Perfect Deviled Eggs

If you've got any New Year's parties to go to this weekend, this is a perfect dish to bring. Deviled eggs are super easy and cheap, and they are gobbled up like nobody's business by adults and kids alike. Don't worry about starting that diet quite yet. ;)

Here are some tips to make sure you get perfect hard-boiled eggs every time:

1) Fill your pot with enough water to completely cover the eggs. If you don't do this, your eggs won't cook all the way around.

2) Make sure you put your eggs into the water when it's still cold. If you put eggs into boiling water, the shells will crack open.

3) Put a lid on the pot, bring it to a boil and then remove the pot from the heat. Let the eggs sit there, covered, for about 25 minutes. This will perfectly hard-boil them without the risk of cracking the eggs.

4) Drain the hot water, then pour cold water over the eggs in another pot or bowl, letting them sit for about 15 minutes. Cooling them completely will make peeling them so much easier -- you won't burn your hands, and the shell wants to come off a lot easier once they're cooled.

5) Gently crack the shells by banging them against the side of your sink. Crack the shell all the way around. If you don't crack it all the way around, you can easily tear the egg white when you're removing the shell.

6) Remove the shell under running cold water. This will insure you don't have any pieces of shell stuck into your egg white that you can't see.


Ingredients:
6 eggs, hard-boiled, cooled, peeled and cut in half length-wise
5-6 slices bacon, sliced into thin strips, cooked and drained
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper, to taste
paprika

Remove egg yolks from each egg half. If your eggs are perfectly hard-boiled, the yolks will come out with little to no work on your part. The easiest way to get the yolk out is to hold the egg in your hand with your thumb on one end of the white, your pinky on the other and your index finger on the back side. Gently pull each end of the egg white back with your thumb and pinky while gently pushing with your index finger. The yolk should pop loose and should be easily removed.


Once all the yolks are in the bowl, add mayonnaise, mustard and salt and pepper, to taste. Mash well with the back of a fork until well-combined. Add bacon pieces and stir to combine. Then drop generous spoon fulls of yolk mixture back into each egg white. Lightly sprinkle the tops with paprika. Cayenne sprinkled on top is great, too! Refrigerate at least 20 minutes before serving.