How to Boil the Perfect Egg

It's past Easter, so I now, like many people, fancy myself somewhat of an egg boiling master. After boiling 3 and 1/2 dozen eggs, I found boiled egg nirvana.

Let me explain.

Ms. Iz. (aged 11, very discerning eye) and I tried to do our egg decorating late one Tuesday evening. It was a lackluster event, bordering on disaster. The dye I had chosen had no vibrancy, lacking in color as well. The crayons weren't doing their part. And, the stickers that came with the kit were not interesting enought to ofer any kind of joy. This accounts for the first dozenand a half eggs.

Three days later, we tried again. With more white wine vinegar, and better dye, we had a much higher success rate. The eggs were vibrant. The crayons were used to make very cute faces. The stickers still weren't very interesting. This accounts for the final two dozen eggs.

I now have a fridge full of beautifully colored hard boiled eggs. And a very good grasp on proper egg coloring techniques.

Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs (from Julia Child, of course)

Ingredients:

• 1 dozen eggs 3 and 1/2 quarts of water

• 1 Large Stockpot

Method:

• Lay the eggs in the pan and dd the cold water.

• Set over high heat and bring just to a boil.

• Remove from heat, cover pan, and let sit exactly 17 minutes.

• After the 17 minutes, transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice cubes and water.

• Chill for 2 minutes.

• (This next step, I do not do, but Julia does, so I am including it here: Transfer the eggs to the boiling water again and let boil for 10 minutes. Return the eggs to the ice water, craking the shells in several places.)

• Chill the eggs in the fridge.

Enjoy!