3 Simple, Savory Upgrades To Try On Classic Deviled Eggs

Of all the finger foods in the world, the deviled egg reigns supreme. It's a party classic, making appearances at casual barbeques and fancy gatherings alike. The traditional deviled egg recipe is pretty easy, requiring just a few ingredients: crème fraîche, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and whatever else you like to customize it with. But if you're feeling especially creative, there are plenty of ways to turn the base recipe on its head to seriously upgrade your deviled eggs. Nelson Serrano-Bahri, chef and director of innovation at the American Egg Board, gave us three recommendations for how you can take your classic deviled eggs to the next level.

His first recipe features a Southern staple: pimento cheese. "I love making a whipped pimento cheese egg yolk filling for a fun and simple way to uplevel deviled eggs," Serrano-Bahri said. This upgrade is a super creative way to use pimento cheese, which is a spread made of cheddar cheese and pimento pepper dip. To whip it, you'll want to throw it into a food processor, like this Ganiza model, until it's reached a fluffier texture.

Once you remove it from the food processor, you can even whip the whole mixture again with a hand mixer before piping it back into the egg whites. Whipping this addition ensures that the deviled egg filling is the perfect consistency: light and not too rich. Just don't blame us when you can't stop eating them. Serrano-Bahri's other two recommendations contain bold and unique ingredients.

Nelson Serrano-Bahri also suggests adding whipped feta or whipped cottage cheese to your egg yolk mix for a more unique filling. This is a great option if pimento cheese is a little too strong for your liking; whipped feta, on the other hand, is a bit more subtle. To make a whipped feta dip, you'll similarly throw the cheese into a food processor alongside a few other ingredients until it's reached a light and airy texture. Then, add it to your egg yolk mixture. You can even sprinkle a bit of feta cheese on top to garnish the egg.

Whipped cottage cheese is another alternative, but we'd also recommend using regular cottage cheese that hasn't been whipped. When added to the deviled eggs' yolk mixture, the texture becomes reminiscent of an egg salad sandwich. Top it with a little stick of celery to create a mini version of the sandwich in the form of a deviled egg.

"If you want something bolder," Serrano-Bahri continued, "You can add chorizo and the rendered fat to the yolk mixture. If you've ever cooked with chorizo, a Spanish ground pork sausage, you know that saving the rendered fat is one of the most important chorizo tips you need to remember. If you get rid of it, your future dishes will miss out on so much depth and spice. As per Serrano-Bahri's suggestion, add some of the rendered fat to the yolk, and then dice your chorizo into small pieces to use as a garnish overtop the deviled eggs. Add some paprika and red pepper flakes for an extra kick, and enjoy your specialty deviled eggs.