Food Odors – The Good, the Bad and the Outrageous…

Meet Mick. He is my youngest “son” (the other two are human). He is a 6-year old boxer and he is always on odor patrol. If there are lingering kitchen smells, he prances around – nostrils flared and makes sure I deal with the problem.

Odors are a part of food…they lure us in and they also repel us. Some smells, such as garlic and onion, are wonderful when permeating through the air – but on your breath – well, they’re not so wonderful. I recently purchased a new Asian marinade to try with my stir-fry the other night. The second I opened the bottle and got a whiff of it, I reeled - it smelled exactly like the breath of a gal that used to do my facials…it kind of grossed me out.

But let’s start with the Good smells…like bread or cookies baking. Did you know that if you are selling your house and have cookies baking in the oven while prospective buyers are checking your place out, they will have a more favorable reaction to your home?

I don’t know about you, but the first thing I notice when entering someone’s home is the smell. Baking cookies during an open house is a wise way to go – totally over-powers other household odors and makes you feel all warm and fuzzy - homey – welcome. All things you want people to feel when you’re trying to sell your home!

Okay, let’s say your house isn’t on the market - you have guests dropping by and you don’t plan on baking – but you have been and the remnants may still be in the air. An easy trick is to quarter up an apple and throw it into a saucepan full of water, along with a stick of cinnamon and a few whole cloves. Bring it to a simmer and leave it on a low flame. The whole house will smell like fresh baked apple pie! Just be sure to keep an eye on the water so it doesn’t evaporate all the way – or you’ll have the fire department dropping in next. (Not always a bad thing; have you seen the LA Fire Fighters? Yummy!)

Now getting back to the bad odors food can leave on your breath. There are some natural remedies that are available even if you are out to dinner at a restaurant! Chewing fresh herbs works wonders at ridding bad breath, especially from eating garlic or onions. Parsley isn’t just a garnish! If you chew some and swallow a bit, it will continue to help your breath for quite some time. Since parsley is high in chlorophyll, it also helps with digestion. Other herbs that help neutralize bad breath are basil, mint, rosemary and thyme. I’ve also been told sucking a lemon that has been sprinkled with salt works as well, although I’ve not tried that method…just lime and salt…but that was just to kill the taste of the tequila shots.

Bad odors don’t just happen to good people – they also happen to good cooks! And like heat, odors tend to rise. Nothing worse than crawling into your fresh linen sheets only to have the smell of pork lingering overhead. It kind of goes without saying that whenever you are searing meat, frying with oil, or cooking with seafood, it’s a good idea to open a window or two and turn on a ceiling fan to quickly get the smells shifted outdoors. But people often overlook the bits that creep upstairs…so do the same on your upper level and crack a window, turn on a fan – you will be glad you did come bedtime. For especially difficult lingering odors, put on a large kettle of water to boil (like you were making spaghetti)…toss in a few halved lemons, squeezing the juice into the water and tossing in the rinds as well as a few whole cloves (the spice - not garlic!) or some nutmeg – keep it on the boil until the essential oils have absorbed all of the fishy and/or oily odors in the air and your kitchen will smell fresh before you know it.


Now what about getting the smell of onion or garlic off your hands? The best solution I have found is to rub your hands on stainless steel. Sounds like magic – works like magic too. I have a piece of stainless steel the size of a well used bar of soap that is made especially for this purpose. If you don’t have this little luxury item, rub your hands on anything stainless steel – your knife sharpening rod is good – a knife would be good too … but watch out for the blade. What good are odorless hands if they are bloody?


Let’s see, we’ve covered good smells, bad smells – that leaves the outrageous. I have to mention this, although it is rather disgusting, but it is such an amazing freak-of-nature phenomenon – it must be shared. A loved one (who, like all others with supernatural powers, shall remain anonymous) can emit this one fart that smells so much like an egg salad sandwich, you have to experience it to understand what I am about to say… We were visiting with an ex-college roommate a couple years ago and somehow the topic of this “egg-salad” fart came up. The ex-roomie sheepishly admitted that weirdly enough, upon smelling one – they would actually start craving an egg-salad sandwich! I about fell off my chair – because it is so true! (Now THAT’S the really disgusting part). Inspiring egg salad sandwiches without uttering a word...it's a gift I tell you!!!

“Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.” Doug Larson

Bruschetta Sandwich

4 sandwich thins, Costco*
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, roughly chopped
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup red onion, chopped

*(Sourdough or ciabatta make a great substitution).




Heat up your Panini press. If you don't have one, you should get one! (Have I said that before? Probably) Meanwhile, if you must make do without, use two fry pans - one to put the sandwiches in and another, one size smaller, to place on top of the sandwiches to weight down for better browning.

Combine all ingredients and divide as stuffing between the four sandwiches. Lightly oil outsides of sandwiches and grill until crispy, approximately 5 minutes.

These "sandwich thins" are something new I found at Costco. They are lovely in that you can have a sandwich without feeling all bread-bloated...Just the right amount of bread - - cuz it's really hard to go without completely but let's be realistic, sometimes wraps just aren't enough!

“Hors D'oeuvre: A ham sandwich cut into forty pieces” Jack Benny

Tropical Fruit Tart

This tart is so refreshing and amazingly versatile. You can stick with a single type of fruit or use a combo of your favorite fruits.

Depending on the fruit you choose, you can also switch up the flavor of gelatin in the glaze and leave off the nuts.

Deceptively easier to make than it looks, this is a great dessert to bring to get-togethers and it’s also a healthier alternative to heavier more calorie laden desserts.

Easy to make, healthy, impressive appearance…this tart is ALL good!



Crust Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened to room temperature
1/4 cup crushed macadamia nuts *optional.

Crust Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350-degrees. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, confectioners’ sugar and nuts. Gently stir in softened butter, do not over mix. Press into a tart pan with removable sides. Refrigerate for approximately 30 minutes. Transfer tart pan to baking sheet for stability and bake for 20 minutes or until crust is slightly golden. Leave crust in pan and cool on a rack to room temperature before filling.

Filling Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese
4 ounces Cool Whip topping
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon brandy or rum *optional - Can also use imitation flavoring in place of alcohol or just eliminate entirely.

Filling Instructions:
Blend cream cheese and powdered sugar. Fold Cool Whip and brandy or rum extract into cream cheese/sugar blend. Spoon filling into cooled crust and spread evenly over bottom and to crust edge.

Topping Ingredients:
Approximately 1 quart fresh fruit, sliced and patted dry. Fruits that work well alone or combined are strawberries; mango, blueberries; raspberries - anything bright and fresh. I prefer to use several fruits of different colors. Patting the fruit dry keeps it from bleeding.
Macadamia nuts for garnish. *optional.

Topping Instructions:
Slice fruit to desired shape and thickness, and lay out decoratively atop cream cheese filling. If using strawberries by themselves, I prefer to leave them whole. Cutting off the stems, I place them cut side down so the strawberries stand up in beautiful, plump, red mounds. Be creative - depending on the fruit of choice, slice in whatever shape you desire to make a beautiful design.
If desired, add chopped/or halved macadamia nuts decoratively around the edge of the tart.

Glaze Ingredients:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 to 3 tablespoons off Jell-O powder.

Hint: When you choose a flavor of Jell-O, make sure that it not only compliments the flavor of the fruit you are using, but that the color goes well too. Example; use strawberry Jell-O for strawberries, or if using multi-colors of fruit, lemon is a good choice as the colors show through the yellow shade quite well. For this tart I had peach on hand - it worked fine and the flavor was great but I still would have preferred to have had lemon on hand...it really brightens up the colors of the fruit, whereas the peach tended to make the fruit look like it was covered in caramel - not a bad look, just different.

Glaze Instructions:
In a small sauce pan over medium heat, cook sugar, water and cornstarch until it has thickened and turned opaque. Remove from heat and whisk in the Jell-O powder. Allow to cool partially before pouring over the fruit. Pour the glaze over the fruit starting in the center of the tart and circling around and around until you reach the edge. Make sure to cover all the fruit; the glaze will spread out in between the fruit on its own. Refrigerate tart, uncovered, until ready to serve. Remove tart pan rim just prior to serving. If glaze has dripped over edge of tart pan, simply run your finger around the top of the edge and that will 'cut' through the glaze for easy release. Be sure to refrigerate any unused portions.

  

“Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.” ~ Ernestine Ulmer

Spring Pasta

This pasta is perfect for spring with a mix of roasted vegetables and fresh, raw vegetables in a very light cream sauce.

You can combine whatever fresh vegetables look best at the market. I would have loved to have had access to asparagus to add to this, unfortunately the batch at the store was a bit shriveled, which can give it a woody texture, so I passed on the asparagus and added slivered artichoke. Quite a good exchange.


Ingredients:
8 ounces, roasted cherry tomatoes (see instructions below)
6 roasted garlic cloves, thinly sliced (see instructions below)
1, large artichoke heart, slivered (see instructions below)
4 ounces thinly sliced Pancetta, crisped (See Recipe Categories)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup pasta water, set aside
4 lemons, divided
1 carrot, shaved
4 ounces, Parmesiano Reggiano, shaved (see instructions below)
4 ounces, feta cheese, crumbled
1 cup cooked petite green peas
2 Roma tomato, seeded and diced
2-3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon dried parsley (or 2 tablespoons fresh, chopped)
4-6 basil leaves, ribbons
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
12 ounces lemon infused pasta (see instructions below) - In this dish I opted for whole grain Rotini.

INSTRUCTIONS
For lemon-infused pasta add two or three fresh lemons to the water you will be cooking the pasta in.
Tip: Because the pasta gets its only flavor from the water, it is very important to give the water a liberal addition of salt before boiling. Adding lemon, gives the pasta a wonderful lemon zing. I halve the lemons and squeeze the juice into the water, holding one hand underneath the lemon to catch the seeds. Discard the seed but throw the leftover rind halves into the water. The oils from the lemon are essential for adding flavor. I also add oil to the boiling water. I realize it just floats on top as the water boils so you’re probably wondering what good it does – The good comes in when you go to drain your pasta as it does aid in the noodles not sticking together in the strainer.

Boil your pasta per package instructions.  Before straining, pull out ½ cup of the boiling water and set aside. Strain the rest of the water out of the pasta and remove the lemon rinds.

In a large bowl, combine the roasted cherry tomatoes, sliced roasted garlic, slivered artichoke, crispy Pancetta, heavy cream, the pasta water you set aside, the juice of one lemon, carrot, peas, fresh tomato, green onions, basil, parsley, red pepper flakes – pour pasta atop and toss to combine. Top with shaved Parmesiano Reggiano and crumbled feta.

Roasting cherry tomatoes:

Place tomatoes on rimmed baking sheets.
(For grape tomatoes - leave whole.)
(For cherry tomatoes - halve and place cut side up.)
(For Roma tomatoes - halve, remove seeds and place cut side up.)
Drizzle tomatoes with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil.
Sprinkle generously with coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. *Optional: Sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes.

Roast tomatoes at 350-degrees for approximately 30 minutes or until wilted and slightly golden.

Roasting Garlic
Cut the top third off the head of one large garlic. Place garlic, cut side up, in a small baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Cover with foil and bake 350-degrees for 30 to 45 minutes or until garlic is soft to touch. Let cool before handling, then squeeze softened garlic from paper-like casings.
For slivered roasted garlic leave cloves whole and refrigerate to firm up before slicing into slivers.
For garlic paste smash cloves while still warm with some of the oil, salt and pepper it was roasted in to form paste.

Preparing Artichoke for Slicing

Cut artichoke in half, lengthwise. Remove leaves from heart - These can be served with a dip if you wish, but for this purpose I only needed the heart (so I snacked on the tips of the leaves while making the pasta...that's the best use yet!) Remove any remaining fur from center of artichoke. Using a vegetable peeler, clean up stem of heart.

Cut heart into quarters, lengthwise.
Slice each quarter, lengthwise, into thin slices.
Toss with lemon juice to prevent browning.
Set aside.
(For use in a cold salad, refrigerate until ready to use).


 

For Shaved Parmesanio Reggianio use an extra large grater.
If you do not have such a large grate, you can use a vegetable
peeler and simply shave strips off the side of the block of cheese.
I've not seen a grater as large as mine before. My mother-in-law found it in an antique store - she is always spot on with those perfect, unique gifts! It's great (or should I say "grate") for making slaw as well.
 

"Life is a combination of magic and pasta." Federico Fellini

Colorful Fruit Salad

Colorful and Simple Fruit Salad
3 - 4 cups fresh cut fruit. Try to use at least 3 varieties and colors minimum. In this batch I used mango, strawberry, kiwi and blueberry.
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey

In small bowl whisk together honey and vinegar. If you do not have white vinegar you can use regular balsamic, but it will give the fruit a bit of a darker tint - still looks lovely though - when I've used the dark, I also sprinkled a wee bit of poppy seeds over salad - went well together.

Stir honey/balsamic dressing into fruit, toss, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour for flavors to mingle and fruit to release its sweetness. Using slotted spoon, transfer fruit to another bowl just prior to serving.

Besides a lovely salad, this also makes a great dessert topping for ice cream or alone with a dollop of creme fraiche or cool whip. Easy!

Stuffing and Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 String Cheese sticks
1 box, Twin-pack (2, 6 ounce packets) Cornbread Stuffing Mix, Mrs. Cubbison's
1 can Cream of Celery soup
2 eggs, divided
1/4 cup milk
Dash Louisiana hot sauce
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Working with one chicken breast at a time, place into a gallon-size zip bag, leaving baggy unzipped, pound meat out with smooth side of a meat mallet to approximately double width (about 5" x 7" x 1/4") rectangle. Remove flattened breast from bag and place on plate. Top with wax paper. Repeat process with remaining three breasts. Set aside.


Pour one of the 6 ounce bags of stuffing mix into a clean gallon-size ziploc bag. With rolling pin or smooth side of meat mallet, smash stuffing mix into crumbs. Pour into low flat bowl and set aside.

In another low flat bowl, combine milk and one egg, with one dash of hot sauce. Whisk to combine and set aside.

Place cream of celery soup (undiluted) into a medium-size, microwave safe bowl. Nuke until heated through. Add contents of second 6 ounce bag stuffing mix and one slightly beaten egg to the heated soup and stir until well combined. Divide stuffing mixture into fourths. With hands, pack one-fourth of the stuffing around one string cheese. Place stuffing encased cheese on short end of flattened chicken breast and roll into tube shape. Repeat with remaining cheese, stuffing and chicken.

Dip stuffed chicken rolls into milk/egg mixture and roll in stuffing bread crumbs. Meanwhile, heat olive oil and butter in large skillet. Place stuffed chicken rolls in hot skillet and bake approximately 3 minutes, give a quarter turn and bake another 3 minutes, repeat until all four sides are browned. Spray small casserole dish with non-stick spray and place browned stuffed chicken rolls into casserole dish. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Let set 5 minutes before cutting - then cut into thirds or fourths and fan out a single roll onto a plate or all four onto a platter.

This is a simple dish to prepare but it is also company worthy in that is looks fairly elegant when you cut the rolls open to expose the lovely swirls of layers and oozing cheese. The crunchy outer coating really makes this dish stand well on it's own (as in without gravy).

Tonight I served this dish with a side of scored new potatoes (recipe to follow) and some steamed broccoli. Since it is just the two of us we have two rolls leftover. I'm thinking tomorrow night I'll slice the stuffed rolls into 1/2 inch slices and serve on sourdough bread with cranberry sauce and cream cheese - should make GREAT sandwiches!

Crispy Scored New Potatoes

1 pound new potatoes
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and coarse ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350-degrees.

Cut each new potato in half. Score hashmarks just slightly into cut side of each half. Place in a single layer in a large roasting pan. Toss with salt, pepper and oil. Turn each half so that cut/scored side is up.

Bake for 30 minutes. Turn each half cut side down and continue to bake for aproximately 15 minutes more or until cut sides of potatoes are golden brown. These are so tasty they don't need butter or further seasoning.

Egg Foo Young Pie

Okay, you are going to LOVE this! You know how the best part of Thanksgiving is the sandwich the day after? Well, THIS dish is the best part of having Chinese take-outs! I came up with the idea from a dish I used to love as a child called Egg Foo Young - similar but changed up a bit, this has many, many possibilities.

This recipe works with any combo of Chinese food leftovers you have. Just make sure if any of the leftovers contain a lot of sauce, you'll want to remove the meat/veggies from that particular dish before adding it in with the filling ingredients for this pie. Tonight the leftovers I had on hand to work with were crispy honey glazed chicken, sweet and sour chicken, two egg rolls and about a cup of fried rice, plus another cup of white rice.

Here are the instructions for this amazing dish that I promise, once you make it - you'll be sure to order extra Chinese every time to insure leftovers so that you can make this Egg Foo Pie again and again.

EGG FOO YOUNG PIE
Leftover Filling:
1 refrigerated pie crust
3 cups leftover Chinese food, chopped
1 cup white rice
Custard filling:
3 eggs + 1 egg yolk
1 cup milk
1 T. flour
1 T. soy sauce
 Gravy:
2 tablespoons Sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons Hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons Sweet & sour sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 cup cold milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 package Hollendaise sauce mix, highly recommend Knorr brand!
Topping:
Crunchy chow mein noodles
2 - 3 green onions, sliced on a diagonal

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
Gently lay out refrigerated pie crust dough into a pie plate. No need to flute edges, as we will fold them over the filling in a rustic stil after the filling has been added.

Empty Chinese leftovers onto cutting board, again, make sure if any of the leftovers contain a lot of liquid, such as a sweet & sour sauce, to remove the meat/vegetables from the sauce and discard the sauce. Chop all of the leftovers together into small bite-size pieces, approximately 1" chunks. Put the leftovers into a microwave safe bowl and heat just until warmed through.

Pour the warm leftovers into the pie crust and spread out evenly across bottom of pie. Crumble the white rice evenly over the top of the leftover filling. Top with the grated cheese.

In medium-size bowl whisk together 3 eggs, 1 yolk, 1 cup milk, 1 tablespoon flour and 1 tablespoon soy sauce. Pour egg mixture evenly over filling ingredients.

Gently fold back pie crust edges up over filling. Pinch together any folds in the dough as you go, for a rustic edge.

Bake for 55 minutes or until top of pie is golden and eggs have set.

Check the crust about 30 minutes into the baking, if edges are already golden, cover with pie ring or foil trim to protect so the crust does not burn before the eggs have set.

Gravy:  In a small saucepan whisk together 1 cup cold milk with 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 2 tablespoons each; Sweet chili sauce, Hoisin sauce and Sweet & sour sauce, add in Hollendaise sauce mix and whisk until smooth. Add 1/4 cup melted butter and whisk sauce over medium heat until thickened and bubbly.

Pour gravy over slices of Egg Foo Pie. Top with crunchy chow mein noodles and chopped green onion. Because you'll have different leftovers each time, depending on what you order - you will have fun playing with the different combos.

'Confucious say:  Man with one chopstick go hungry'
(You'll want to show up for this meal with a fork in each hand!)

Chipotle-Maple Glazed Drummettes and Spicy Spanish Rice

You are going to love the blend of smokey chipotle and rich maple! My new favorite combo...

Chipotle-Maple Glazed Chicken
12-16 chicken drummettes
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup honey
1, 7 ounce can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce*
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
*(Remove 2-3 peppers and set aside to use in rice).

Preheat oven to 450-degrees.

Combine the honey, maple syrup, and chipotle peppers (setting aside 2 or 3 to go in the Spanish rice) with adobo sauce in a large, re-sealable plastic bag. Smoosh contents together to mix and then add the chicken to the bag and seal with as little air as possible in the bag.  Marinate for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight.

I have found that placing meat in a baggie with a marinade, even with barely any air in the bag, parts of the meat are still left uncovered and you have to keep going in and shifting the bag to make sure the meat is equally soaked. To solve this problem, I like to put my 'marinade bags' inside another container to insure each piece of meat stays completely covered by the liquid during the whole marinade process.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Place the chicken on a foil-lined baking shee and bake approximately 20 to 25 minutes until skin has carmalized and darkened. (Increase cooking time by approximately 10 minutes for regular size drumsticks/wings if you do not have access to drummettes).  Place chicken on serving platter and top with chopped cilanatro.

Spicy Spanish Rice
1/2 cup long grain, white rice
1/2 cup water
1, 15 ounce can, Stagg Chili, Vegetable Garden 4-bean Chili
2 or 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced finely

I use a rice cooker and if you don't own one, I highly recommend that you look into getting one. You will never have under or overdone rice again!  Simply put all of the above ingredients into the rice cooker, stir. Cover and set the timer per your appliance recommendations, in my case for 60 minutes.   When done, carefully remove the lid - steam hurts! Stir and serve. I like to serve my Spanish rice in tortilla bowls. 

Please note; chipotle peppers are very, very spicy - so if you're not a fan of hot, you can reduce the number of chili's you add to this - or, you can open the chilis and remove their seeds (discard seeds), but if you do this, use gloves to prevent the chili oil from getting on your fingers and possibly later into your eyes.

Perfect Asparagus

I was on the phone with one of my many, many neices this Easter (note how I am not giving any clues as to which one). I asked what she was having for dinner, and one of the items she listed was "those green slimey things mom likes"...After some sluething, it was concluded she was describing asparagus. This prompted me to post on how to make perfect asparagus every time. I agree with my neice, when not cooked properly, aspargus is nasty stuff! By the way, my definition of perfect aspargus is that it is bright in color, crispy to the teeth and seasoned only enough to enhance the natural flavor.

First of all, when you are choosing asparagus, grasp the center of a single spear and pull gently. The spear should feel firm, and not at all rubbery. There should be no apparent wrinkles in the spears either. I try to buy asparagus that is pencil thin, not for any reason other than I don't want to have to spend the time paring it down if it is the fat kind. 

Rinse well. Place the center of a single spear between the thumb and forefinger of one hand, and grasp the farthest end of the stem with your other hand. Bend and the spear will break naturally at the place where the woody tip begins. Lay the 'snapped' spear next to the rest of the spears and cut them all the same length.

Hint:  I have found the best way to cook asparagus evenly is in a skillet. Place the spears in a single layer and cover with approximately 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil and let boil ONLY 1 MINUTE. Immediately remove asparagus from the skillet and place into a bowl of ice and water - let sit for 5 minutes. Drain. This stops the asparagus from overcooking, a.k.a. from being 'slimey' and also brightens the green color of the vegetable, which makes it more appealing. (Please note that if you are using the thicker asparagus, you may need to add 1 to 2 more minutes to the cooking time).

(See how, after the ice bath, they are almost greener than when they were fresh?!)

At this point, either cut spears on a diagonal into 2 inch sections - or leave whole. Return asparagus to the skillet. Add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon of soy sauce. Cook over medium heat until just reheated through. Serve immediately.

I like to use soy sauce in place of salt with my cooked veggies. It adds a hint of extra flavor without being obvious it is soy. Love it!
 
Time for me to go marinade the chicken for tonight...chipotle-maple - - - watch for it!

Colorful Stuffed Easter Eggs

Deviled Eggs, or stuffed eggs are always a hit and I use this coloring of the egg whites technique for several different occasions. To name a few:

 Bloodshot eyes for Halloween (see 10-11-09 post)
 Baby blue and/or Pastel Pink for baby showers
 Red and green for Christmas
 Bright green for St. Patrick's Day (and I also color the yolk green for this holiday!)
 For Easter (and birthdays) I keep it muli colored...

Here is how it is done:

To Make 12 Stuffed Eggs You Will Need:
7 hard boiled eggs *
6 different food colors
6 small, deep containers for dying whites (coffee cups work well)

*this gives you 2 extra white halves in case of tears or imperfections...

Slice each hard boiled egg in half lenghtwise.

Remove yolks and place in separatebowl.

Gently rinse egg whites to remove any residue left by the yolk.

Lay out wax paper to place under coloring-cups and don plastic gloves to protect hands if desired.

In each of 6 containers, place several drops of food coloring - fill the container 3/4 full with water.

Divide whites into color baths and let sit until you reach the desired depth of color.

Drain whites on paper towels.

To Stuff Eggs:

7 egg yolks

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon super fine sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cumin (optional)

dash of hot sauce (optional)

colorful sprinkles (optional - can also top with chives)

Place yolks into a fine sieve and using the back of a spoon, gently rub yolks through the sieve into a small bowl. This works like a ricer and gives the yolks a perfect, smooth texture.

Add remaining ingredients to the yolks and stir well to combine.

For a professional look, pipe yolks into the colored whites using a large star tip. If you do not own icing tips, mound yolks into colored-white with a spoon.

Top with colorful sprinkles, if desired and serve on deviled egg platter. The crunch and sweetness of the sprinkles are a great contrast for this slightly tart, slightly smokey stuffing recipe. If you do not have sprinkles, top with chives or sprinkle with sweet paprika. If available, add a spring of parsley for garnish.

(For instructions on how to make The Perfect Hard Boiled Egg Everytime, scroll back to my post dated 9-29-09).

Hint:  If you should have any leftovers, which is a rare thing, store on the serving plate, covered with a saran wrap. To prevent 'smooshing' place a round ended toothpick (or fancy hor's d's style toothpicks) into each stuffed egg before covering with saran.

If your toothpicks are the kind that are sharp on both ends - simply put a miniature marshmallow on the tip that will go next to the saran wrap to prevent it from puncturing.  (Same method of storage is good for iced brownies too).