Buffalo Style Deviled Eggs

My mother-law-bought me this sign. She said it reminded her of me when she saw it and couldn't resist. 

No, she doesn't think I'm wicked, I think it's because I introduced our family to Soy Sauce Wasabi Deviled eggs. I came across this recipe during a research session and served them at a recipe testing dinner. We were all blown away by the deliciousness of these deviled eggs. The hard boiled eggs are soaked in a soy sauce mixture for several hours, then split open and the yolks are whipped with wasabi, Sriracha and mayo. They are addicting and this recipe was instantly added to our catering menu.

Those deviled eggs had me thinking one day, "I wonder how many other ways a deviled egg can be altered from the traditional backyard BBQ party version we are all familiar?"

Buffalo wings came to mind and this "wicked chicken" certainly laid one hell of a "deviled egg."

You can certainly go out and buy your own blue cheese dressing for this recipe, but I recommend making your own. Most likely, you already have most of what you need in the refrigerator. Why clutter your fridge with a store bought bottle?

Let's start with the BLUE CHEESE DRESSING:

7 ounces of Stilton Blue Cheese, crumbled

4 ounces of cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup of a good quality mayo

About 2/3 cup of half-and-half, see preparation tip*

Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and mayo together until smooth.

*PREPARATION TIP: My husband likes a thicker blue cheese dressing. I added the half-and-half, a little at a time, to get the consistency I wanted. Feel free to use more or less. 

The dressing will tighten up after some time in the refrigerator. 

Fold in the crumbled blue cheese. I used Trader Joe's Stilton Blue Cheese for this recipe. 

Salt and pepper to taste and transfer to a tightly sealed container. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. This recipe will make about 2 cups of dressing. 

HARD BOILED EGGS: UPDATED!!

Everyone has their own way of hard boiling eggs. I've seen twitter wars break out over the best way to hard boil eggs. I used to boil for 1 minute, take them off the heat and cover for 11-12 minutes. Then give them an ice water bath.

The ice water bath is still the same. HOWEVER, The Bell House now STEAMS their eggs. Yes, STEAM! I read in an American Test Kitchen Cookbook for how to “hard boil” the perfect egg. I decided to give it a go. PEOPLE, steaming is the way to go. I tried it with 3 eggs and then again with 15 eggs. The only adjustment needed to ensure fully cooked yolks, is to increase the time by 1 minute to account for crowding in the pan.

The best part, the satisfaction in peeling the eggs. The shells practically fall off the egg white. I just steamed almost 100 eggs the other day and each and every egg came out perfect.

1st, set a pot with a few inches of water and turn it on high. When the water starts to steam, lay the steam tray filled with eggs over the pot and cover with a lid. Set the timer for 13 minutes if you have not crowded the eggs and 14 minutes if you stuffed the steamer.

Meanwhile, fill a bowl with ice and cold water. 

When the timer is up, pull the eggs out of the steamer basket and immediately submerge them into the ice water bath. 

Let the eggs hang out for a few minutes or until they are cool enough to handle. Pull out an egg and crack the shell. Let the wave of accomplishment wash over you with every silky smooth egg.

Look at all those perfectly peeled eggs.

BUFFALO STYLE DEVILED EGGS:

Hard boiled eggs

Blue cheese dressing, recipe above

Celery seed

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Frank's Red Hot Sauce

Celery sticks

Slice each egg in half and transfer the yolks to a bowl.

I added 2 heaping spoonfuls of dressing at a time, gave it a good mix to get the consistency I was looking for.

This is what 6 egg yolks look like after two spoonfuls of dressing. I added two more spoonfuls of dressing.

Salt and pepper to taste. Put the filling into a piping bag.

PREPARATION TIP: If you are heading to a party and in charge of deviled eggs, putting the filling in a piping bag will ensure your deviled eggs stay pretty. Store the filling in the piping bag until you get to the party and then take a minute fill each egg. If you use disposable piping bags, even better!

Top each egg with a sprinkling of celery seed.

Right before service, douse your eggs with the Frank's Red Hot, serve with celery sticks and watch them disappear.