These deviled eggs are naturally colored and a healthy,
sweet n' spicy twist on traditional deviled eggs. With
a super-smooth, creamy filling of chopped bread-n-butter
pickles and Greek yogurt, these deviled eggs are
perfect for your next party, potluck or Easter celebration!
Dr. G's Perspective
It's interesting, and also perplexing to me, that many recipes
include paprika in a very small amount simply for color and/
or garnish. Just that little sprinkle can leave those of us with
underlying dormant inflammation in pain for days. I recently
asked a local chef (an expat) I greatly admire why she adds
a pinch of paprika or cayenne to my favorite dishes like her
amazing quiche and eggs Benedict. Her reply didn't surprise
me. She said simply because it was in her recipe she's used for
years. She admitted it didn't add flavor in those small quantities
but did add color.
For those, like me, a recovered Fibromyalgia victim with
underlying inflammation factors, it will spiral us into pain
when it can be completely eliminated from recipes without
compromising taste or appearance. Once you're free of
nightshades and realize how reactive you are, just a pinch sets
off the fire of inflammation again, even though you're pain free
otherwise. Just a sprinkle is enough to induce inflammation,
if you don't believe me, try it once you've been completely off
nightshades for at least 90 days.
When I'm craving one of my chef friend's special dishes, I
email ahead and tell her what I want and she makes it without
inflammation-causing ingredients. I mention this because often
we're sabotaged without knowing it when a chef or cook believes
that in small amounts it shouldn't bother those sensitive to
nightshades.
When I relocated, one of the first things on my "to do" list
was to partake of several local eateries to introduce myself
and gently educate them about why I, and my patients, must
avoid nightshades. Every one of them was polite, interested and
asked if I'd leave my nightshade card so they could post in their
kitchen. This small gesture of educating them briefly has served
us all well. I can eat in at least eight local restaurants with no
risk of inducing inflammation. My local patients are thrilled to
learn that I've already laid the groundwork for them to be able to
enjoy a meal while supporting the efforts of our local chefs—a
little polite health education goes along way.
Ingredients
- 12 large eggs hard boiled and peeled*
- 2 Tbsp. plain Greek yogurt *
- 1/2 cup finely chopped bread and butter pickles
- 1 small shallot peeled and roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh dill weed
- 1/4 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp. lemon juice
- Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
- 4 Tbsp. Dijon mustard (more or less to taste)
- 1 tsp. Braggs Aminos
- 2 tsp. Achiote Powder* (reserve some for topping)
- Optional toppings: micro greens or edible flowers
Instructions
- For "Standing Up" Deviled Eggs: Use a sharp paring knife to slice a small sliver off the bottom of the large end of egg, so it will stand upright, and then slice off the top one third.
- For Filling: Remove the yolks from all the hard-boiled eggs and place in the bowl of a food processor. Add shallot and pickles. Process until finely chopped. Add-in the fresh dill weed and achiote powder and process again until everything is minced. Add in the yogurt, vinegar, mustard and lemon juice. Process until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Transfer the deviled egg mixture to a piping bag fitted with the star attachment (or a Ziploc with the corner snipped off for a make-shift piping bag). Pipe the mixture into the egg whites, filling each cavity generously.
- To Serve: Garnish with greens/flowers and sprinkle with a bit of annato/achiote* for the natural red color. Serve and enjoy!
Dr. G's Notes
- Eggs that are older, at least seven days, are MUCH easier to peel.
- If your filling looks thin and slightly watery, simply add a hard-boiled egg (white, yolk, or both) to the processor with the filling, and process until smooth. Keep adding egg until the filling is thickened. If you made standing deviled eggs, use the egg white scraps to thicken the filling.
- Make sure you season the filling GENEROUSLY. Eggs like salt. I used a 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and some Pink Himalayan Salt and 4 grinds of fresh pepper (black, white, pink and red).
You Might Also Like:
Crab Cake Stuffed Deviled Eggs
Bacon, Chive & Cheese Deviled Eggs
Do Ahead: Eggs can be made one day ahead. Cover and chill.
*What is Achiote (or Annatto)?
Achiote is a reddish orange spice used in many genres of food
throughout the world. While it's often employed to give a dish
a red or deep mustard color, it also has a mild peppery flavor.
Whether it is as whole seeds or a ground spice, achiote paste or
achiote oil, you'll come across this ingredient quite often when
exploring Mexican, South American or Caribbean cuisine.
Achiote and annatto are used interchangeably. They are the
most common names for a product extracted from the seeds of
the evergreen Bixa orellana shrub—NOT a nightshade and can
be used to replace paprika or cayenne as a condiment. After
macerating in water, the pulp surrounding the seeds is made
into cakes for further processing into dyes. The seeds are dried
and used whole or ground as a culinary spice.
This spice goes by many names in different parts of the world:
- Achiote is used in Mexico and in the Aztec language of Nahuatl, as well as Spanish-speaking countries of the Caribbean.
- Annato is common on some Caribbean islands and in areas of South America.
- Roucou is used frequently in Trinidad and Tobago, Martinique, and Guadalupe.
- Achuete is primarily used in the Philippines.
- Urucul is the name of the spice among the Tupi-Gurani Indians of the Amazon.
Achiote is native to the tropical areas of the Americas, including
the Caribbean and Mexico. The Spanish brought the small tree
from the Americas to Southeast Asia in the 1600s, where it is
now a common food ingredient. It's also produced in India and
West Africa.
Traditional Uses for Achiote
Annatto was and still is, used as a culinary spice, food colorant,
and commercial dye.
It does have medicinal properties as well. Caribbean
natives were adding achiote to their dishes for flavor and color
long before Europeans arrived. They also used it in cosmetics,
as a fabric dye, body paint, sunscreen, insect repellent, and
medicine.
Some historians theorize that the term ¡§red-skins¡¨ comes
from the use of achiote as body paint because it is a natural dye
that turns the skin a reddish color.
It is also believed that the Aztecs added the seeds to a
chocolate drink to enhance its color.
Culinary Uses
Commercially, achiote is used to add yellow color to chorizo,
butter and margarine, cheese, and smoked fish. On the Spanish-speaking
Caribbean islands, it's used to make yellow rice and
sometimes added to sofrito. In the French Caribbean, it's used
to make a fish or pork stew with berries and lime known as blaff.
Achiote powder mixed with other spices and herbs can
be turned into an achiote paste to marinate and give a smoky
flavor to meats, fish, and poultry.
Achiote seeds are steeped in cooking oil to make achiote oil
for achiotina, infusing them with color and flavor. Sauteing in or
cooking with the oil adds color to rice, paella, meat, soup, stew,
fish, and some yuca dishes. In some cultures, the red color in
their traditional dishes comes from saffron. Achiote is used
much the same and a lot more cost-effective than saffron.
Taste and Aroma
When used in small amounts, primarily as a food colorant,
annatto has no discernable flavor. However, when used in larger
amounts to add flavor, it imparts an earthy, peppery flavor with
a hint of bitterness. Achiote seeds give off a slightly floral or
peppermint scent.
