Southern Deviled Egg Recipe

It's no secret that we love good food here in the South! It's probably what we're known for best! 
As it begins to warm up, the outdoor celebrations begin and no celebration is complete without food! My go to appetizer for any celebration is always deviled eggs, but not just anyone's deviled eggs! It's the way my momma has made them for decades! 
If you dare bring store bought deviled eggs into my home, I will politely decline to eat them. There is a process to making them, it's rather easy, but they're home-made, not store bought (no offense if you truly like the store-bought ones, but why buy it pre-made, when you can take the time to make them yourself). I promise they will taste better! 

Now, everyone has their own versions to making deviled eggs. No two recipes will be the same and I'll be quite honest, I don't really remember the last time I actually "measured" anything for this recipe! I've been making it for so long, I just do it without much thought behind it! For the sake of this recipe, I have measured everything out, just in case you've never made deviled eggs before.

To get started, here's what you'll need:
- one dozen eggs
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- one TBSP mustard
- one TBSP dill relish
- salt, to your liking
- pepper, to your liking
- smoked paprika , garnish the top
- garlic powder, to your liking
- onion powder, to your liking
- one ziplock bag
- large pot for boiling
​- small mixing bowl

The first step, which is by far the most important, is boiling your eggs. Place the eggs, very gently onto the bottom of the pot. Fill with water, about an inch above the eggs. Place a lid on top of the pot and put pot on the stove. Turn to high and bring the water to a boil. Once your pot of water reaches a rolling boil, turn the burner off and remove pot from stove. Do NOT take the lid off, allow the eggs to stay in the pot for 15-20 minutes. YOU DO NOT WANT TO OVER BOIL YOUR EGGS!! 

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Once the appropriate time has elapsed, take your pot of hot water to the sink and begin running cold water in it (no ice bath here, I keep it simple).  Grab your eggs and carefully begin peeling them while they're still warm. Everyone has a different technique for cracking and peeling, so do what you know how to do. I crack it gently on the side of my sink in a rolling manner, until the entire egg is covered in cracks, it's easier for me to peel. After they're all peeled, I give them a rinse and then dry them off. Once dried, it's time to cut them lengthwise in half, carefully. Take a small spoon and scrape out the yolk into a small mixing bowl, careful to not tear the egg white. The yolk should be soft and yellow, not a dark yellow. If it is a dark yellow or greenish yellow, you have over-boiled your eggs. Start over because your eggs will be too stiff and the yolk will throw the flavor off!
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Once all of the eggs have been cut and yolk scraped out, mash the yolk with a fork. In the bowl, you will add your mayo (depending on the consistency and your liking you may use less mayo), mustard, relish, and other seasonings....not the smoked paprika, I use that as a garnish!  Mix thoroughly, here you can leave it lumpy or continue to mash and stir or throw the mixture into a food processor to make it smooth. If you need to thin down the mixture, I use a little bit of relish juice versus putting more mayo or mustard in it.  Once done, scrape the mixture into a ziplock bag. Cut tip and squeeze the mixture into the eggs. Sprinkle the top of the deviled eggs with smoked paprika and you're done!!
​-Virginia 

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