We have truly hit party season, my favorite time of year! It’s always fun to bring out the old-standby appetizers we all love, while creating new ones in the process. For me, it’s not the holidays (especially Thanksgiving) unless deviled eggs are represented in some way. They just have to be part of my celebration.
While I have always liked regular “no-frills” deviled eggs, I love messing with them, especially in the texture department. I prefer the deviled egg filling to be more chunky instead of the usual creamy we are all used to.
To achieve a more rustic texture, I roughly chop some of the white part of the hard-boiled egg and this time I even added shredded cheese. It’s a more satisfying way to enjoy this classic appetizer.
As I have been working on and investigating 2013 culinary food trends for Sargento Cheese, one of the most exciting items on that list has been the Habanero pepper. Yes, this pepper is hot and you only need a little bit in whatever you are making, but I love what it offers to the final dish.
The Habanero, along with topping food with pickled veggies, has been trending in 2013. I decided to combine the trends and enjoy pickled Habanero’s on my deviled egg spread.
Pickling veggies can be very simple as I will show you. This is not a canning or preservation method, just a quick way to add lots of flavor and heat to a simple offering.
Not only did I add Sargento’s Chef Blends™ Shredded 4 State Cheddar™ Cheese to the egg spread, but I covered the toast with it as well. I have to say it was a brilliant addition and added a fun layer of flavor to the bread and a nice texture to the egg spread.
Pickled Habanero Deviled Egg Spread on Cheesy Toast
Ingredients
Pickled Habanero Rings
- 7-10 Habanero peppers, sliced into rings and seeded (use gloves when handling peppers)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
Deviled Egg Spread
- 1 dozen large eggs
- 2 Tablespoons white vinegar
- 1/2 pound sliced white sandwich bread
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 Tablespoon mustard
- 3 cups, divided Sargento Chef Blendsâ„¢ Shredded 4 State Cheddarâ„¢ Cheese
- 3/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- kosher salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Directions
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water, vinegar, sugar and kosher salt. Bring to a boil and stir in Habanero rings. Remove from heat. Let stand and cool for 15 minutes.
- Place peppers in a mason jar using tongs and pour vinegar mixture over the top. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. They taste best after sitting for a few days and will keep in the fridge for several weeks.
- For the deviled egg spread, In a large saucepan, cover the eggs with water, add the vinegar and bring to a rapid boil. Cover the saucepan and remove it from the heat; let stand for 15 minutes. Drain the eggs and cool them under cold running water, shaking the pan vigorously to crack the shells. Let the eggs cool in water.
- Meanwhile, halve the bread slices on the diagonal. Arrange them in a single layer on a large cookie sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover bread slices with two cups of shredded cheese. Toast the bread in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes, until barely browned.
- Shell the eggs and halve them lengthwise. Coarsely chop half of the egg whites and transfer them to a large bowl. Add the remaining whites and all of the yolks to a food processor along with the mayonnaise, mustard, 1 cup of remaining cheese and black pepper. Process until smooth. Scrape the mixture into the bowl and blend with chopped egg whites. Season with salt to taste.
- Top the toast with the egg spread and dust lightly with smoked paprika. Add a Habanero ring to each slice or chop the Habanero into small pieces and sprinkle over egg.
Two Years Ago: Streusel-Topped Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Three Years Ago: Crunchy Lemonade Drumsticks
Four Years Ago: Baked Banana Doughnuts
Five Years Ago: Cranberry-Apple Cobblers