Red Pepper Deviled Eggs

When I say the words “deviled eggs” what is the first thing that comes to your mind?  Summer?  Picnics?  Barbecues?  Yeah, me too.  Why is that?  Why are deviled eggs almost solely associated with warm days?  From my experience, people love them.  Every time I make them I am almost immediately struck by the fact that I haven’t made enough, particularly since they have usually been scooped up and devoured long before I can get to them.

So, I am declaring the deviled egg as a year round food. Happy?  Me too.  Now I don’t have to wait until spring to make the first batch. 

Wasting no time, I dug out this recipe that has been lurking in my recipe box since the seventies.  The paper had turned yellow, the edges had crumbled, the picture obliterated with age, and much of the text was nearly unreadable (consequently I have no idea as to the source, though I suspect it’s from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch).  I am so glad that I didn't wait until summer.  These are delicious!  Now to hide them from the mister.

Red Pepper Deviled Eggs

(a.k.a. The Best Deviled Eggs that I have ever eaten!)

6 hard-cooked, extra-large eggs, cooled, peeled, and halved

1/3 cup Melissa’s Fire Roasted Sweet Red Peppers, diced

1 tablespoon capers

2 teaspoons minced shallot

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

¼ cup Hellman’s mayonnaise

1 teaspoon dried basil

Remove yolks from egg halves.  Place in a medium bowl; mash with a fork.  Add roasted peppers, capers, shallot, mustard, mayonnaise, and ½ teaspoon dried basil.  Stir/mash to combine.

Fill a pastry bag (or Ziploc sandwich bag with the corner cut off) fitted with a star tip with the yolk mixture.  Pipe decoratively into the white halves.  Cover delicately with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.  Sprinkle with remaining basil just prior to serving.

This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday

Tasty Tuesdays

Create It or Bake It

Seasonal Sundays

Baked Eggs with Red Peppers and Boursin

If you made the spinach soufflé recipe from yesterday you’re probably wondering what to do with the other half of the jar of roasted red peppers.  Here is but one of the many answers, Baked Eggs with Red Peppers and Boursin.  This has to be the easiest breakfast dish that I’ve ever assembled, and it is really good.  It also looks quite impressive and I’m guessing could be a real dazzler when serving overnight guests.  It can easily be custom made to fit you or your guests’ interests -- eliminate the bacon for a vegetarian version, change the herbs to suit various tastes, top it with salsa verde for a spicier, Tex-Mex variety, add or subtract cheeses, toss in spinach or kale, or top with chopped ham and hollandaise for a mock eggs benedict.  The combination of ingredients are endless.  Give it a try and let me know.

Baked Eggs with Red Peppers and Boursin

1 t. unsalted butter, softened

3 T. finely chopped Melissa’s fire roasted sweet red bell peppers

1 T. boursin cheese, more or less to taste
1 T. Parmesan cheese, grated
1 T. fresh parsley, minced
2 large eggs
1 strip bacon, cooked and crumbled
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Heat oven to 350°F.  Butter one small baking dish. Place chopped roasted red peppers into the baking dish and top with cracked eggs then sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese, and parsley.  Drop small dollops of Boursin in various spots on top of the eggs, sprinkle with a dash of salt, freshly ground pepper, and crumbled bacon. Bake the eggs for 10-15 minutes until the eggs have achieved desired doneness: less time for runny yolks, more time for firm yolks. Serve immediately. Serves 1

This post is linked to:

Wow Us Wednesdays

Broccoli, Red Pepper, and Three Cheese Soup

If you grew up in the sixties or seventies, your first introduction to broccoli was probably under a blanket of thick cheese sauce.  (The broccoli, not you.).  I actually liked vegetables as a kid, so the cheese sauce was like icing on the vegetable cake, as it were.  Shortly after the cheese sauce craze, cheese and broccoli in soup form emerged.  Back then, this pretty much meant a warm, blended mixture of broccoli, cream, and Velveeta cheese.   For lovers of quick, easy, and processed cheese food, this artery clogger was gourmet fare.  Thank goodness things have changed since then.   Now the goal is lighter, more nutritious fare, with a blend of flavors yielding a more sophisticated taste. 

This delicious soup has all of that in spades - a variety of vegetables, REAL cheese (three of them, in fact), a nice assortment of seasonings, and only a little bit of cream. 

Even non broccoli fans will love this, and it tastes as if you've been cooking all day.

Broccoli, Red Pepper, and Three Cheese Chowder

Adapted from a recipe on Epicurious.com

1 large head broccoli
1 large russet potato
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 jar Melissa's roasted red peppers, coarsely chopped
l large garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sharp Cheddar, coarsely grated

1/2 cup Gruyere, coarsely grated

1/2 cup Fontina, coarsely grated

Cut off and discard the tough lower third of broccoli stem.  Peel remaining stem and finely chop.  Cut remaining broccoli into very small (1-inch) florets.  Cook florets in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, 3-5 minutes.  Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking; drain.  Measure out and reserve 3 cups cooking water for soup.

Peel potato and cut into 1/2-inch cubes.  Cook potato, onion, bell pepper, broccoli stems, and garlic in butter in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, 8 to 10 minutes.  Add cumin, salt, pepper, and mustard and cook, stirring, 1 minute.  Add flour and cook, stirring, 2 minutes.  Add reserved cooking water and simmer (partially covered), stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.  Stir in cream and cheese and cook, stirring, until cheese is melted.  Purée with an immersion blender until desired consistency.  Garnish with broccoli florets.

This post is linked to:

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday