Estonian Deviled Eggs Recipe

There are plenty of recipes for devilled eggs on the blogosphere (just check out this). But you know what - I think the way I make them is just enough different to justify yet another blog post on these :)

There are actually two major 'schools' of making devilled eggs in Estonia - one using something similar to canned anchovy liquid to season the egg yolk filling, the other one prefering mustard. I belong to the latter 'school'. Here's my usual recipe, and I do make these quite frequently for various festive tables - most recently for my birthday, alongside these cute quail egg mushrooms, where they were devoured by the kids and grown-ups alike..

Deviled Eggs, Estonian style
(Täidetud munad)*
Makes 12

6 medium or large organic eggs, boiled**
50 grams butter, not too cold
1 to 2 Tbsp mayonnaise
1 to 2 tsp strong mustard
salt, to taste

To garnish:
fresh parsley or dill, finely chopped
fresh or frozen cranberries or redcurrants

Peel the boiled eggs and halve lenghtwise along the middle. Scoop out the yolks.
Mash the butter with egg yolks (either press both through the sieve grate finely - I do the latter). Stir in mayonnaise and mustard, season with salt.
For a nicer finish, put the mixture into an icing bag with a serrated tip and fill the egg white 'bowls' with the egg yolk filling.
Garnish and keep in the fridge until serving.

* They're simply known as 'filled eggs' or 'stuffed eggs' in Estonian.

** Use whatever perfected egg-boiling method you prefer. I leave my eggs at room temperature for an hour before boiling. I then place them in a pan filled with water, bring to the boil and boil for 7 minutes. After that, I quickly cool them under cold running water. Always works for me, but you can check out what Alanna or Elise or Kalyn or Thredahlia are doing.

Jamie Oliver's Panna Cotta with Roasted Rhubarb Recipe (slightly adapted)

I'm back from my 12-day US trip, when I managed to present a paper in Bloomington, spend 4 wonderful days in St Louis with Alanna, and finally wander around the hot-hot-hot New York for five days. During the trip I ate lots of food and met many lovely foodbloggers, and I'll certainly tell you more soon..

But it's good to be back home, where the temperatures are much more tolerable, and where my dear K. had baked a batch of cannelés to welcome me back :)

I thought that rhubarb season would be over by the time I got back. But no. Mysteriously, a whole basketful of rosy stalks has appeared in our garage, and I've been given various hints about various rhubarb desserts I should be making in the coming days. I'm an obedient girl, so I'll think of something. One thing I'm tempted to do again is this delicious vanilla panna cotta with roast rhubarb. The recipe is from Jamie Oliver, but I've very slightly adapted it (I used less vanilla and slightly more gelatine, instead of lemon zest I used some pure orange oil). I made it for the panna cotta cooking event on my Estonian site - you can check out the fabulous contributions here.

Vanilla Panna Cotta with Roasted Rhubarb
(Vanilje panna cotta röstitud rabarbriga)
Serves 4



For panna cotta:
100 ml milk
1 vanilla pod, halved lengthwise
0.5 tsp pure orange oil
400 ml whipping cream (35%)
2 to 3 gelative leaves
50 g icing/confectioners sugar

For roasted rhubarb:
500 g rhubarb (peeled, if necessary)
100 g caster sugar

To make panna cotta:
Place the gelatine leaves into a cold water and let to soak for 5 to 10 minutes (I used 2 gelatine leaves, but you can use 3 for a slightly firmer texture).
Mix the milk, vanilla pod, vanilla seeds, orange oil and half the cream in a small saucepan. Bring slowly into a boil and simmer on a gentle heat for 10 minutes or until reduced by a third.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the soaked gelatine leaves until dissolved.
Allow to cool at a room temperature, then place in the fridge for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the mixture coats the back of a spoon.
Remove the vanilla pods.
Whip together the icing sugar with the remaining cream. Mix the two cream mixtures together and divide into four serving moulds. Cover and chill for at least an hour, preferably four.

To roast rhubarb:
Meanwhile chop the rhubarb into 5cm pieces, sprinkle with sugar and roast at 200C/400F for 30 minutes, until softened, but not mushy. (I've added chopped candied ginger sometimes - gives an extra kick to the rhubarb).

To serve:
Dip the small moulds into some simmering water for 5 seconds to loosen the panna cotta a little, then turn it out on to a plate. Spoon the roasted rhubarb onto the plate and serve.

Rhubarb Sponge Cake with Almonds Recipe

Should you still have couple of rhubarb stalks lying around, then here's a simple cake recipe. It's a real classic here in Estonia*. I made this couple of times during May, and will be certainly making it again soon. Although my favourite fruit to use here is rhubarb, it would be just as good with any other seasonal fruit and berries - raspberries, gooseberries, apples - you name it. I've 'spiked it up' with some almond slices, and think it makes all the difference, as the almonds give a nice crunchy texture and lovely flavour to the otherwise very simple cake.

If possible, then try to use good free-range organic eggs for this cake - this gives you the prettiest shade of yellow, and a good rise to the cake.

Rhubarb Sponge Cake with Almonds
(Rabarbribiskviit mandlilaastudega)
Serves 6

300 g rhubarb
1 Tbsp caster sugar

4 Tbsp caster sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
4 Tbsp plain/all-purpose flour, sifted
a handful of almond slices

butter for the dish
icing sugar, to serve

Butter a 25x25 cm square dish or line with parchment paper.
Cut rhubarb (peeled, if necessary) into thin slices and scatter into the dish. Sprinkle with 1 Tbsp of sugar.
Whisk eggs and sugar into a thick and pale foam (it takes about 7-9 minutes, using an electric mixer). Carefully fold in the flour.
Pour the batter onto the rhubarb slices in the baking dish.
Scatter almond slices on top.
Bake in the middle of a pre-hreated 175 Celsius oven for about 35-40 minutes, until the cake has risen and is light golden on top. Do not open the oven door during the first 30 minutes, or the cake will collapse!
Cool in the tin, then lift onto a cake plate and dust with icing sugar.

* It feels weird saying 'here in Estonia' when I'm actually writing this post from Alanna's lovely home in St Louis, Missouri :)