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CAPE FLAVORS

How to repurpose Easter eggs

April 4, 2016

As you can see from the photo, we had a few leftovers from our annual egg-dyeing ritual. This year we almost didn’t have any eggs to color, due to a mishap in the boiling process. This week, I’ll share my hints and tips, or rather dos and don’ts, as well as some ways to use up all those hard-boiled eggs.

The first piece of advice I can offer is the proper way to hard-boil eggs; there really is a science to it. In order to avoid the unsightly greenish ring around the yolk and prevent a rubbery texture, the eggs need to be gently cooked. To start, place them in a pan in a single layer and add enough cold water to cover them by an inch.

The next step requires some attention: place the pan on the stove over high heat and bring just to a boil. Immediately remove the pan from the burner, cover tightly and let stand for about 12 minutes (a few minutes more for jumbo eggs). Once the timer rings, place the eggs in a colander and rinse under cold running water.

When eggs cook too long or at too high a temperature, the sulfur in the egg white and the iron in the yolk will react and form that undesirable green tint along the margin where they meet. Without high heat, the proteins in the eggs are cooked more slowly and remain tender, instead of becoming too chewy.

You might also be interested in a few things I learned by bitter experience to avoid. Do not leave the eggs and water-filled saucepan on the stove over high heat and go to bed. Do not turn off the timer and forget to also turn off the stove. If you detect a faint smell of burning coffee upon awakening, don’t chat with your spouse, brush your teeth or check your email before going immediately to the kitchen.

If you do not heed this advice, be prepared to find shattered brown eggshells stuck in molten black goo at the bottom of your saucepan. Inspect within a 5-foot radius from the pot for residue deposited when the eggs exploded. This will include a fine dust of mustard-colored yolk particles which settle in an unsightly layer on appliances, cabinets, tile backsplash and the floor.

Be sure to wear shoes when cleaning up; the sound of crunching shell particles will alert you to their location. Also, look closely in places across the room where your cat or dog is expressing unusual interest. They probably won’t eat much, but they’re great at sniffing out were the pieces landed.

Now that you’ve mastered the dos and don’ts of hard-boiling eggs, there are a few other considerations to keep in mind. To make your eggs easier to peel, buy them enough in advance so that they can spend about 10 days in the refrigerator before being boiled. During this time, the eggs will absorb air, creating a separation between the shell and the membranes within.

Eggs will peel fastest once they’ve been cooled, which causes them to contract slightly within the shell. Be sure to eat them within a week of boiling and a day of peeling. There are two schools of thought on peeling. Some prefer to crack the shell completely by tapping all over and then rubbing the shell off the egg under running water. My preference is to tap the egg at the fat end and peel off the shell in just a few pieces.

You can now try a few ways to serve the eggs. One of our lunchtime favorites is egg salad flavored with grainy mustard and snipped chives. Deviled eggs are always popular, either for a mid-afternoon snack or cocktail party hors d’oeuvres. I’ve included a recipe for Cobb salad that features watercress (since I had a package on hand); this one doesn’t include the chicken slices often seen in a plated Cobb salad. With all these options, before long, you’ll need to boil a few more eggs.

Deviled Eggs

6 hard-boiled eggs
2 T mayonnaise
2 t Dijon mustard
splash of Tabasco
salt & pepper, to taste
paprika

Peel the eggs, slice in half lengthwise and drop the yolks into a mixing bowl. Arrange the egg white halves on a deviled egg dish or serving platter; set aside. Mash the yolks with the back of a fork; add mayonnaise, mustard, Tabasco, salt and pepper. Mix together until smooth. Scoop the mixture into a zip-top bag and snip off a corner. Pipe the yolk mixture back into the halves. Garnish with a sprinkle of paprika and serve.

Egg Salad

1/2 peeled avocado
2 hard-boiled eggs
2 T mayonnaise
1 t coarse-grain mustard
salt & pepper, to taste
1 t snipped chives


Chop eggs into a fine dice and place in a small mixing bowl. Chop avocado and add to bowl. Add mayonnaise and mustard, stirring to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper; sprinkle with chives and serve on toasted bread or in a hollowed tomato.

Cobb Salad

1/2 lb bacon
4 oz watercress
4 hard-boiled eggs
1 pint cherry tomatoes
2 avocados
4 oz crumbled blue cheese
3 T red wine vinegar
3 T olive oil
1 T minced shallot
salt and pepper to taste


Cook the bacon until crisp. While bacon is cooking, rinse and dry the watercress. Roughly chop and place the cress in a serving bowl. Peel the eggs and quarter lengthwise; arrange the eggs in a layer on one section of the cress.

Halve the cherry tomatoes and arrange in another section, next to the eggs. Peel and slice the avocados; arrange in another section, next to the tomatoes. Pile the blue cheese next to the avocados. Drain and crumble the bacon; pile in the last section. Whisk together remaining ingredients and pour over the salad.


Send comments, questions or recipe ideas to capeflavors@comcast.net.

 

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