Deviled Eggs with Bay Shrimp, Fresh Tarragon and Dill

Everyone always seems to love good old fashioned Deviled Eggs when they are brought out at a party.  They are so easy to make, but quite a few details go into making them really good ~ starting first with the cooking of them.  There are so many “no fail” ways I have seen to cook hard boiled eggs, but my method is the one my mom taught me and it is to place eggs in a saucepan and cover with 2 inches of cold water and bring them to boil.  Reduce the heat to low for 12-13 minutes and immediately drain and plunge the eggs in cold water and keep changing the cold water to avoid the dreaded grey ring around the yellow yolk.  It doesn’t sound so good to say, but using older eggs is better for hard boiling because they are easier to peel.  The eggs I bought must have been very fresh and a lot of them tore and were very hard to peel which was so disappointing and I didn’t have perfect eggs for the party.  If you are finding them hard to peel, gently crack the shell all around and let them sit in cold water to help loosen the shell and ease with the peeling process.  Always keep them refrigerated after they have cooked.  You can make the filling the day before and it’s best to fill the eggs just before you serve them so they don’t get a crust on top.  To make the filling I passed them through my food mill so they were very smooth and mixed the yolks with mayonnaise, finely diced shallot, bay shrimp, Dijon mustard, fresh tarragon, dill pickles, fresh dill, and lemon zest and juice and garnished them with bay shrimp and fresh herbs.  It’s important to taste the filling for the right amount of acid, salt and pepper.   I like to put the filling in a piping bag (or plastic bag) and fill them quickly and easily right before serving them.  A good rule of thumb is about 1.5 eggs  a person.  They always seem to disappear quickly at a party.  If you have leftovers, you can make egg salad sandwiches.  Click here for the recipe….