Barb’s awesome deviled eggs

Over on Collective Sigh today, Andante is trying to come up with a recipe for something to bring to the family feast on Thanksgiving. Hopefully this fits the bill. Barb doctored up the standard deviled egg recipe and came up with something recognizably traditional, but with a subtle zing to it.

Barb’s Deviled Eggs
eggs (we usually make about 2 dozen)
mayonnaise
honey mustard
sweet pickle relish
pepper
salt
paprika

The astute observer will notice the lack of measurements on the list above, because I don’t measure anything for this recipe. I just add stuff a little at a time, and adjust everything to taste.

I would never have guessed this, but a lot of my friends and family don’t know how to hard-boil an egg! Nobody ever admits to this, but an egg aficionado (such as myself) can always tell when this is done poorly. So here’s the first step, cooking the eggs:
Put the eggs in a pan of cool water. (If you’re worried about them cracking, stick the big end of each egg with a pin, but be sure not to poke all the way to the yolk!)
Add a tablespoon of white vinegar and a half teaspoon of salt to the water.
Over medium-high heat, bring the water to a rolling boil. Turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let sit for 10 minutes. Cool the eggs — Pour off the hot water and cover with cold water. Repeat whenever the water gets warm, until the eggs are cool.

Remove the egg shells and cut the eggs in half. Put all the yolks in a bowl and all the whites on a serving plate.

Add some mayo to the yolks, maybe about a ¼ cup per dozen eggs. (Go easy! You can always add more, but it’s kind of hard to take it out once you add it!) Add about a tablespoon of pickle relish and a ½ Tbsp honey mustard to the eggs, grind up some pepper and mix everything with a fork. Taste early and often. You should notice the pepper- and mustard taste, without being overwhelmed by them. Add more if needed. Once you get the pickle relish, mustard, and pepper adjusted, add more mayo until the consistency is right. If the mixture is too sweet, sprinkle in a little salt.

Scoop the yolk mixture into the whites. Once all the whites are filled, sprinkle with paprika.

If you make these ahead of time, keep them in the frig. They travel fine, as long as you’re only driving up to an hour or so. Otherwise leave the yolk mixture in a bowl, and put it in an ice chest along with the egg whites. Then fill the eggs when you arrive. (Don’t forget to bring the paprika with you!)