The Art of the Easter Egg + How to Hard Boil an Egg.

Little Man is still a little young to dye the Easter eggs this year. It was convenient that Easter came at the end of my week to plan our date night. I boiled up 2 dozen eggs to color in hopes that I could use them the next day for deviled eggs on Easter Day. (strange that deviled eggs are common on the day we celebrate Christ... just sayin')

We had fun with all the colors that came in the PAAS original package. We chose to use vinegar as it gives a more vibrant color. Here's a look at our creative outlet.

Here is the awesome creativity that comes from the hubby...

needless to say, it hasn't been eaten yet...

I mentioned that I was hoping to use these lovely eggs for my deviled egg contribution to Easter dinner. I am now pro at boiling the eggs to perfectly golden centers (after that oh-so-helpful food science class) and I wasn't worried. Until we tried to peel them...

This is one of the better ones... and not pretty enough for little chick-lets coming out of their eggs... the moral of the story? (one I forgot, even after my food science class)

Buy your Easter eggs about a week or two before you boil them up for decorating. The fresh eggs have hearty albumen (the yucky clear gooey stuff when the egg is raw... that turns white when you cook it) that holds to the shell very well. As an egg ages, that albumen (see, you learned a new word today!) thins a little and is less able to stick to the shell, thus it is easier to peel a boiled egg.

How to boil an egg:
1. place desired amount of eggs in bottom of a pan (choose a small pot if you are only doing a few eggs.)
2. cover eggs (barely cover) with cold water.
3. cover pan and bring to a rolling boil.
4. just as it comes to a rolling boil (I mean, rolling bubbles, rolling. Not the wimpy sorta-bubbles) take the pot off the heat.
5. Let the eggs sit in the hot pot for 15 minutes. -more and you will get that yucky grey-ish film on your yolk. less and the middle of the yolk is not completely cooked (and it wont come out of your egg nicely for your deviled eggs)
6. after 15 minutes, cold shock your eggs to stop them from cooking. Take the pot, and run cold water over the eggs until it has replaced the hot water and is cold to the touch.

I did boil another set of eggs... for dinner... I followed a method for peeling them that I found via Pinterest. You can see her post for the "World's Easiest Boiled Egg" here. They peeled beautifully, but...I was in a rush and I cooked them for 14 minutes and they didn't turn out. Moral of this story? Do NOT rush the art of the boiled egg...

Halloween: Deviled eyeballs

This year was the first annual Witch's Tea Party. We had a "best dressed" witch contest and we voted on the best witch's hat. Everyone was also asked to bring a Halloween treat to compete in one of three categories. Cutest, Creepiest, and Tastiest. It was fun to see what everyone brought and they were all tasty. While there are plenty of things that I am going to tweak for next year's event, it was a lot of fun to have a break from busy life to just enjoy some girl time.

My party contribution came as inspiration from a magazine in my mom's pile of Halloween recipe ideas... I just can't remember which one. The recipe was originally for deviled eggs, but I took the idea and ran with it a little. I also found a delicious deviled egg recipe that I thought I'd try... So here it goes. My own little twist...

sorry... not the best of pictures... but the best my camera can do...

 Deviled Eyeballs.
{ingredients} I doubled this recipe for the yolk stuffing...

6  eggs

1-2 tsp gel food coloring {the original recipe called for black, which I used for our annual Halloween dinner, but for the Tea Party I used red to create the "eyeball" look.}

4 Tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp mustard 

¼ cup mashed cocktail shrimp (rinse and drain very well before mashing)

1 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced fine {I used parsley flakes and they worked fine}

1/2 tsp lemon juice

Salt & pepper to taste

Sliced olives for garnish

{directions}

1. place eggs in one layer in a pot and cover with water (barely cover them) add food coloring and bring to a rolling boil. Once the water reaches a rolling boil, take the pot off the heat and set aside (covered) for 15 minutes. {This is how you make the perfect hard boiled eggs.}

2. After 15 minutes use a slotted spoon to fish out each egg (they are still hot) and tap each egg a few times with the handle of a wooden spoon to crack the shell. When all are cracked, place in a bowl and cover with the colored cooking water. Place in the refrigerator and let cool for at least 2 hours. 

3. When you are ready to assemble, peel the eggs carefully and cut in half lengthwise. Pop out the yolks and mix it with the rest of the ingredients. Add the shrimp last and do not mash further. Fill the empty egg white shells with the mixture and garnish with a sliced black olive.

Serve chilled or store covered in refrigerator for up to one day before serving. Yum!