Avocado Deviled Eggs

Hello again!

This time we've got a collaborative effort on the inspiration and execution of this recipe. The BF and I have been keeping a list of things to make and trying to get one crossed off now and again between everything else. So this last time we made Avocado Deviled Eggs. I love deviled eggs, and so does the BF, though we have our differences (I am not a pickle juice fan), and we both love avocado, so it seemed like a no-brainer. Also, healthier! Let's go!

Here's the arsenal- simple, and tweak according to your tastes!!

Here's the filling in my mini food processor.- for more eggs you'll need a bigger one, a mixer, or do batches! But the mini one sure is cute!

Alright, here are the eggs almost done- filling and whites, just waiting!

Avocado Deviled Eggs
-6 eggs, hard-boiled
-1 avocado
-1 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise
-2 teaspoons good mustard
-salt
-pepper
-paprika
-optional: lime juice, pickle juice, other spices, etc.- make it how you like it!)
Peel your hard-boiled eggs, cut in half lengthwise, and separate the yolks.
To the yolks add your avocado, mayo, mustard, salt and pepper to taste, and anything else you’re putting in the filling.
Use a masher, blender, or food processor to make your filling mostly smooth.
Pipe or spoon (both techniques are in the pictures- to pipe, put your filling in a ziplock and snip the corner, or use a pastry bag) your filling into the waiting egg whites, sprinkle with paprika, and you’re done! Enjoy!

You can either spoon or pipe the filling into the whites- my eggs had no lime juice or any acid, and I spooned them, while the piped ones are by the BF and are a little more zesty- make it your own!

Savor it!
love, rue

Breakfast Shrimp Melts

Hi everyone!

This is a post inspired by the cooking of the BF at the beach the other weekend, but I'll be doing the writing. This is a really simple recipe that I'm told is also made without the egg on top, and is hence not a "breakfast" melt anymore. I for one had never heard of a shrimp melt, though I might be in the minority- let me show you, it's super simple!

Breakfast Shrimp Melts
-English muffins (one half muffin per melt)
-mini shrimp (1/4-1/3 cup per melt)
-cheddar cheese (or your choice) (one slice per melt)
-eggs (one per two melts)
Toast your English muffins and warm your shrimp up either in a pan or in the microwave real quick.
Assemble melts by putting English muffins on a baking sheet, putting the shrimp on top, then place your slice of cheese on top.
Broil/toast, watching carefully, until the cheese is melted and starting to bubble/brown.
Quickly fry up however many eggs you need (to the doneness you prefer), then slide one on top of each pair of melts you've made. Enjoy!

Finished Breakfast Shrimp Melts!

Savor it!
love, rue

Traditional Potato Salad

Hey there everyone!

This recipe is thanks to my helping out for the 4th- I'm not really an eater of traditional potato salad, so I probably would not have brought you a recipe otherwise, but I was assured by all present that it was really good. Let me show you- super simple.

Here's your arsenal! Pretty simple, and colorful!

Chop potatoes and eggs, then mash roughly.

Add in your chopped veggies and mix well. (I forgot the pickles and added them later- just fine!)

Here are your seasonings and binder- change ratios to your taste.

Add your mayo and then your seasonings and mix well.

And finally, I added in the chopped pickled I forgot about earlier.

Sorry I don't have a picture of the finished salad- it's pretty similar to the above, just mixed and with paprika sprinkled on top. People gobbled it right up before I could think of it!


Traditional Potato Salad
-Potatoes, boiled
-Eggs, hard boiled and peeled
-Red onion, chopped
-Green onion, chopped
-Celery, chopped
-Radish, chopped
-Sweet pickles, chopped (or relish, whichever you prefer)
-Mayonnaise
-Pickle Juice
-Dry mustard
-Salt & Pepper
-Paprika
Chop potatoes and eggs once cool then mash roughly.
Mix in all of the other ingredients- using your own ratios and amounts to make it however you like it- don’t like something, don’t use it, and use more or less of ingredients depending on what you like. This is a really easy recipe to play around with the amounts of- just start slow with the mayo because that is almost impossible to fix.
Chill. Sprinkle with paprika to serve.

Savor it!
love, rue

French Toast in a Mug

Hello everyone!

This one is a super easy breakfast you can throw together in a matter of minutes and end up with a warm mug full of maple syrupy goodness. Let's get started!

Here are your super easy ingredients- you probably have them all right now, minus the blueberry sauce!

On the left, your greased mug, bread, and blueberries; on the right, your egg, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon.

This is the egg mixture poured over the bread and mashed down a little bit.

French Toast in a Mug
-1 large mug or two small mugs, greased
-1-2 slices bread, cubed
-1 egg
-2-4 tablespoons milk
-1/2 teaspoon vanilla
-sprinkle of cinnamon
-optional: blueberry sauce, fruit, etc.
Put bread in mug(s) with fruit if using. Mix together egg, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. Pour over bread and fruit if using. Microwave 1-2 minutes (start with 1 minute then add 15 second intervals, mine took 1 min 40 seconds). Serve in mug with syrup!

Finished! Top with some maple syrup and tuck in!

Savor it!
love, rue

Breakfast Egg Salad

Hey there!

This is an excellent little recipe for breakfast or lunch, and you can easily make it ahead of time and just make your individual english muffin whenever you are hungry! Let's go!

Your mixed up ingredients (sorry I don't have a picture of them!)- just mash it all together and you're good to go.

Spread it on english muffin halves...

And broil or toast for about 5 minutes. Yumm!

Breakfast Egg Salad
-6 hard boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
-1 cup shredded/grated cheddar
-scant 1/2 cup mayo
-1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
-1/2 package bacon, fried and chopped up
-4-6 english muffins, split
Mix all ingredients except english muffins. Spread on the english muffins, then broil or toast for about 5 minutes, until bubbly and starting to brown. Serve!

All finished, bubbly, cheesy, delicious!!

Savor it!
love, rue

All-Yolk Flan

Hi all-

Today I've got a very, very simple recipe for a dessert that is so rich and creamy and caramely it'll knock your socks off. I love flan. I don't know how many of you are too familiar with it, but I have had it primarily in Mexico and have been in love with it since first bite all those years ago. This flan, however, takes it to the next level. This flan won't be good for every occasion- sometimes you will want a lighter flan. But if you are in the market for a simple, special, and decadent dessert then this is it. Let's go!!

The sugar and a bit of water starting to heat up for the caramelized sugar.

The caramelized sugar on the left, and the eggs and milk on the right.

Pour the eggs and milks over the sugar. In this pic you can see that the pan is sitting in a larger 9x13'' pan- that's for the water bath.

The flan all baked up- resist the temptation to just dig in at this stage!

All-Yolk Flan
(notes:
          water bath- for the water bath, place your pan of flan in the larger pan, and place in the oven. Then use a cup measure to pour hot/boiling water into the pan- less chance of spillage.
          baking pan-i used a pan that wasn't quite right- a pan which is less rounded would be better- any pan that's about the size of an 8x8'' round cake pan)
-8 egg yolks
-1 can evaporated milk
-1 can sweetened condensed milk
-1 cup sugar
Heat sugar and a little water in a pot and whisk occasionally until caramelized. Pour into the bottom of the pan you are using for your flan.
Whisk the eggs together, then whisk in the milks- do not over mix to avoid bubbles.
Pour egg mixture into the pan with the caramelized sugar.
Bake in a water bath at 350 F for 45+ minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick.
Cool, then invert out of the pan so the caramelized sugar pours all over the flan. Enjoy!

The flan flipped out of the pan. You can see my pan was not quite the right shape from the way it stuck a bit on the edges, but fantastic nonetheless! So delish.

Savor it!
love, rue

Meringue Mushrooms

Hi everyone! This post is going up a little early as I'm traveling and didn't want to take the chance of not getting to a computer in the morning!

Today I'm posting about a recipe that I actually made a long time ago with my wonderful Mom. This was for either a Christmas or New Years (think it was the latter), a year or two ago, and they were a huge hit. The concept is easy- you make meringues, then shape them into mushroom shapes, bake, and assemble. The end result looks fantastic (and like you spent a long time on it!) and is so much fun to eat- let's get to it.

Sorry for the messy counter (wasn't thinking of blogging this!), but here are our baked meringues going through their assembly process- putting them upside down for the chocolate to set is essential- much easier.

Assembled Meringue Mushrooms- aren't they the cutest thing? And you can see from this that they do not need to be perfect or even for them to be beautiful, fantastic, and yummy to eat!

Meringue Mushrooms
-2 large egg whites
-1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
-1/2 cup sugar
-1/4 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
-semi-sweet chocolate (for glue-ing the tops and stems together)
-cocoa (for dusting)
Beat room-temp. egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Continue beating and add in sugar- beat until whites are stiff and all sugar has dissolved.
Put your meringue in a ziploc bag and cut a hole in the corner (or use a pastry bag if you're fancy!).
Pipe mushroom caps (make a flat circle) and stems (make meringue shapes that stand upright) onto cookie sheets covered in parchment paper.
Bake meringues for approximately 1 hour at 200 F. Rotate the baking sheets halfway through baking. Let meringues cool completely in the oven.
When the meringues are cool, melt your semi-sweet chocolate. Spread it on the underside of the 'caps', then 'glue' them to the stems. We used a microplane grater to smooth the tops of the stems if needed. Once assembled, we let the chocolate set with the mushrooms upside down.
Once mushrooms have set, dust the tops with cocoa powder.
(See this post at Joy of Baking for more tips on piping/shaping, though I did not use the recipe.)

We served our mushrooms in a 'food lanscape',  if you will. Brownies for land or a log, ice cream stones, and meringue mushrooms on top- get creative!

 Give this a shot- I was intimidated at first, but it's just a few more steps from a regular meringue recipe, which is really quite simple. Good luck- go and wow your friends.

Savor it!
love, rue

Vegetarian Pasta Carbonara

Hola from 6,000 ft in Mexico!

But this time I'm here with my take on an Italian classic. My mom and I decided pasta Carbonara would be a delish thing to make for dinner, but I wanted to make it without the pound of bacon which usually accompanies it- this is vegetarian, and proof that you can make something just as good without all that fat, or meat! Let's get to it.

Your arsenal of ingredients. Really not so bad for you without all that grease!

Onions and garlic sauteing, almost done.

Your eggs, parm, and cilantro to be whisked..

..and your finished egg mixture.

Onions and garlic with the stock added, and simmering away.

Make your pasta at the last moment you can, so it's super hot to go with the egg mixture.

And then toss away with the eggs, and then the butter!

Pasta Carbonara (Vegetarian)
-1/2 lb. pasta (I used veggie spaghetti pasta)
-3-4 tablespoons olive oil
-1/2 onion, chopped
-6 cloves garlic, chopped/minced
-1 cup veggie stock
-2 eggs
-3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
-1/2 cup parsley or cilantro (we used cilantro, as we're in MX!)
-2 tablespoons butter
-Salt and pepper to taste
Saute the onion in olive oil over medium heat. When done halfway, add the garlic and cook both until just starting to brown. Pour off (or sponge with a paper towel) any excess oil.
Pour your veggie stock in the pan of onions and garlic, and stir to deglaze anything. Let it continue to cook and thicken, stirring occasionally.
While your veggies are sautéing and your stock is thickening a bit, put your eggs, 1/2 cup Parmesan, most of your fresh herb(s), and some salt and pepper in a big bowl. Whisk it all together.
Cook your pasta until al-dente, drain, then quickly pour it into your egg mixture- it is important that your pasta be very hot to cook and thicken those eggs a little. Toss vigorously!
Add the butter to the pasta, and toss until melted in.
Top your pasta with the onions and garlic, then sprinkle on some Parmesan and herb(s).
Enjoy!

Top with the onions and garlic, some herbs, and you're ready to roll. (I didn't have enough cheese to garnish- still fabulous!)

Really give this a shot- it's much less complicated than it sounds, and you probably have most of the ingredients on hand already!

Savor it!
love, rue

Delicious (and Easy!) Egg Salad

Hi again everyone,

Recently I've become an egg salad convert. It started when I would go to the dining hall, and that would be the only appetizing option, so I'd make an egg salad sandwich. Finally I decided that I would make egg salad for myself, at home- why not? Have something tasty and delicious and also nutritious with which I can make a quick meal any time of day. I even make sandwiches and put them in a little tupperware and take them along with me if I'm in a hurry!

Here's on to the recipe and pictures...

Here are the ingredients, minus the eggs.

Here are the eggs after boiling, in the cold-water bath.

And here are your peeled eggs, ready to mash!

Egg Salad
-6 or so hard-boiled eggs
-2+ tablespoons mayo
-tiny squeeze lemon or lime juice
-2-3 stalks celery, diced
-salt and pepper to taste
To hard boil the eggs, put them in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil for about 9-10 minutes. Immediately put the eggs into a cold water and ice bath to stop the cooking.
Peel the eggs, then put them in a container with the mayo and juice and mash well (or to your desired texture). Mashing with a potato masher works great, or just a fork.
Add more mayo to adjust.
Stir in the diced celery, then season with salt and pepper.

Here are your ingredients all ready to mash together.

And here's the finished salad. Not too appetizing looking by itself, but put it on a sandwich with lettuce and cheese and you're good to go!

I hope you all enjoy!
Savor it,
love, rue

Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce

Hi everyone, this time we have a guest post from my awesome sister Dare... take it away!


So I found a recipe online at smittenkitchen.com for poached eggs in tomato sauce. I decided to take that idea up a notch. Now in her recipe the tomatoes came from a can so I thought, I could do better than that.

I made my own tomato sauce. First I diced four cloves of garlic and browned them in olive oil. Then I chopped up three tomatoes and added them to the pot. I don't really measure my spices so I just added some basil, thyme, salt, pepper, and a little bit of red pepper. Then I added two big gluggs of red wine. Then I let the whole thing simmer for 5-10 minutes so the flavors could meld.



In the meantime, toast some bread. I used some homemade sourdough bread that I had made. once the bread is nice and toasty, (and don't worry about it getting too toasty, there's no such
thing) rub the top of the toast with another clove of garlic, just like when you're making brushetta.



Then crack your eggs right into the tomato sauce. this was my first attempt at poaching eggs so they weren't perfect but damn were they tasty. Once you add the eggs it turns into a watching game. Mine took maybe 6 minutes? but they were slightly over done by the time I sat down to eat. Remember that the egg will continue cooking even after you take it off the heat.



So once the egg is cooked to your liking (my instructions are for a runny poached egg) pour the tomato sauce and poached eggs on top of your garlic toast. eat with a knife and fork. this was delicious!



This dish is perfect for breakfast/brunch or lunch, it's light but the egg is adds richness. also this recipe makes a lot of sauce so thicker slices of bread are preferable. Enjoy!
-D

Deviled Eggs

Deviled Eggs are one of my favorite foods, so here's a short post for today- how to make deviled eggs!


Deviled Eggs
-4 eggs
-3 tablespoons mayonnaise
-1 teaspoon mustard
-salt and pepper to taste
Put the eggs in a small pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil for 15 minutes. Then take out and plunge into an ice-water bath to stop the cooking.
Peel the eggs, slice in half, and remove the yolk. Mix the yolks up with the mayo, mustard, salt, and pepper, then put the mixture back in the eggs. You're done- enjoy!





Savor it!
love, rue