"Pumpkin" Deviled Eggs

Halloween is right around the corner and the topic of discussion is "what are you bringing to the kids Trunk or Treat or Halloween party". There are so many options but depending on the rules and regulations for your child's school you may be limit in what you can buy or bring. This year I don't have to worry about accommodating anyone but my friends and family. So I'm planning on making one of my favorite dishes, perfect for any get together. Deviled eggs. It's hand held and tasty. Not to mention much better than a regular boiled eggs. In my filling I'm adding spicy mustard to give it a little kick. The filling for a deviled egg is very versatile. I love adding bacon and small chunks of jalapeño when I don't have to worry specific palettes.

With no restrictions, it's even easier to get into the Halloween spirit. It of course doesn't hurt that this dish is so easy to alter and easy to make with your children. I'm adding some orange food coloring to make the egg yolk filling look more like a pumpkin. And my little one is acting as sous chef mixing it up for me. With some red food coloring and olives you can make them look like scary eyes. Let's be honest, one of the best parts of the holidays is spending time with family and eating lots of food. So let's have some fun with it.

Deviled Eggs

Makes 12 deviled eggs

Ingredients

6 eggs

1/4 cup of mayo

1 teaspoon spicy mustard

1 teaspoon sweet relish

1/8 teaspoon of salt

fresh pepper

paprika for garnish

parsley for garnish

Optional: orange food coloring

Directions:

Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cool water. 

Place pan on high heat and cook until water comes to a rolling boil.
Remove pan from heat and set aside for 12 minutes.

Remove eggs from water and gently tap the tip of the egg on counter to crack shell (if having trouble place egg under cool water or submerge in ice water).
Peel eggs. 

Slice eggs in half from top to bottom.

Remove yolks from whites and place in a bowl.

Mash yolks with a fork.

Add mayo, mustard and relish. Then mix and mash until smooth.

Add salt and pepper.

If making for a holiday add food coloring

Spoon a tablespoon of mixture into egg white and garnish

Coffee Creme Brûlée

Has there ever been a dish that you loved but you just didn't believe you could make it yourself? Creme brûlée was that dish for me. I feel like it is one of the ultimate decadent desserts. So for years I was hesitant to make it. Of course, once I finally had the gumption to do it, I tried to follow the recipe exactly. And what was the result you might ask? Even though I followed the recipe exactly, my brûlée did not look like the one in the picture. It just wouldn't set up. So, I put it back in the oven to cook a little longer. I don't know how many times I ended up putting it back in but it was more than once. When it was finally done, it was delicious. Minus the little timing mishap, it was all okay. I learned two important lessons that night,

1) the whole fantasy of timer on the oven going off exactly as everyone is done with their main course is just that, a fantasy for t.v. and movies. That doesn't happen in real life.
2) directions are meant as a guide. We live in different places with different altitudes and have different stoves/ovens etc. Which means sometimes you have to wing it.

Why was I so afraid? Probably because it is one of my husband's favorite desserts or it's one of those dishes served in fancy restaurants. Whatever the reasoning, I didn't want to mess it up (I hate failing). And of course, I didn't make it before this big dinner with our friends. So, I was embarrassed that people had to wait for dessert (actually now that I think about it... the whole dinner might have been late). But now that I've made it a couple of times I think I'm ready to take it up a notch. Coffee Creme Brûlée. This is the ultimate test because now I'm combining hubby's fav dessert with one of his favorite drinks. But I love mash-ups. Just the idea of creme brûlée, a classic French dessert, mixed with frenzy of coffee. The sustenance of most people's daily existence. So popular it's one of the beverages in the book The World In 6 Glasses, where Brian Hedweck lays out how coffee changed the world.

Millions of people think that they can not live without it. In a national coffee survey approximately 53.9% of people would give up their cell phone before giving up coffee(see coffee survey). Really? I don't believe it but maybe this combo of coffee and creme would make me give up mine. What do you think?

Coffee Creme Brûlée
Makes 6 servings

Ingredients
1 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons of sugar
6 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups of heavy cream
2 teaspoons instant coffee

Tools needed: 6 ramekins or oven safe bowls, baking pan, wire rack ( no torch needed)

*Note: I'm using ramekins that are 6 inches in diameter and a bit deeper. Most creme brûlée ramekins are wider and flatter. This will change the cooking time.

Directions:
In a medium pot over medium high heat, bring cream, coffee and vanilla until coffee dissolves. About 2 minutes.

Remove pot from heat and let it come to room temperature. Approximately 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large pot over high heat boil 1 1/2 cups of water.

In a large bowl, whisk yolks with 1 cup of granulated sugar (the finer the better) until thick and a pale yellow.

If any foam has developed on the top of the heavy cream mixture skim it off.

Using a spatula, stir in cooled cream (try not to create bubbles or froth) until fully mixed. This helps to give you a nice smooth top to the custard mixture.

Evenly divide custard mixture into 6 ramekins.

Place ramekins in pan and gently pour hot water into baking pan - at least half way up the side of the ramekins.

Bake custard mixture until set on the outside and a little jiggly in the middle - about 45 minutes to 55 minutes.

Allow custard to cool down in water bath.

Once completely cooled, cover with plastic wrap and put in fridge. The mixture will continue to firm in the fridge.

Once ready to serve, preheat broiler.

Remove custard from fridge and blot away any moisture with a paper towel.

Evenly sprinkle 1/2 a tablespoon of sugar on the top of each custard and place in oven on broil.

After about 2 minutes sugar should begin to boil and turn a deep brown.This process can take up to 5 minutes if the rack is in the middle of the oven.

Remove from oven and place back on wire rack.

Wait for sugar to harden then serve.

Want to jazz it up a bit?

Serve with a little bit of whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

How do you like your creme brûlée? I'm thinking maybe chocolate next time!


P.S. If you are wondering what to do with all those egg whites, try this Belgian waffle recipe.

Cold Sesame Noodles

I love noodles!! It's a carb thing. I remember my first time having cold sesame noodles, I was taken aback. There was a large group of us and one of my friends was familiar with the restaurant so she ordered for all of us. I had no idea the dish ordered would be cold. Once I got over the shock, I realized I was in love. Not only is this dish tasty, it works particularly well when you need a quick meal (like a school lunch). The noodles only take 5 minutes to cook and it does not need to be re-heated. I actually always have a bag of flat buckwheat noodles laying around. It's perfect for that morning you decided to ignore the alarm and time got away from you.

But back to the noodles. I remember reading an article in the New York Eater about these noodles originating almost 40 years ago in New York at a restaurant called Hwa Yuan. The article stated that it was the favorite dish of all the stars. Well, we are all stars today. Hooray!!

Note: Adapted from the recipe in the New York Times. The recipe below suggests chinese sesame paste but I use tahini paste because that's what I have on hand in my house.

Cold Sesame Noodles
Makes 6 Servings

Ingredients:
1 pound Chinese buckwheat noodles (spaghetti noodles)
2  1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
3 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Chinese rice vinegar
2 tablespoons Chinese sesame paste (or tahini paste)
1 tablespoon smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon grated ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons chili -garlic paste - optional

Garnish: Carrots, cucumbers or radishes cut into match sticks
sesame seeds
finely chopped green onion

Note: 2 packets of soy sauce equals a little more than 1 tablespoon. Yeah, I've done it. So what.

Directions: 

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and allow noodles to cook about 5 minutes or until tender.

Drain pot and rinse noodles with cold water.

Sprinkle noodles with 1/2 tablespoon of sesame oil. Place noodles in the fridge.

In a bowl whisk together sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame paste, sugar, ginger, garlic and chili -garlic paste (if using)

Pour sauce over noodles and toss.

Add garnishes.

This is really a versatile dish that can become a full meal if you add a protein like tofu or chicken.

So, how will you eat your sesame noodles?