Jalapeño Bacon Deviled Eggs

Deviled eggs have been one of my favorite foods as long as I can remember. And I love adding different ingredients to put a spin on the basic recipe. The #1 most important part of making deviled eggs is boiling them properly. I always use fresh eggs from our very own flock, and fresh eggs are even more of a challenge to properly hard boil than store bought eggs.

Begin by placing the eggs in a large pot. It needs to be big enough to allow the eggs to be in one layer on the bottom, and have room for 2 inches of water above the eggs. Fill with water, and place on high heat. Bring to a rapid boil, then turn the burner off and cover. Let sit for 15 minutes. This cooks them to perfection, without over cooking them which can make the yolks grey. After the 15 minutes is up, place the eggs in a large bowl of ice water. The ice bath is crucial if you want to be able to peel them easily. Leave them in the ice bath for a full 20 minutes, then peel!

Ingredients:

• 12 eggs, hard boiled and peeled
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 tsp. rice vinegar
• 3/4 tsp. ground mustard
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and chopped
• 6 pieces of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
• paprika

Directions:

1. Slice the eggs in half lengthwise. Remove the yolks and place them in a mixing bowl.
2. Mash the yolks with a fork.
3. Add the mayonnaise, rice vinegar, ground mustard, and sugar to the mashed yolks and stir well until combined and smooth.
4. Mix in the jalapeños and bacon.
5. Fill each egg with the mixture.
6. Garnish with a crumble of bacon and paprika.