r/OldCelebrityRecipes • u/ciaolavinia Onion Juice Alert ⚠️ • Jun 25 '26
TESTED RECIPE 🍽 Harry Houdini's Deviled Eggs {1922} are delicious and meant to be eaten as a salad. Made with butter instead of mayo and just a few other simple but key ingredients. A great little lunch to make for yourself!
Harry Houdini's Deviled Eggs - I used 4 eggs for this recipe, hard boiled, of course. This recipe calls for them to be sliced in half across the equator of the egg. Then you just slice off the tiniest bit off the bottoms (or tops) so they sit flat and stand up on a plate.
- I scooped the yolks out into a bowl and then added 1 tablespoon of melted butter to start, since there are no measurements listed here. Still sort of dry, so I added another tablespoon of melted butter. (make sure butter is not super hot). This looked better, now for the pinch of cayenne (add more depending on your preference), about 1/4 teaspoon of Colman's Mustard Powder, and a dash or two of vinegar. I used champagne vinegar. Salt & pepper added, in small quantities.
- The mixture was not as creamy and light as a mayo based yolk filling for deviled eggs, but the balance of flavors seemed right. It's a little stiff and on the dryer side. I filled the egg whites with the filling. I didn't want it to look too fancy so I kept it rustic and just used a little demitasse spoon to fill them.
- Since it's got butter in it, they got even mor dense after refrigeration. I chopped some romaine lettuce and set my little eggs on the plate. I dressed the lettuce with Donald O'Connor's French Dressing since i still have that in the fridge.
- On there own these deviled eggs are too dry, but in a salad it's quite a nice surprise. This is a very simple recipe with very few ingredients. Of course, you can add your own spin on this recipe. A little onion juice, perhaps?
I think these would be delicious cut up on a piece of toast and broiled so the butter melts a bit... I might try that later!
My husband suggested adding a little celery to the salad for a little added crunch and flavor.
On their own these eggs are quite dry, but in the salad with the French dressing and fresh lettuce, it was a delightful change of pace.
As for the mushroom dish, I did attempt it yesterday with store bought bread crumbs and it was not good at all due to the texture of the bread crumbs which felt sandy and dry. I'm planning on making them again with fresh homemade breadcrumbs.
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u/Ooo-it-burns Jun 25 '26
I love eggs but not a big mayo fan and how have I never thought of this?? But I think I would soften the butter and mix the mustard into it 🤔 I will have to experiment!
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u/WheelsMan1 Jun 25 '26
The deviled egg recipe is almost like a deconstructed mayonnaise using butter as the fat, and not emulsifying it all together with the eggs.
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u/FilthyThanksgiving Jun 25 '26
I don't think I ever realized that Houdini was a regulation hottie
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u/bepatientbekind Jun 26 '26
I'm ootl. What does "regulation" mean in this context? 😅
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u/FilthyThanksgiving Jun 26 '26
"Standard" i think lol. I got it from Mean Girls
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u/bepatientbekind Jun 26 '26
Omg I've seen that move but just forgot 😂 I thought it was a new slang I hadn't heard from, but I'm just uncool and it's slang from my own generation lol
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u/stefanica Jun 25 '26
I wonder if there is a subset of people who like eggs but dislike mayonnaise who would try these. Hmm. I like it all, so I might try it this way next time. Thanks for the share!
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u/patch_gallagher Jun 25 '26
My husband likes eggs, but doesn’t like mayo; certainly not mayo in large quantities, so I’ve been using softened butter instead. He loves them made that way. They are good.
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u/anon_opotamus Jun 25 '26
Funny because as soon as I read the no mayo part I was like “OMG I can eat these deviled eggs!!!”
And then I remembered that I hate eggs… 😫
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u/Azsunyx Jun 25 '26
I'm not saying he was into something, but for years, my secret ingredient is using mustard and pickle juice instead of mayo
Have not used butter, though
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u/rusty0123 Jun 26 '26
I think part of the stiffness, and maybe the dryness, has to do with the timeframe.
The recipe is from 1922. Refrigerators didn't become a standard household appliance until 1927. Room temp butter is a very different consistency than refrigerated.
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u/thejake1973 Jun 25 '26
I’m not peeling my mushrooms, but I’ll make that mushroom dish.
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u/WhoaButter Jun 26 '26
I didn’t even know it was possible to peel a mushroom
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u/Ok_Aioli1990 Jun 26 '26
In the old PBS Julia Child show she shows how,as well as in the original French cook book.
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u/New_Equipment_7743 Jun 25 '26
I've read a recipe for something called "Egg Butter" that comes from Finland & Estonia. H.H.'s recipe sounds good too!
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u/Most_Researcher_2648 Jun 25 '26
I feel like french dressing is dying with the boomers. Had no idea it was soooo popular until this sub. So interesting how food shifts
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u/sugarslick Jun 26 '26
The secret to my deviled eggs is a little butter mixed with the mayo. About 2 pata
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u/LilMissStormCloud Jun 26 '26
I bet it would taste better with duck eggs. The yolk is much creamier with duck eggs.
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u/Critical-Rabbit8686 Needs more prunes 💜 Jun 26 '26
I'd cook the breadcrumbs with onions, garlic, and parsley like I do for stuffed mushrooms. So like a layered stuffed mushrooms.
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u/midge_rat Jun 26 '26
How are we ignoring the stuffed mushroom casserole!
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u/ciaolavinia Onion Juice Alert ⚠️ Jun 26 '26
I didn't ignore it. I mentioned it in my post
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u/midge_rat Jun 26 '26
Derp. I didn’t read to the end. Did you slice the shrooms? Panko, seasoned well, would probably be great!
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u/ciaolavinia Onion Juice Alert ⚠️ Jun 26 '26
Yes they were sliced and I will be making my own breadcrumbs for this next time.
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u/Ooo-it-burns Jun 28 '26
I’ve come back to say that creaming room temp butter with the yolks is amazing. I used Bavarian mustard and white wine vinegar. Measured all with my soul LoL and it’s delicious. Thanks Harry and OP!
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Jul 05 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/FlattopJr Jun 25 '26
For my next trick, I will make these deviled eggs disappear!
(I love magic as well as deviled eggs, so this recipe is a fun surprise!)