• 10 hard-boiled eggs
• 2 tablespoons mayo
• 1/2 teaspoon of curry
• 1/2 teaspoon of mustard
• Salt & pepper

Set eggs in a medium sauce pan filled with water.  Heat over high heat just until the water comes to a rolling boil; reduce heat & let simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes to make sure the eggs are completely cooked.  Remove the eggs from heat & place them in a bowl with cold water.  Peel.

Cut the eggs lengthwise in half, carefully.  Remove the yolks delicately into a smaller bowl without damaging the whites, and set aside.  Set the whites cavity-side-up on a large serving dish, making sure they’re dry & sturdy.

Add the ingredients to the yolks in a separate bowl and blend until pasty.  Here you can add any other element of flavoring to the yolks: try olives or mushrooms!  For first-timers, though, I highly recommend keeping it simple for now.  Place the filling in the whites carefully.  You can squeeze the filling through a pipe or pastry tube, or simply place into the crevice delicately with a spoon – as seen in the picture.  Sprinkle with paprika (I use the slightly spicy kind we find here in Germany).  Chill slightly before serving.

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I remember the first time I had devilled eggs in a true all-American setting.  I always knew what they were, and I’m pretty sure I had had them before at my grandmother’s.  But it was Easter break in college when I realized how much a part of American culture this little egg delicacy was.  I was alone on campus for the break and a local friend who lived in our dorm invited me & my other international friend to her parent’s house for Easter Sunday.  I couldn’t get enough of them as appetizers!  Often served for holidays and parties, now we have them here at home just because!  I even used to pack them in my older daughter’s lunchbox decorated as little chicks with black-olive eyes & a paprika beak!  She’s loved them ever since.

The term ‘devilled’ is generally only used in a culinary context for spicy or zesty foods that use mustard, pepper or paprika as condiments.  In many parts of the United States, the term ‘stuffed’ or ‘dressed’ eggs is also used, particularly when served in church or holiday functions, where the term ‘devilled’ is obviously inappropriate.  Although popular all over the world, they are common hors d’oeuvres in the United States during Christmas and Easter.  To us, it’s the perfect way to make bland hard-boiled eggs into a fun dinner idea.