deviled egg 02: fail caesar!
Julius Caesar: hero? dictator? colonizer? warmonger? #Rome’s_next_top_leafy_crown_model?
No matter your answers to these questions, it’s indisputable that Rome’s first dictator-for-life was responsible for the insertion of two months into the calendar: July, in honor of himself and, later, August in honor of his heir, thus completely throwing off a logical, mostly numeric-based naming system. Ever wonder why October is the tenth month when the prefix “oct-” means eight (think octopus)? Thank that dic-tator, Julius Caesar. This is what happens when megalomaniacs come into power. Do you want your babies being born in Trumpuary? I don’t think so.
It was Shakespeare who immortalized Marcus Brutus as the politician who assassinated Julius Caesar. Marco Rubio has been looking antsy lately. Watch out for that guy maybe on March 15.
Though Julius Caesar’s Roman lips never tasted the salty, fresh, snap of a delicious Caesar salad, the ubiquitous menu item isn’t free of oppressive origins. Two millennia later, Italian-born Caesar Cardini left his homeland during the rise of a fascist government just prior to the start of WWI, and immigrated to the United States where he opened a thriving restaurant. It wasn’t long until Prohibition era laws prompted Cardini to move his California restaurant operation to Tijuana, Mexico to attract thirsty American tourists. There he invented his legendary, namesake salad in 1924. I guess fascism doesn’t promote innovation or business growth. What a valuable and obvious lesson.
Anyhow, here is a delicious egg recipe based on the salad not the dictator . . .
INGREDIENTS
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12 hard-boiled eggs - peeled, sliced, yolks set aside for filling
Filling Ingredients:
12 hard-boiled egg yolks
½ c. good Caesar dressing - you can make your own if you’re feeling ambitious or just buy it ready- made at the store. I think the brands that come necessarily refrigerated taste a little better.
2 T mayo
2 T shredded parmesan cheese
2 t lemon juice
1 t freshly ground black pepper
Garnish: .
12 grape tomatoes, sliced lengthwise
24 croutons
shredded parmesan
freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
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Combine the filling ingredients in a food processor. Mix to combine well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the sides of the bowl to push the filling back toward the center and mix for another 30 seconds to incorporate some air in the mix to produce a more whipped texture. Fill the egg halves with the mixture. Garnish each with a sliced tomato half, a crouton, a sprinkle of shredded parmesan, and black pepper.
