Tuesday, August 19, 2008

a little birthday picnic for 12 and a secret deviled egg recipe









On Saturday we had a little birthday soiree for my brother. Jim took out the old smoker early in morning, piled in some alder and hickory wood and smoked this salmon and some outstanding ribs too (which went too quickly to get a photo of--I'm serious) while I baked this peach-blueberry cobbler--I had to--the peaches and blueberries begged me to take them home from Saturday's market.

When everyone showed up later in the day, we passed around deviled eggs first (my mom's recipe, my brother's favorite) followed by the rest: a salad of fresh heirloom tomatoes (had to supplement my own with some of these beauties from the farmers market and just a little sea salt, olive oil and basil from the garden), some corn-on-the-cob and thinly sliced cucumber salad with yogurt, dill and lemon and some cornbread with fresh corn and japaleƱos that Jim had baked alongside my cobbler in the morning.

Later, my brother wore the birthday turban, blew out the candles on the cobbler and I passed out the fake mustaches. I think we all had a grand old time and my mom said she was very impressed by our interpretation of her deviled eggs.


my nieces and practically nephew (by virtue of his boyfriendliness to Laura)

My Mom's Famous "Gone in Sixty-Seconds" Deviled Eggs
8 eggs, preferably just laid recently by a chicken
some good mayonnaise
a tsp of dijon mustard or more to taste
1-2 Tbs fresh dill, chopped fine
2 Tbs fresh minced red onion
3 little cornichon pickles or capers, chopped fine
1 tsp or so good sweet paprika
sea salt and black pepper

Boil the eggs until the yolks are just about hard but still sunny yellow. Peel while still warm (unlike what I did which was to wait until they cooled down so we had to chip off the shell, bit by bit...not fun). Cut in half vertically this time, just to shake things up a bit in the deviled egg world, and scoop out yolks into a small bowl.

Set the halved white parts on a pretty platter. You may want to slice an ever-so-thin piece off the bottoms so they don't slide around.

To the bowl with the yellows, add mayo until kind of creamy and
a tsp or so of dijon mustard to taste.
Fold in chopped dill, onion and pickle or capers and mix gently and then some paprika and salt and pepper 'til you like the flavor.
Spoon gently back into the whites

Decorate with a sprinkle of bright red paprika, a sprig of dill, a tiny slice of pickle or a caper or sometimes mom puts a little curl of smoked salmon on top which is awesome too.



20 comments:

My Sweet & Saucy said...

Thanks so much for stopping by my site! This picnic looks like a tasty one!

evencleveland said...

oooh ... i love deviled eggs and i love secret recipes. this is exciting!

a curl of smoked salmon on the top - heaven!

Mrs.French said...

adopt me into that family of yours...seriously, I want to come to the picnics. Oh and Mr. French is a Deviled Egg addict, so I can't wait to make these for him! Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Oh MY. Everything looks insanely delicious. I am definitely going to try those deviled eggs!!

Vana said...

Deviled eggs are my favs too...my hubby hates them so i get to eat all of them...yeah...i get sick from it!
I will try your recipes ASAP...Thanks for the encouraging words...you are so very kind!

Elizabeth said...

Wow, a smoker and everything. What a feast! It sounds like a great party. I am drooling at your photos and descriptions of all the dishes. Also, love those mustaches!

yasmine said...

oh my gosh. deviled eggs have got to be my most favourite appetizer. i recently had one with lobster pieces on top, and it was awesome. i have to try your recipe too!!

and thanks for stopping by my blog :) i <3 yours.

cindy* said...

can i just say that i l-o-v-e deviled eggs? and your cobbler topping looks so good and sugary. and i won't even mention the salmon and tomatoes. yum...

Robin said...

I love deviled eggs and I love cornichons - never thought to put them in the filling.

What is a "birthday turban" and what is up with the little mustaches? Are they some top-secret birthday thing I've been missing out on?

Anonymous said...

Photos look amazing and delicious. Love deviled eggs, nice twist with the tiny pickles chopped in. Must try!

lotta said...

What a feast! It sounds like such a sweet birthday get together and the food looks delicious. Right now is the best of times when everything is fresh and easy to prepare. Will try that deviled eggs recipe for sure. Cheers.

High Desert Diva said...

Oh. Yum.

please sir said...

OH YUM - I love deviled eggs - thanks for sharing!

littlebyrd said...

Fun! I love love love deviled eggs - thanks for sharing the family recipe!

Anonymous said...

My husband is a fan of delived eggs, so I will have to fix these for him. Fun sailing on the Hudson, what a nice day you all must of had.

montague said...

i am starving right now! i want to sink my teeth in everything on this post.

Laura said...

For the deviled eggs, don't forget the pinch of eggshells for that extra crunch (I think that's Grandma's secret!)

Anonymous said...

This is why i like you- Cause you live good ! do you know what i mean
a whole grain life! i will be dreaming of the salmon and tomatoes salad!

Anonymous said...

Wow those pictures are making me hungry! YUM!

Anonymous said...

That cobbler looks fantastic! Joie