Eat This While You Read That: Dorothy Grant
As I was gearing back up into the series, I realized I hadn't yet featured Dorothy's books. Since we swap recipes fairly often, I wasn't sure what I'd get when I asked her for a dish to go along with her latest book, Between Two Graves. She neatly tied the recipe to the theme of the book. Unlike the earlier books in this series, which are TACROM (Tactical Romance) this book comes after marriage, when the reality of in-laws kicks in. The book deals with a funeral, and family, and the nostalgia of returning to a home long forsaken, deviled eggs are peculiarly suited. I think we all expect them at family meals and potlucks, when the spread is making the table groan.
And these are very good deviled eggs, indeed, which shouldn't surprise you if you're familiar with Dorothy's impeccable research and attention to detail in her writing, along with her finely crafted and very real characters. The eggs will keep you coming back for more, and jostling aside the other family who are reaching for that last delectable morsel!
I've tweaked the original recipe just a tiny amount. One thing was an accident, the other on purpose.
Deviled Eggs ala Dorothy
14 Eggs (which is what my InstantPot rack holds)
1/3 c mayo (more or less)
1 tbsp brown mustard (I like the sort with whole seeds in)
1 tsp hot sauce (Cholula, tabasco, what have you)
1 tbsp bacon grease
2 tbsp dill pickle relish
1 tbsp* Pickle juice
3/4 tsp berbere (I subbed this in for the white pepper, looking for a touch more kick)
(I forgot 1 tsp mustard powder, but you could add it in if you want to punch up the mustard a notch)
smoked paprika for garnish
I have a two-tier rack for the InstantPot, just place eggs on it and add a cup of water below them. For these eggs, I put them under pressure in the InstantPot for 5 minutes, then performed a quick release before quenching the eggs in an ice bath until they were cool.
Putting the eggs in the ice bath stops the cooking process and will mostly eliminate the unsightly and stinky green oxidization of the yolks.
Once the eggs are peeled, cut each in half longitudinally. The yolks should be a nice bright yellow, and firm throughout, but not overly hard.
Perfect yolks!
Place all of the yolks into a small bowl, along with all of the other ingredients except the paprika. Set the egg whites aside.
There are many ways to vary deviled eggs, but the essence of all of them is the spiciness of the mustard and any pepper you add. Deviled is an old term that means spicy!
I used a food processor to render the filling smooth, adding the pickle juice* a little at a time. You might not need the full tablespoon to reach the desired viscosity. You want this to be smooth, but not so soft that it slumps in the egg white when used as filling. You could also do this with a hand mixer, stand mixer, or a whisk. Whatever you have!
Here the filling still has enough stiffness to maintain it's shape.
I usually pipe into the shells. If I am going to feed family, or friends, I enjoy taking the little extra effort to make it pretty. But you can just spoon it in there, and no one will care because these are delicious.
Just as they are!
To garnish, if desired, sprinkle a little bit of sweet smoked paprika over them. You don't need it, with the seedy mustard these are pretty just the way you made them.
A bit o'warmth and a boost to the bacon smokiness, these eggs are special.
And if you want, you can double the recipe. Or halve it, and enjoy them by yourself while you read Between Two Graves. Enjoy!
You can find all of the Eat This While You Read That! recipes and books at the index page, there's a lot of them!