bacon deviled eggs

I had you at bacon.

So, what’s up with calling them deviled?

If we’re going to bring the devil into this, shouldn’t they be called the devil’s eggs? As in sinfully delicious?

Or maybe devil is a verb in this case. Did I somehow devil them, making them deviled?

Can I devil anything?

If so, I can think of a few things that I’d like to devil. Such as my yippy yappy Maltese pup who barks all day long at the same squirrels running around the backyard, driving me nuts. Yes, he could use some deviling.

I’d also like to devil the person who cuts into the express lane in front of me at the last minute after the rest of us have been waiting our turn for over an hour. Oh, do I want to devil him.

And in a heartbeat I’d devil the person who decided that instead of a real person answering my call, a computer will pick up whenever I call AT&T (insert any company) and make me go through an entire menu of number punching while foolishly answering questions aloud when all I want to do is speak to a REAL PERSON! Yes, that one should be deviled immediately.

But I did a little investigating and apparently the word deviled does not refer to anything violent (dang it).

It refers to spiciness.

OK, I get it. Like Shrimp Diablo (diablo meaning devil in Spanish), which is a spicy dish.

So devil = spicy.

Is that because he lives in a hot place? The deviled eggs I grew up eating at parties and picnics were never spicy. Unless we’re talking about that light dusting of paprika on top. If that is the heat of the devil himself then he’s pretty lame. Not exactly the fire and brimstone I was imagining.

I guess I should not be calling these eggs deviled because they are not the least bit spicy. Actually, next time I think I might add a little bit of the devil to them because he seems to always be good for me, in a spicy sort of way.

So I saw these eggs in a recent issue of Bon Appétit and they looked so good that I had to make them.

When was the last time you had a deviled egg?

I never think to make them because in my brain they are a 70’s appetizer, right along with pigs-in-a-blanket, rumaki and French onion dip with Lay’s potato chips. And I don’t mean this as a negative thing. They’re all equally delicious. I mean, c’mon. If I put a bowl of French onion dip (with real sour cream) and a big bag of Lay’s potato chips in front of you, would you be able to stop? I wouldn’t. And that’s why I don’t come anywhere near that stuff.

God do I miss not having a care in the world while downing 72,000 calories of chips and dip while watching Blue Lagoon when I was 11. Sigh.

But appetizers have come a long way in the last 30+ years and there are so many recipes that I want to try, that I never think to go back to the past for some plain old deviled eggs. Until now. And that’s really unfortunate because they are really really good.

What I love about deviled eggs is that they are so simple to make, they look pretty and they really are delicious!

We put the yolk mix into a freezer bag, cut off one corner of it and made some fancy designs by squeezing it into the cute little white cups. Hadley loved this part and wanted to fill them all herself. I love when helping in the kitchen doubles as art.

If you want to actually add some devil to these (I will next time) I’d add a few shakes of cayenne pepper to the yolks when you whip them up.

Hadley and I made them a few weeks ago for a dinner party we were having. Our good friend Casandra and her baby Boopsy (that’s what we call her) came over and we made this for dinner. Casandra brought over her pasta guitar (so cool!) and we made homemade pasta!  Boopsey rolled the dough! Isn’t she gorgeous?

But, we forgot all about an appetizer. I always have bacon and eggs in the house, so we whipped them up in about a 1/2 hour.  We could hardly wait to devour them.  The creaminess of the yolks mixed with the smoky bacon and a bite of scallion…mmmmm…..every bite was devilishly delicoius.

And here is the secret to these eggs being so good;  you whip some bacon fat right into the yolks.  WOW!  Sneaky, right?  This gives every bite that smoky bacon flavor.  I love the combination of bacon and eggs.

Just wanted to put a little bit of the devil back on your radar.

Bacon Devlied Eggs
Inspired by Bon Appétit, February 2012

Makes 24

12 large eggs
3 slices of bacon
2 tbsp melted butter
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 heaping tbsp chopped scallions + garnish
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper

Place eggs in a large saucepan; add water to cover by 1”. Bring to a boil, cover, and remove from heat. Let sit for 10 minutes. Drain. Transfer eggs to bowl of ice water and let cool completely, about 10 minutes. Peel. Halve lengthwise and remove yolks. Coarsely chop bacon and cook in a medium skillet over medium heat until browned and crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels. Strain drippings and reserve. Add melted butter if needed to measure 2 tbsp. Finely mash reserved yolks, bacon fat, mayonnaise, mustard and scallions in medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a large resealable freezer bag, then cut ½” off 1 corner. Pipe into whites; garnish with thinly sliced scallions and reserved bacon. Take a big bite!