Dash of Dre: Bacon and Cheddar Deviled Eggs

One of the best things I love about the holidays is being with family and celebrating my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and all that He has done for us. But in the spirit of the Ten commandments, let's keep it honest: we love the food too! Thou shalt not lie, right?

When the holidays roll around, I always get asked to make this dish. It's a crowd favorite! Unless you are entertaining vegans, vegetarians, or those who don't eat pork! But I'm in Texas so these are a rare find.

Here's what you'll need:

6 large brown organic free range brown eggs

6 tablespoons of mayonnaise (I prefer mayonnaise to strictly be a base, and not to contribute to the taste, so I prefer one without much flavor, like Hellmann's Mayonnaise)

2 teaspoons of honey mustard

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon of black pepper

1 teaspoon of finely chopped dill

1 teaspoon of finely chopped chives

4 strips of bacon (I prefer the Uncured Applewood Smoked Bacon by City Butcher)

5-6 oz of sharp cheddar (I prefer Kraft's Sharp Yellow Cheddar)

1. Set the eggs in a large pot; making sure that the eggs all fit into 1 layer at the bottom of the pot. Fill the pot up with water, just enough to graze the top of the eggs.

2. Bring the water to a rolling boil, uncovered. As soon as the water comes to a boil, immediately remove them from the heat and sit them aside, covered, for 17-20 minutes.

3. Drain the warm water off of the eggs and place the eggs in an ice bath to stop them from cooking (I just usually fill up the pot again with cold tap water and put a few ice cubes in). Let the eggs sit in the ice bath for at least 20 minutes. This will ensure that the shell will be easily removed when peeling. However, if you are in a hurry, you can let them sit in an ice bath in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes. I have done this before and they turned out just as good, (just less pretty, since they were harder to peel, and some of the white of the egg comes off with the shell as you're peeling).

4. While the eggs are cooling, this is the perfect time to prepare your bacon and cheese. Pan fry the 4 bacon strips on medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes total (4-5 minutes on each side). If you like your bacon less crispy, fry for 6-7 minutes (3-4 minutes on each side). After the bacon is done pan-frying, drain the grease from the strips by placing them on a plate covered with a napkin.

5. Once the bacon is drained of grease, break the strips into small pieces, either by dicing them with a knife over a cutting board, or by placing them inside a zip-lock bag and smashing them with your hands. (This is a great way to get your kids involved! And because the bacon bits are sealed in the bag, this makes for a quick clean-up!)

6. Slice the block cheddar into 1 x 1 cm cubes.

7. Now it's time to peel the shelf off of the eggs. Only crack the bottom and top of the egg. Whichever side has the larger dent in it, start with that side. This will give a good grip on the shell and allow you to peel the shell and the thin membrane underneath. This is the easiest way for me to peel the shell. Let me know of any more tricks that you know down below!

8. Once the shells are removed from the eggs, slice each egg in half on the long axis of the egg.

9. Combine the egg yolks, mayonnaise, honey mustard, salt, pepper, dill, chives, bacon, and cheddar into a bowl and mash the ingredients into a fine mixture. Leave a small amount of the bacon, cheddar, chives, and dill off to the side for garnishing.

10. Place a zip-lock bag into a cup like that seen here.

11. Place the mixture into the zip-lock bag. Zip the zip-lock back shut and remove the zip-lock back from the cup. Take some scissors and cut a hole in the corner of the bag. This will be the exit point of the mixture.

12. Arrange the egg whites along your serving dish. You can use a serving tray for deviled eggs, or if you don't have one (or are too cheap to buy one, like I) just use a plate or pasta bowl. Squeeze a small amount of the filling into each egg white-half.

13. Garnish the filled eggs with the remaining bacon, cheddar, dill, and chives. Bon-appetit!

If you have any left over filling, do what I do and just serve it over golden crackers while everyone is waiting for the food to be ready! It goes quick!

I hope this brings joy to your table on Easter, day-after Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and all other holidays filled with stuffing your tum-tum!