tiny pizza eggs. I do want to start off by saying that I made these recipes up as I went and I didn't write down measurements of each to save time however, I do have a rough idea and am going to give the recipe for each in a batch of 6 eggs.

       Here they are, entry one through three.

     Entry four through six. Lets begin!

     Number one: Bacon Ranch

      The first eggs recipe was inspired by loaded baked potatoes and that is exactly what it tasted like. Ryan and I thought this egg was good but it was a novelty egg. Ryan renamed it, "Loaded Egg" and I think this really discribes the taste. Good, non- traditional, and it makes a nice presentation. 

Recipe

6 hard boiled eggs, cut in half length wise 

1/4 cup mayo or sour cream to taste 

3 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled 

1 chopped green onion 

1/4 cup shredded cheddar 

pepper

Number two: Shrimp 

     Ryan didn't try the shrimp one because he thinks they are the cockroaches of the sea, bugs. With that in mind, I thought this egg was delicious! It was tangy and mustard rich. I honestly believe that if I hadn't told Ryan it had shrimp in it, he wouldn't of known and actually liked it, a lot. Which brings up a note of improvement for that part. I think that sautéing the shrimp first with parsley, butter and garlic would be key for the perfect seafood deviled egg. 

Recipe

6 boiled eggs

1/2 cup small shrimp

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon garlic 

1 tablespoon parsley

1/4 cup mayo
1 1/4 teaspoons harvest grainy mustard, dijon 

1 tablespoon lemon juice

salt and pepper 

paprika for garnish

* saute shrimp in the butter, garlic and parsley, salt and pepper. Chop shrimp, making sure to reserve 12 for garnish

Number three: Curry

     This egg was tasty, like really good. I was happy to make this egg because of an Indian dish I had once where the boiled eggs were the most prized part and for good reason. Curry and eggs work, well. 

Recipe

6 boiled eggs

1/4 cup mayo

1 chopped green onion 

1 tablespoon chopped parsley 

1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1/2 tablespoon yellow curry powder 

salt and pepper

Number four: Greek

      This egg was bold in flavor and had the most potential as being a favorite made over and over again. PLUS it is healthy, no mayo was used in the making of this egg. 

Recipe

6 boiled eggs

2 tablespoons pesto

2 tablespoons olive oil 

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

6 kalamata olives chopped 

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 

Number five: Traditional

     This is the traditional deviled egg that is a crowd pleaser. Its sweet, its creamy and delicious. 

Recipe

6 boiled eggs 

1/4 cup mayo

2 tablespoons sweet relish, I likes em sweet, reduce if you don't.

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

salt and pepper

paprika for garnish 

Number six: Bacon Dill

     This egg was really good. The texture was pleasant and it didn't taste like a potato inposter, it tasted like the insides of an egg sandwich. I liked this egg better than the first one, Bacon Ranch. 

Recipe

6 boiled eggs

1/4 cup mayo 

3 slices cooked, chopped bacon

3 tablespoons cheddar cheese

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 tablespoon dill weed

       So there you are, deviled eggs six different ways. I would have to say the Traditional one was my favorite with the Bacon Dill and Greek being very close seconds. The Shrimp was also very good as was the Curry but I was not a huge fan of the Bacon Ranch. Don't let that stop you from trying any of these recipes and making up your own. Let me know if you try any of my recipes! 

Butternut Squash Alfredo with Bacon

   

 I bought a clearance can of butternut squash the other day because it was clearance. I have a slight to major problem when it comes to clearance, especially clearance food but it makes things interesting.  
     Before I started I tasted the butternut, its pretty blain and the texture is less than desirable being that it is fiber rich, so mixing it into something else was key. I also googled some different recipes for butternut and when I found it paired with bacon I knew what to do.

     First I gathered my ingredients and I cut three slices of bacon into one inch squares and put it into a skillet on medium-high heat for about three minutes before putting my thinly sliced chicken in. I aslo added garlic at this point.

      Let your bacon and chicken cook through and get a nice brown. It takes about seven minutes.

     Then add reduced sodium chicken broth and simmer for another five minutes. You don't want to skip this step because the fast cooking of the chicken slices with the bacon will dry out the chicken so be patient and let it simmer.

    Next step is to add the canned milk or cream or the milk you have in your fridge, the can of butternut puree and freshly grated nutmeg. I can not stress enough the importance of fresh nutmeg in alfredo!

    After everything is well incorporated you can lower the temperature and add cheese. A basic rule thumb when making alfredo sauce is to add the same amount of cheese as you have in liquid. Ryan, Beau and I however, are all on diets ;) so I go with half of the amount of cheese. After adding the cheese be sure to take it off of heat so the oils don't separate.

     Serve over penne pasta, whole grain is tasty, top with some cheese and parsley and enjoy! We did!

    Recipe


3 chicken breasts
3 slices of bacon
2 tablespoons of garlic
1 1/2 cups of reduced sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup of milk, cream or evaporated canned milk
1- 15oz. can of butternut puree
1 tsp. fresh grated nutmeg
some peppa
1 cup italian blend shredded cheese
fresh parsley for garnish.
6 cups penne noodles

 Makes 6 servings.