Guacamole Deviled Eggs

Deviled eggs also known as stuffed eggs, or dressed eggs are hard-boiled eggs that have been shelled, cut in half, and filled with a paste made from the egg yolks mixed with other ingredients such as mayonnaise and mustard. They are generally  finger food served cold as a side dish or an appetizer usually for parties or weekend brunch.Their is no specific  stuffing for the eggs.Am highlighting Guacamole stuffing due to the fact that it’s already been dealt with in my previous post. 

INGREDIENTS:

Serves 6. 

6 hard boiled eggs

2 ripe avocados(Ref. to guacamole recipe on my previous post) 

1 Tbsp lime (or lemon) juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Tbsp sour cream (can skip if you need dairy-free) 

1 Tbsp chopped chives or green onion

• To make hard boil eggs, place eggs in a saucepan and cover with at least one inch (or two) of cold water.Cover the pot and bring them to boil,  let the eggs cook  for 10-12 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. 

METHOD

1. Carefully peel the hard boiled eggs and cut them in half lengthwise. Place them on a serving platter. Scoop out the cooked yolks and set aside. 

2.From the ready made guacamole, crush the egg yolks to the avocado mixture 

3.Scoop a generous spoonful of the avocado mixture into each well of the hard boiled egg whites.

 Top with a small sprig of fresh cilantro or some chopped chives/spring onions  and chillies if you like.

Enjoy…. 

 

Pouched pear with chocolate sauce

​Ever thought of cooking a pear or an apple?  I was doing a dinner for a party  and my client was like What!!! Cooked pear??? Yes,  I gave the assurance that a simple baked pear becomes an elegant dessert when drizzled with chocolate sauce that’s laced with cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg. What you need is a pear or two depending on how many people you are cooking for. 

Ingredients :

2 pcs pears

2 cups water

3/4 teaspoon clear vanilla extract

1 cinnamon stick(medium) 

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon  cocoa powder (heaped) 

1 teaspoon cornstarch

Pinch ground cinnamon

1/4 cup  milk

Procedure:

1. Core pears from bottom, leaving stems intact. Peel pears. Place in a large saucepan; add the water, vanilla, cinnamon stick and nutmeg. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-35 minutes or until pears are almost tender.

Cooked pear

2. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and  ground cinnamon. Gradually whisk in milk until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cook and stir until thickened  (around 2 to 3mins and bubbly) . Cool.

3. Drain pears; place on dessert plates. Drizzle with chocolate sauce. 

This will yieYield: 2 servings.

Ready to eat with chocolate sauce

Guacamole

Prep for ingredients

Guacamole is a Mexican dip made of Ripe avocados,tomato, onions,salt and lemon juice. Usually it’s served as an appetizer accompanied by Tortilla chips  Or can be served as a sauce with any Tacos meal. Some people add fresh chillies while others sprinkle some paprika to get it some kick. 

N.B. Using ripe avocados makes a perfect guacamole. Check for ripeness by gently pressing the outside of the avocado. If it seems hard , the avocado is not ripe yet and will not taste good. If there is a little softness when pressed , the avocado is ripe. If there is a lot of softness and it has lost shape,  the avocado may be past ripe and not good and will not give you a best results. 

INGREDIENTS

1 ripe avocados

1/4 teaspoon  salt

1 Tbsp of fresh lime juice or lemon juice

2 Tbsp of minced red onion

1-2 chilles, stems and seeds removed, minced

2 tablespoons cilantro (leaves and tender stems), finely chopped

A pinch of freshly ground black pepper

1/2 ripe tomato, seeds and pulp removed, chopped

Garnish with red chili powder Serve with tortilla chips.

METHOD

1 Cut avocado, remove flesh: Cut the avocados in half. Remove seed.Core the inside of the avocado with a blunt knife and scoop out the flesh with a spoon. Place in a bowl or a deep  plate.

2 Using a fork, roughly mash the avocado. The guacamole should be a little chunky.

3 Add salt, lime juice, and the rest: Sprinkle with salt and lime (or lemon) juice. The acid in the lime juice will provide some balance to the richness of the avocado and will help delay the avocados from turning brown. 

Add the chopped onion, cilantro, black pepper, and chilles. Chilli pepper  vary individually in their hotness. So, start with a half of one chili pepper and add to the guacamole to your desired degree of hotness. .
4 Cover with plastic and chill to store: Place plastic wrap on the surface of the guacamole cover it and to prevent air reaching it. (The oxygen in the air causes oxidation which will turn the guacamole brown.) Refrigerate until ready to serve. 

Feel free to experiment with other fillings like pomegranate seeds, with added pineapple, mango, or strawberries.

The simplest version of guacamole is just mashed avocados, salt and lemon /lime juice. 

Enjoy 

Ready guacamole served on the avocado shell with tortilla chips

Chicken cheddar stuffed potatoes

​

A homely tasty combination of chicken, cheese and potatoes – served individually on its own shell with sour cream and vegetables if you like . Steamed Broccoli is my favorite to accompany this meal due to its crunchy nature. A full brunch meal on its own.

Ingredients are, 

2 white potatoes,on their skin cleaned 

1/3 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1/4 red onion, chopped

1 tbsp parsley, minced

1 tsp thyme

2 tbsp milk

2 tsp butter

1 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

Paprika,salt and pepper to taste

Procedure

1. Season chicken breasts with salt and paper, cook thoroughly & shred. Set aside.
2. Rub potatoes with olive oil. Place on a baking sheet and cooking at 375°C for 45 minutes or you can half boil potatoes to shorten the roasting TIME to 20min until crisp.  
3. As potatoes bake, mix half of cheese with parsley thyme, onion and shredded chicken. Set aside
4. When potatoes are done cooking, slide in half or at the top.Scoop out the inside of the potato. 
5. Add potatoes, pepper and salt to cheese and chicken mixture. Mash to break up potato and combine ingredients.Add butter and milk. Mash until smooth. 
6. Divide evenly between potato skins/shell.Top with remaining cheese
7. Bake for another 5-7 minutes until cheese melts. Remove from oven and sprinkle  with paprika.

•     Serve, with sour cream and butternut puree