Deviled Quail Eggs

(Reprinted with permission from Joanna Pruess)

Ingredients:

15 quail eggs

1 Tablespoon mayonnaise

1 Tablespoon crème fraîche

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 to 2 teaspoons finely snipped chives, plus ½-inch pieces to garnish

Salt and pepper to taste

2 to 2 ½ ounces small egg black caviar (I use American caviar which is ideal for this preparation) 

Cooking instructions:

1.        Put the eggs in a pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil.

2.       Turn off the heat and let them stand for about 4 minutes.

3.       Remove, run under cold water to cool, then crack and carefully peel.

4.       When the eggs are cool, using a sharp knife, cut them in half lengthwise.

5.       Carefully scoop out the yolks. (As a safety precaution, you can add an extra hard-cooked chicken egg yolk to be sure you have enough filling.)

6.       In a small bowl, mash the yolks until smooth.

7.       Add the mayonnaise, crème fraîche, mustard and chives. 

8.       Season to taste with salt and pepper.

9.       Scrape into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and fill the whites.

10.   Spoon on the caviar, add a piece of chive and serve.

11.   They may be made a few hours ahead and refrigerated, but remove them about ½ hour before serving.

Serves:  4-6 people

Wine recommendations:  With something as festive as this, a bubbly is best, either French Champagne or brut sparkling wine from anywhere the world.  See if your favorite wine merchant has a sparkling wine from the UK.  You will be pleasantly surprised. Check out this list of producers from a recent NYTimes article by Eric Asimov; https://nyti.ms/2F3Ogsq