Carlie and Taylor's Favorite Deviled Eggs aka Zippity Doo Dah Eggs

I sometimes forget what it was like to be a smoker. I did it for a long time... a tough habit to break really. But one thing that came from it... it my need for spices and what my kids call zippity doo dah. I had to drown my salads with pepper to taste it. I started adding more and more garlic to my cooking. My taste buds hadn't been what they could be. With that in mind, I quit smoking years ago... many years ago... but my love for the Zippity Doo Dah never ended.

Now, with as much as I love to cook... I could easily get offended that people always ask me to bring my deviled eggs and they really are not able to figure out how I make them. I just smile... not one has broken the *secret code* code yet. I, like most of my other recipes, vary the amounts here as well and I sometimes add a little bonus to them.


My Zippity Doo Dah Eggs

Boiled eggs (get ready as you are not getting the exact measurements as there are none... but trust me on this one....

Boil, peel and crack the eggs. I know it should go without saying, but cut the eggs the long way... point to point. P.S. TJ... if you are reading this, I still love you doll face, but I just needed to add that.

Scoop out the middle of the eggs, also known as the yellows or yolks (SMILE)

In a bowl, blend your yolks with a mixer. Get them as fine as you can. If you like lumpy eggs, so be it, but not as good as smooth centers in our house... and my kids, I must say are deviled egg experts... I mean they can eat a whole plate of them in a day... that makes them experts... right?

Add mayonaise to moisten the yolks... but don't add to much. The secret is coming up... trust me here and you can always add some later if you have never been a smoker such as me... or if you are a big cry baby from the secret ingredients...

next... add a few drops of tapito. If you don't know what this is... you will find it either in the mexican food aisle, or near the tabasco. A few drops will do it... (like 7 here... for luck of course). NEXT... add creamy horseradish! Yes... creamy horse radish, and about a teaspoon of mustard. I am sure you are assuming I mean mustard such as French's? WRONG. Chinese powder form of hot mustard! OMGawsh... it will wake you up in a heart beat. I don't mix it with water or anything... why dilute a great thing? Add your salt and lots of pepper.

Fill the egg halves with this mixture. Now for garnishment... I know most people use paprika, to make their eggs look pretty... but around in these parts... (our house) we use... cayanne pepper.

There you have it. Carlie called them fire cracker eggs for our block party. They were devoured in moments. I took two plate fulls and they were gone... completely... 100 percent gone. Not saying I didn't get any first. I said I TOOK two plates... but we actually made three plates full. WINK... sometimes I am stingy and don't share very well.

Corn and Black Bean Dip

If you only knew what we do on the 4th of July. It could get really ugly if we were all honest with each other, yet the word goes unspoken. Seriously... it does. I live in a very kind and sweet neighborhood. We have wonderful neighbors. They are caring for each other and we look out for each other. We watch each others homes when the other is away. We watch each others children to make sure they are safe when they are out and about on the street. Until a couple of months ago, our daughter was the youngest on the block, yet now there is a family across the street renting a home there, and their son is the same age, and a child even younger. However, we still make sure the teens are being safe. We are the neighborhood that bakes for each other during the holidays... and we gather several times a year to enjoy each others companies. HOWEVER, the 4th of July is all about... OUT COOKING OURSELVES from what we brought the year before. That is what I tell myself... as I am not the one that has to be reminded of what I brought the year before. My mind is a volt when it comes to food. SMILE! BUT... ME BEING THE HONEST ONE AROUND HERE, I must tell you that I am also the one that has to tell you a secret.... we are all really trying to out cook each other as well. Again, it is unspoken. When you put your dish on the table to share... it shows... it totally shows. We eye each others dish, like it is the shoot out at sunset from Gun Smoke!

This year, I think that the block party was bigger than any of the past. Each family welcomes other family and friends from all over the place to join in on the festivities as long as they... BRING FOOD!!!! I love seeing when people are carrying over a sliced watermelon... it should disqualify them of the secret contest that is going on.... and people that bring the same dish each year, no competition.... I.... uhm... I mean WE... have found something bigger and better from the year before. We wear that invisible crown, letting the world that we are warriors of the kitchen... but we do it with a little smile or grin and say we will get the recipe to share right away. They obviously don't know... I have a food blog... and that may or may not be kept a secret. I mean... I would hate someone else to win with MY RECIPE... right?

Seriously though, we are very blessed to live in a neighborhood where we can join together and love each other and share our food. We are blessed to live in America. We are blessed to have each other and call each other friends... and we are blessed to be FREE, thanks to the men and women that keep our country safe. Yes that refers to soldiers... and their families, as that is obvious to me. However, we need to also think outside the box, as to the police, ambulance and fire in the area. We need to think of the neighbors that look out for each others home and belongings... to the teachers that go above and beyond for our kids... the daycare and pre school teachers that watch our children and keep them safe as we work. There are smaller scales her too that go without notice... but... AGAIN... on a big scale... people serving in our Armed Forces... I appreciate you.

For the recipe. I found it at this site and I adapted it to our needs. The name is Some Kind of Delicious. She has some great recipes that I saw over there... that I will be trying again very soon. It was the first time I had been to the site, yet I knew I had to try this. And that I did.

Corn and Black Bean Dip

2/3 c. sour cream
½ c. cilantro, chopped
1 tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. cayenne pepper
1 (15-oz.) can corn, drained and rinsed
1 (15-oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
Juice & zest of 1 lime
Salt & pepper to taste
Tortilla chips

In a bowl combine the sour cream, cilantro, cumin, cayenne pepper, and lime. Stir in corn & black beans. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with tortilla chips.

I increased the sour cream to 1 1/3 cups. I added some tapitio to add some zip, and some carne asada seasoning to it. I also added an extra can of corn and a small onion. Her way was divine, yet, I like a lot of extra spice to my food most often. I also increased the the cumin to 2 tsp. and added some green chilis that were diced in a can. I think next time I will add an extra can of black beans and a can of cheddar cheese soup or shredded cheddar cheese. We shall see what wild hair I get that day. All in all her recipe was fantastic... I always tweek... the way I am made.

I hope you try this... it is super easy. Ooooooohhhh... as I am sitting here and my mind wanders yet again, I am thinking it would be fantastic with Mexican sour cream as well. It is so very yummy.... hmmmmmm..... thinking, thinking, thinking.

I also hope you go over and visit her site. It is a keeper for sure.