Upscale Elegant Deviled Eggs

In the middle of the night, when some folks can’t sleep, they count sheep. I begin thinking about recipes. This one came to me the other night (morning?) and of course, I thought it was an original idea, but once again…wrong. There are many variations out there, but this is what I came up with at 3 am.

Deviled eggs always appeared at my family’s holiday dinners usually served before the meal along with a crispy, wonderfully fatty Kielbasa and sliced cheddar cheese and Ritz crackers. I love deviled eggs any way, but thought it would be fun to dress them up.

I made them again today to add to our Sunday “game-day” football snacks. Go Cardinals!

I added onion confit to both the egg yolk mixture and topped the eggs with more onion confit. I also reduced an aged balsamic vinegar with honey and used it as a drizzle on top. The balsamic is both sweet and tart with notes of acidity. The addition of the honey balanced it beautifully as it reduced to a nice, syrupy drizzle.

First, what is confit…

Don’t confuse confit with caramelization. I did and thought they were basically the same, but they are completely different techniques. They both use slow heat to transform a food, but they rely on completely different mediums and chemical processes.

Confit is a French cooking technique using fat (butter, duck fat, goose fat, etc.), while caramelization is a chemical reaction involving sugars (any sugar, orange juice, pineapple, etc.). To begin making the confit add a tablespoon of butter and a tablespoon of olive oil to a heavy bottomed skillet over medium-high heat.

Slice 1 or 2 large onions thinly enough to make 4 cups of sliced onion.

Drop the onions in the pan with a pinch of salt. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook very slowly, stirring often for 20 to 25 minutes until they become soft and golden.

Once golden, stir in 2 Tbsp. of balsamic vinegar and 1 Tbsp. of brown sugar. I made this appetizer originally for my Monday Mahjong group. They all seemed to like the twist on traditional deviled eggs so I repeated today for my husband as we watch Sunday football.

Now, let’s talk about the balsamic drizzle. Part of the reason I am giving you this simple, but elevated appetizer recipe is both the onion confit and the reduced balsamic vinegar sauce can be used many different ways. Onion confit would be great on a grilled burger; pork tenderloin, or lamb chops. Balsamic vinegar is an excellent topping for chicken breasts stuffed with Provolone, wrapped in prosciutto and sauteed until nice and crispy with fried sage leaves; tenderloin of beef, or any Asian dish you are preparing. Call me crazy, but I think this reduced Balsamic would be excellent on raw oysters with just a tiny bit of the onion confit. What do you think Beth Doyle?!?

I used an aged balsamic from Modena. This is not an expensive balsamic as prices can range from $10 to $1000/ bottle depending on how long it is aged and if it holds official certification.

The honey I used to reduce the sauce is Killer Bee Honey from Bisbee, AZ.

This honey is made by a guy in Bisbee. I have not had the pleasure of meeting Reed Both, but did speak with him extensively the last time I was in Bisbee. Here’s a little more info about Reed.

https://killerbeeguy.com/the-guy/

He is a remarkable character and the official killer bee authority and removal expert in Cochise County.

Videos of his work are amazing: https://killerbeeguy.com/videos/

His honey products have won awards around the country and the world. His honey is delicious. Being a former bee keeper myself I was fascinated to learn more about how he removes these killer bees. I could go on and on about how killer bees came to this country, but back to the recipe!

I usually have hard boiled eggs in my fridge, but if you do not, boil and peel the eggs. Place 6 eggs in a pot and cover them with cold water. Bring the water to a boil, turn off the heat, cover the pot, and let sit for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the eggs to an ice bath for 5 minutes, then peel them.

Once you have finished the onion confit, set aside and begin the balsamic reduction. If you are curious about what exactly “confit” means (pronounced kohn-FEE) , it is a French verb for “confire”, which literally means “to preserve”. It originated centuries before preservation as a way to keep food from spoiling, but the technique is still used today for its incredible flavor and rich silky texture it creates.

To make the Reduced Balsamic Vinegar…

Pour 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar and 1 Tbsp. honey into a small saucepan over medium-low heat.

Simmer gently for 3 to 5 minutes until it reduce by half and coats the back of a spoon like a thick syrup. Remove from the heat.

Once the eggs have cooled, cut in half lengthwise and gently pop out the yolks being careful not to rip the white shells. Mash the yolks thoroughly with a fork or mixer until you have formed a very fine crumb.

Stir in mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper and 1/2 of the onion confit, finely chopped, until it is all very smooth. Spoon, or if you really want to get fancy, pipe the yolk mixture evenly back into the egg white halves. Top each egg with a tiny patch of the remaining whole onion confit.

Lightly drizzle the reduced balsamic over the top just before serving and top with chopped chives. The eggs can be made to this point and finished just before serving.

Garnish with parsley or any other greens and serve.

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Upscale, Elegant Deviled Eggs

Sweet, salty, luscious, unexpected, but wonderful flavors in a classic deviled egg.

Ingredients

Onion Confit

• 2 lge. Yellow or sweet onions, thinly sliced, to make 4 cups
• 1 Tbsp. Butter
• 1 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. Brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
• Pinch of salt

Balsamic Reduction

• 1/2 cup Balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. Honey

Deviled Eggs

• 6 Lge. Eggs, hard-boiled
• 1/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• Salt/white pepper to taste
• Fresh chives for garnish

Instructions

Make the Onion Confit

• Heat the butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add the the sliced onion and a pinch of salt. Reduce heat to medium-low.
• Cook slowly for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring often, until soft and golden brown.
• Stirr in the brown sugar and 1 Tbsp. of balsamic vinegar.
• Cook for 5 more minutes until sticky and jammy, then set aside to cool.

Make the Balsamic Reduction

• Pour 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar and honey into a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
• Heat for 5 to 8 minutes until the liquid thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
• Remove from the heat and let cool completely.

Boil and prep the Eggs

• Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with water.
• Bring the water to a boil, turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let sit for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Transfer the eggs to an ice water bath for 5 minutes, then peel.
• Cut the eggs in half lengthwise and gently pop the yolks into a bowl. Place the egg white halves on a serving platter.
• Mash the yolks well with a fork. Mix in mayonnaise, Dijon, salt, pepper until very smooth.
• Fold in half of the cooled onion confit, saving the rest for topping the eggs.

Assemble and Garnish

• Spoon the egg yolk mixture evenly into the egg white halves.
• Top each egg with a tiny spoonful of the remainnig onion confit.
• Drizzle the reduced balsamic vinegar lightly over the top.
• Sprinkle with chopped chives.