Pamela Toman

Tag: potluck

Deviled Eggs

Somewhat fussy, but a great appetizer or side dish for a vegetarian meal.

A quintessential make-ahead recipe. Buy the eggs a week ahead of time, hardboil them 1-2 days ahead of time, slice and mix the filling 24 hours ahead of time, then pipe and serve on the desired day.

It can be easiest to peel the eggs if you shake them around in a mug while still a bit warm.

White eggs are the least likely to have blood spots.

I keep buying Sir Kensington's mayo because it doesn't use soybean oil -- but it also doesn't smell very appetizing. Next time let's look for another option.

Ingredients Step
12 white eggs At least 24 hours before hardboiling, set the eggs on their sides in the fridge. (This will help the yolks be in the center of each egg.)
ice water Steam cold-from-the-fridge eggs for ~14 minutes, then plunge them directly into a well-established ice water bath. If the ice bath has not been established for 10+ minutes, steam the eggs 1-2 minutes less. (Boiling water goes in the pan before the steamer basket full of eggs,because pouring boiling water on top of the eggs will crack the shells.)
Peel and slice eggs in half, separating the yolks into a medium bowl. Place the whites on a paper towel.
4 T. pickles Chop finely.
egg yolks
⅓ c. mayonnaise (or part Greek yogurt)
diced pickles, from above
? 1 T. pickle juice
? 1 T. dijon
? 1 T. white vinegar
black pepper
salt		 Mash together with fork until smooth consistency. Taste and re-season as needed. When delicious, spoon into a corner of a plastic bag. (The bag can be stored overnight in the fridge to let flavors meld and/or as make-ahead.)
Dry the whites.
Snip off the very corner of the egg yolk mixture bag. Pipe filling into whites.
paprika Garnish.

Deviled Eggs was published on 3 October 2025.

Recipe uses: eggs, dijon, mayo

Carrot White Bean Salad

A lovely salad that works as a side dish for omnivores and an entree for vegetarians (easily vegan-izable).

Substituting other herbs and sweeteners works well. Thyme and maple syrup, for instance, is another nice combination.

Have it ready a bit before serving; it improves as it sits.

Ingredients Step
scant ¼ c. olive oil
heaping ⅓ c. shallot, very thinly sliced		 Saute briefly, just enough to take off the raw onion edge.
warmed shallots and oil
3 T. lemon juice
¼ c. dill, chopped
scant ¼ t. salt		 Combine and adjust dressing to taste. Don't sweeten yet. Set aside.
4 carrots, sliced (~2 c.)
olive oil		 Saute the carrots in batches so they stay in a single layer, until deeply browned (~12 minutes per layer).
3 c. white beans (2 cans) Add. Cook about 5 minutes, until the beans are heated through.
dressing
~2 T. honey		 Stir dressing in. Sweeten to taste (consider the carrots).
⅓ c. sliced almonds, toasted Serve with toasted almonds.

Source: Heidi Swanson (101 Cookbooks)

Carrot White Bean Salad was published on 5 May 2024.

Recipe uses: shallot, carrots, white-beans, dill, almonds

Pretzel Bites

From nothing to pretzel bites in under 90 minutes.

Some people think these deserve beer cheese....

Ingredients Step
300 g flour (2½ c.)
6 g salt (1 t.)
1 t. sugar
7 g yeast (2¼ t.)
up to 1 c. warm water, depending on ambient humidity		 Combine all ingredients. Knead until normal bread dough texture (sticky like a post-it, soft like a marshmallow). Cover the mixing bowl and let rest for 30 minutes.
3 c. water
3-4 T. baking soda		 While resting, prepare the baking soda bath. In a very large saucepan, heat and stir until the soda is totally dissolved. Set pan aside to cool to room temperature (no warmer than lukewarm).
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a work surface.
Prepare a baking sheet. Because of the baking soda bath, the pretzel bites really like to stick and to overcook on their bottoms. I've had the best luck with a well-oiled silpat mat on a light-colored air-gap baking sheet. Ungreased parchment paper produces papery bites.
Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Roll ropes and cut pieces. Drop the pieces into the baking soda solution, swish them around, and let them sit for a few minutes. The longer they sit, the more they'll lose their integrity and the darker and more "pretzel-ly" they'll cook up.
coarse salt Transfer the bites to the baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt.
Bake 12-15 minutes, until golden brown.
3 T. butter, melted Brush with melted butter, then flip the bites and brush their bottoms too. Transfer to rack to cool.

Source: Charlotte Rutledge (KAF)

Pretzel Bites was published on 3 May 2024.

Broccoli Spoon Salad

A lovely salad that works as a side dish for omnivores and an entree for vegetarians. The raw broccoli tenderizes in the vinegar and doesn't eat like raw broccoli.

Consider cutting the honey if it's broccoli season. Leave it at the whole amount if it's very late spring/summer and the broccoli isn't at its prime. Don't make this recipe at all in late summer or early fall. (More often than not, I've thought the full amount of honey was too sweet overall when broccoli is in season and I use sweetened cranberries.)

Do not sub cranberries with pomegranate seeds. The texture doesn't work.

Consider wild rice instead of quinoa. (I haven't tried this yet but it should be delicious and still protein-packed.)

Ingredients Step
1 c. raw quinoa Wash. Boil in well-salted water until plump and tender, about 15 minutes. Drain in sieve, rinse with cool water, and drain well. (Don't treat it like rice with the cloth and lid; it will retain too much heat in the salad.)
zest and juice of 1 lemon
3 T. olive oil
3 T. Dijon mustard
2 T. honey
2 T. apple cider vinegar		 Whisk together in a very large bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
2 heads of broccoli (~1½ pounds) Finely chop the broccoli and add to dressing. Let it macerate as you prep the rest.
1 tart green apple
4 oz. sharp cheddar		 Finely chop the apple and cheese. Add to broccoli. Toss to combine.
cooked quinoa
¾ c. pecans
½ c. dried cranberries		 Add. Toss to combine. Taste. Add more lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste.

Source: Sohla El-Waylly (NYT)

On Quinoa

I usually buy quinoa from the bulk section at Sprouts, in whatever color(s) I'm feeling.

I wash it first until the water runs clear (well, clear enough), similar to basmati. Some people run water over it in a fine sieve for a few minutes, but my sieve loses a lot of grains. I tend to swirl and rub it in the saucepan before putting heat under it, with 3-4 changes of water. (Yet other people argue you don’t need to wash it at all, but that's dangerous — depending on your quinoa producer and your taste buds, you might end up with a bitter/soapy/ugly flavor rather than a vaguely earthy grain.)

This recipe boils the quinoa like pasta. That makes it easy to taste-test and see when it is done to your preference. The final texture you want is similar to fine couscous. Maybe up to half of the grains will have unfurled little tails as they cook, and all the grains will plump up and no longer be at all crunchy.

Broccoli Spoon Salad was published on 17 September 2023.

Recipe uses: quinoa, cheddar, broccoli, wild rice, apple