You can easily change up your traditional deviled egg recipe this spring. Add a little finely chopped jalapeño pepper, lime zest, cumin salt and cilantro for a spicy zing. All the adults will appreciate the new twist. Save the pickle relish and mustard for the hot dogs at the cookout or Easter brunch.

The original recipe from my father’s cookbook listed below calls for a half of a jalapeño pepper with or without seeds. The seeds add more kick. I mixed in 1 tablespoon of finely minced jalapeño but stopped adding any more since my hands and lips were burning after the first taste. I sampled again after mixing in the yolks and there was a spicy bite at the end but it was not hot. If you like to sweat or feel the burn in your sinuses, add more jalapeño pepper.

Speaking of sinuses, I always assumed it was good to eat spicy food when dealing with allergy symptom since it acts like a natural decongestant. Horseradish works the best for me. I did some research and have found mixed reviews. Some say the capsaicin in the jalapeños can cause an “oral allergy syndrome” meaning it will make the allergy worse. Other articles like this Mercola one says hot peppers can act as a natural decongestant and reduce allergy symptoms. Let me know if you feel a difference.

Some other foods you may want to try if you are sniffling or sneezing are foods rich in Omega-3’s, local honey, probiotics, vitamin D, and berries. Cilantro helps detox the body so it may help you deal with the pollen too and it does balance the spice in these Mexican eggs.

Here are some tips for selecting the eggs. It is best to hard boil eggs that are a little older. The fresh ones are harder, much harder to peel. You can test your eggs by placing them in cold water. If they lay on the side, they are fresh, if they lay upright, they are a week or so old, and if they float, then think about tossing them in your compost bin.

To hard boil the eggs, place them in cold water making sure the water is at least 1 inch higher than the eggs and bring them to a slow boil, uncovered. Remove them from the heat, cover the pan and let them sit covered for 10 minutes or so. Then place them in cold water to hopefully prevent the green ring around the yolk and overcooking.

To peel, tap the wide bottom first and then the narrow top to loosen the shell. Start to peel the shell. Run under cold water to help slide the shell off. Then refrigerate until you are ready to eat them.

Many of you know our son is allergic to eggs. His allergy is not life threatening so over the past 5 months we have let him try a little egg here and there to test if he is still allergic. Several times we have given him bread made with Amish eggs and he has not presented any symptoms of a reaction. Last week we gave him a fried duck egg and again he did not react at all. His face did swell when he took a bite of a deli sandwich with mayo on it; he only had one bite before I noticed the mayo. I am sure the mayo was not made with organic, free range eggs.

So, we are wondering if he can eat organic chicken eggs or duck eggs on a more regular basis. Have any of you heard of people being allergic to conventionally raised chicken eggs but not organic, pasture eggs? Do you know of any blood or skin tests? I would love to start serving eggs for breakfast and baking with them again.

We would not let him try these Mexican eggs even though they are organic farm eggs because the pollen count is so high and we do not want to overload his body with allergens. It is hard to make anything he cannot eat since he loves food so much. Maybe we close to having him outgrow the allergy or we have another option. Cross fingers!

Directions

1) Hard Boil the Eggs- Place the eggs in cold water making sure they are covered with at least 1 inch of water and bring to a slow boil. Cover the pan and remove from heat and let sit for 10-12 minutes. Place the eggs in cold water for 10 minutes. Crack the eggs and gently slice lengthwise. Remove the yolk. Smash the yolk with the back of a fork.

2) Make the Creamy Sauce- In a bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of mayo, 2 tablespoons sour cream, 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onions or chives, 1 teaspoon Back to Organic Cumin Lime French Grey salt, 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro, and the zest from 1 organic lime. Add the smashed egg yolks and whip together. Add black pepper to taste.

3) Make Deviled Eggs- Place a scoop of creamy sauce inside the egg or for a fancier presentation, pipe in the sauce neatly into the egg pocket by placing the sauce in a plastic ziploc bag, snip the corner and gently squeeze the sauce out of the bag into the egg.  Garnish with 1 tablespoon of cilantro and sprinkle with more Cumin Lime French Grey Salt. Serve immediately or refrigerate. Enjoy!

The Ultimate Cookbook 

Mexican Deviled Eggs
Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 12 minutes

6 large eggs
½ jalapeno pepper, minced, with or without seeds
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons whole, low-fat, or nonfat sour cream (or more mayonnaise)
2 tablespoons finely chopped chives or green onions
½ teaspoon ground cumin seeds
Grated rind of ½ lime
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro or parsley (divided use)

In a saucepan, bring about 2 quarts water to a simmer. Gently lower the eggs into the simmering water with a large spoon. Simmer the eggs for 12 minutes, then place the eggs in a large bowl of ice water for 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, combine the jalapeno, mayonnaise, sour cream, chives or green onion, cumin, lime rind, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons of the cilantro or parsley. Peel the eggs, then carefully cut them in half lengthwise. Add the yolk halves to the sour cream mixture. With a fork, mash the yolks, distributing them throughout the sour cream. Spoon the mixture into the cavities in the whites. Place the eggs on a platter and sprinkle them with the remaining cilantro or parsley. Yield: 12 servings

Note: To make eggs “stand up,” slice off a bit of the large end horizontally. Cut a “cap” off the eggs at the other end to remove yolks, instead of slicing lengthwise.

Per serving: 139 calories, 11 grams fat (percent calories from fat, 75), 2 grams carbohydrates, 217 milligrams cholesterol, 292 milligrams sodium, trace fiber

References:

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/24/allergy-season-hits-us-with-a-vengeance.aspx

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/10/best-worst-food-allergies_n_3017544.html

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/Allergies/10-natural-ways-ease-allergies/story?id=18981304#10