Hard-Boiled Eggs, with a Pinch of the Israeli Exotic

A couple of weeks ago I attended an amazing bridal shower for my amazing Israeli friend Ravid (a race car driving ballerina, ‘Nuff said). The word that comes to mind is feast, but truthfully that word seems a complete and utter understatement.

On the three-table buffet there were well -over fifty lunch dishes, with twenty plus types of desserts following later (all created by Ravid’s epicurean superhero of a mom Etti). It is also a complete and utter understatement to say that those who speak the ‘Brew definitely know how to cook!

One of the most the fascinating dishes to me was, of course, one of the simplest: a hard-boiled egg.
… An egg you say? Yes, a plain simple egg, with one simple exotic Israeli spin. What made these eggs so out of the ordinary from your everyday white bread Americana variety is that they were boiled in Rose Water.

This secret ingredient colors the egg’s shell a lovely tan pigment. Along with the exterior, the Rose Water also soaks through to the interior of the egg dying its white part a lovely biscuit color. In addition this secret ingredient imparts the white with a slightly nutty flavoring (a welcome addition for me since I always thought of it as bland, super bland). Add a pinch of sea salt and white pepper you have something most everyone will remember (and be asking you what your secret is…)



Rose Water Eggs
1. Collect rose petals; preferably from a garden that grows them organically. If you don’t grow them, and don’t know anyone else who grows them, which is sad because the world should be full of as many rose gardens as possible, then you can get them at the Farmers Market.
2. Place petals in a brown paper bag and allow them to dry, about 4 days to a week depending on moisture content.
3. To make the eggs, gently place one dozen eggs and dried rose petals at the bottom of a saucepot.
4. Cover the contents with cold water.
5. Cover the pot with a lid and cook over Low/Medium heat.
6. As soon as the water comes to a full boil, remove from heat and let it stand, around 15 to 17 minutes.
7. Take the eggs out of water and plunge into an ice bath.
Enjoy!
(thanks to Etti Rahimian for the recipe!)

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