Stuffed eggs

Stuffed eggs with salad

 The hollows in hard-boiled egg halves make perfect containers for a tasty filling- here carrot and chive- and the eggs look so pretty served on a bed of ribbon vegetables and lamb's lettuce. All you need is some interesting bread to make a satisfying brunch.

Preparation time 20 minutes    Cooking time 10 mins       Serves 4

Ingredients:

6 large eggs, at room temperature

1-1/2 tbsp mayonnaise

1-1/2 tbsp plain low fat yogurt

1/2 tsp mustard powder

2 small carrots (about 100g), finely grated

2 tbsp sniped fresh chives, plus chive lengths to garnish

salt and pepper

For the dressing

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp vinegar

1/4 tsp Dijon mustard

salt and pepper

For the salad

1 carrot

2 zucchini

80 g baby salad leaves

1 First hard boil the eggs. Place in the large saucepan, cover with tepid water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 7 minutes.Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place in the bowl of cold water to cool.

2 Meanwhile, make the dressing. Put the olive oil, vinegar and mustard in a jar with a tight-fitted lid with salt and pepper to taste. Shake well and then set aside.

3 Remove the shell from the eggs and cut each egg in half lengthways. Scoop out the yolks into a bowl using a teaspoon. Set the whites aside.

4 Add the mayonnaise, yogurt, mustard powder , grated carrots and half of the sniped chives to the egg yolks then mash together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

5 Using a teaspoon, spoon the egg yolk filling into the hollows in the egg white halves, mounding it up attractively.

6 Using a vegetable peeler shave ribbons lengthways from the carrot, zucchini. Put the vegetable ribbons in the bowl with the lamb's lettuce. Shake the dressing again, then pour over the salad and toss together.

7 Divide the salad among serving plates and top with stuffed egg halves. Sprinkle the top of the eggs with the remaining snipped chives, garnish with the chive lengths, then serve.

Some more ideas....

For a lightly curried filling, mix the egg yolks with 1/4 cup (65 g) reduced-fat ricotta cheese, 1 tsp curry paste, 2 finely chopped spring onions and the grated carrot.

Add 2-3 finely chopped radishes to the stuffing mixture.

Health points

✔️ Eggs have often received negative publicity because of their cholesterol content. In fact, for most people, eating eggs and other foods rich in cholesterol has little effect on blood cholesterol levels.

✔️ Preparing vegetables just before use helps to minimise vitamin loss.

✔️ By mixing mayonnaise with yogurt, rather than using mayonnaise alone, the fat and kilojoule contents of a dish such as this can be reduced.