Photo by Debbie R
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Right now you are probably thinking that I spend far too much time rooting through people’s old stuff. And I haven’t even mentioned my new estate sale obsession…But I digress…
I never actually tried a deviled egg until I was well into my thirties. I grew up Southern Baptist, for whom eating Satanic snack food is a sin almost on par with dancing. Ok, I made that up. Baptists eat heaps of deviled eggs (especially around Easter). But the sinful dancing part is true, in case y’all missed “Footloose.”
Why are these eggs brown around the edges? Because they're actually cookies! Photo by distopiandreamgirl
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I’ve kind of always had an aversion to yolks, and the only way I would eat eggs was scrambled until… My fellow Southern expats, Chad (Tennessee) and Leah (Georgia) had a brunch one Easter and there was (of course) a tray of deviled eggs. People seemed to be enjoying them immensely, and I started to feel left out – actually, the “left out” feeling began when the conversation turned to triathlons. Anyhow, I tried one. And another. And another. “Deviled eggs!” I thought. “Where have you been all my life?” Deviled eggs: “Duh! Only every gathering you’ve ever been to in the South.”
I was an immediate convert, an evangelist even. I probably went through a whole carton of deviled eggs before the novelty wore off or the cholesterol shot up. These days, I don’t make them at home much, but am always delighted to happen upon them out in the wild.
So far, I haven’t found any that tasted as heavenly as Leah’s. But I’ve used Paula Deen’s recipe, which is a pretty good approximation.
Now if only I could find a suitable deviled egg plate on which to serve them…
Paula Deen’s Traditional Southern Deviled Eggs
Ingredients
7 large eggs, hard boiled and peeled
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 ½ TBSP pickle relish (Paula specifies sweet; I prefer dill.)
1 tsp yellow mustard (French’s style, not fancy pants Gray Poupon)
Salt and pepper to taste
Paprika, sweet gherkin, or pimentos for garnishing (optional)
Directions
Halve 7 eggs lengthwise. Remove yolks and place in a small bowl.
Mash yolks with a fork and stir in mayonnaise, pickle relish, and mustard. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
Fill egg whites evenly with yolk mixture. Garnish with paprika, pickles and pimentos. Store covered in refrigerator.
Do you have a favorite deviled egg recipe? Please share!
Update: Last time I was in MS, I snagged my mom’s deviled egg plate. I’ll use it for the first time this Sunday at my friend Linda’s Easter brunch. Yay. This time around, though, I’m skipping the relish and adding bacon.
stuff southern people like 
I have a Paula Deen brand deviled egg dish. Ha. I love you, South.
Just used my deviled egg plate yesterday to serve them at Easter dinner. I inheirited my plate from my grandmother, so I always think of her when I use it. Such sweet memories. My recipe is similar to Paula Deen’s but I’ve never measured anything. They always turn out fine and all are eaten quickly. I did find out though that eggs have to be a couple of days old to hard boil them. We have chickens and we have to “age” the eggs we want to hard boil for 2-3 days or the peel will stick to the shell and won’t come off.
Bacon deviled eggs are way better than pickle relish deviled eggs. So much better.
unfortunately, i ran out of time to cook bacon and had to fall back on the relish this Easter…