eggs

It is raining cats and dogs all day here, perfect day to stay home and cook. I looked at the almost empty fridge and eggs were pretty much it so deviled eggs and egg salad are on the menu over here. I took a few shots with my phone, which takes much more grainy photos than my last iPhone for some reason, the one I dropped into Lake Chautaqua last summer ;o( .

 I make the simplest deviled eggs with curry and lemon. The men in our family eat them immediately. Today I went heavy on the lemon juice and curry for my husband, he loves bold flavors. All I do is throw all these ingredients into the Cuisinart and pulse. I allowed it to remain a bit lumpy and runny today but smooth and thick is fine too and nicer for company of course. I add the mayo, lemon juice and curry to taste, don't really measure. I usually use the entire lemon and the  curry powder is bought in bulk from the Indian grocery. Hopefully Savannah or Charleston have one, Beaufort certainly doesn't. We need some fennel for the morning chai husband makes so will have to research.

Guests often mention they don't like curry but after tasting the eggs, they like them and eat several. The combination of lemon and curry are sharp and bold and then the mayo balances it and adds creaminess.

Deviled  eggs with curry and lemon

~hard boiled eggs

~light Hellman mayonnaise

~lemon squeezed

~ curry powder 

(freshest is from Indian grocery and also much less expensive)

~salt and pepper

~green onions, parsley and/or dill can be blended into mix or used as garnish

Have you seen this blogger's naturally dyed eggs on Pinterest? 

I think they are so beautiful.

And Martha's team came up with this pretty tabletop idea with eggs, combining moss covered styrofoam eggs, quince or crabapple stems and several sizes of brown eggs.

Martha Stewart

Are eggs a favorite food in your house?

Thanks for visiting!

Cindy

this week...food and books

 I made Ina's Blueberry Crumb Cake from her Barefoot Contessa at Home cookbook. It was delicious, more like a coffee cake because it is not too sweet and has a thick crumb topping. Too much topping we thought, overwhelms the moist yummy cake below. Seemed like half cake, half topping.

Next time, will make much less topping. I used a springform pan to make releasing the cake from the pan easier.

We tried her Mustard Roasted Fish recipe from Back to Basics. Very tangy and good, everyone liked it. Much richer than our usual grilled fish. The color was kind of blah and unappetizing. The food stylist made the fish look prettier for the book. Made her Roasted Potatoes in the oven at the same time. Same method we all know for this dish. Used a separate plate for the salad, this would have been prettier with some green on the plate.

I have been receiving beautiful books in the mail. In January, I go though my Amazon Save for Later cart of book titles. I add them whenever I hear of a good one throughout the year. I then purchase several after researching for the best prices and narrowing down the list. Once they arrive, I ration them, reading through them very slowly to savor each one. It takes me months to go through them. 

I have just started Martha Stewart Entertaining, A Year of Celebrations that was published in 2011.This book is huge and gorgeous! It is the new version of her amazing first book Entertaining that is full of beautiful ideas and does not seem dated.

Each page is a visual treat.  Her gardens, her homes, her collections of every kind of tableware, glassware, etc. the presentations, the recipes, the serving ideas, it is all quite astounding! I am loving this book! 

I also purchased her Martha Stewart Gardening, a Month to Month Guide book which for some reason came without the cover but here is a page from it, equally as pretty as her Entertaining books.

 Here are a few others I bought....

And my husband was sweet to order Carolyne Roehm's Flowers and surprise me after seeing it mentioned on the blog.

These books will keep me company throughout the winter, simple pleasures.....

cookie bags

The clever ideas that come out of Martha Stewart Living.....here is how to make these charming cookie bags. If one is in the right mood, one can get lost on that website and spend way too much time looking at all the beautiful images and ideas!

we need to celebrate grilled cheese!

Martha says today is National Grilled Cheese Day. So we must properly observe the day and make grilled cheese! For grown up grilled cheese ideas, go here and other variations, go here. 

Video from Martha Stewart Kitchens for How to Make Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese.

spring wine bar

original source Martha Stewart Magazine

happy valentine's day!

one pot fall dinner

Coconut Curry Chicken 

recipe  here