Wednesday is Tip Day: How to Make Perfect Boiled Eggs!

I just made up "Wednesday is Tip Day".  Ha.  I'm just gonna roll with it.

Who doesn't love Eggs?

I was inspired by a great post over at C.R.A.F.T. 

Here are the great tips she shared about EGGS!

1: Boiling eggs? Don't throw out the water! It contains minerals that can be beneficial for your plants. Cool to room temps & water away!

2: If you aren’t sure how fresh your eggs are, place them in about four inches of water. Eggs that stay on the bottom are fresh. If only one end tips up, the egg is less fresh and should be used soon. If it floats, it’s past the fresh stage.

3: After eggs are boiled--put them under cold water as soon as possible and leave them like that for a few minutes. That will make cleaning the shell off a lot easier.

4: Adding a little salt to the water will prevent boiling eggs from cracking.

5: The color of the egg shell has nothing to do with the quality of an egg. Buy brown or white eggs, whichever are cheaper. Old ones are smooth and shiny while fresh eggs are rough and chalky in appearance.

I love these great tips!  It reminded me of something I shouldn't be keeping to myself.

Have you ever seen one of these?

It's an electric kettle, and worth every penny.

Seriously, we use ours every. single. day.  A good electric kettle has the following features: 

• Turns off automatically when water reaches the boiling point (a MUST)
• A wide opening
• Anti-scale mesh filter at the pour spout
• Dry-boil and overheat protection
• External water level indicator
• Separate kettle and base
• Powerful concealed heating element for rapid boiling
• Stainless steel (highly recommended, plastic kettles can give your water a yucky flavor)

What makes me so enthusiastic about something that boils water, and what on earth does it have to do with eggs?

First lemme tell you about eggs, specifically the best boiled eggs you have ever had. (This is how my husband sold me on buying one, because at first I thought it was beyond ridiculous to pay for something to boil water, for cryin' out loud.  I have never ever regretted the decision, I promise you.)

To boil the world's most perfect eggs, simply:

1. Put your eggs in the kettle.  (This is why a wide mouth is important, you need to be able to reach into the pot to set your eggs inside.) 
2. Cover with water and click the button to boil 
3. When the kettle turns off after reaching a boil (ours "dings" when it turns off) leave your eggs in the water and set a timer for 15 minutes.
4. Remove your eggs and peel!  (Toss them in cold ice water to speed up the peeling process)

Your eggs will be PERFECT every single time. The yolks aren't runny or hard, they are creamy and wonderful. Idiot-proof and Delicious!  The deviled eggs my hubby makes with our boiled eggs are divine.

But that's not all the kettle can do!  It is an excellent multitasker! 

I use it to:

• Boil water for faster pasta, rice, etc.  (I don't recommend cooking your pasta in the kettle. You can, but it can be tricky to clean.)  Boil water and add it to your cooking pot!  No more waiting forever for a pot of water to boil before you can start cooking.  I can make pasta noodles in at least half the time it takes normally.
• Boil water for tea
• Boil water for coffee (We use a French press for the yummiest coffee on earth, I will post about that later if you're interested.)
• Boil broth for soups
• Boil water for hot cocoa
• Boil milk (it won't scald!)

Personally, I am really lazy about handwashing, so I don't boil food items (other than eggs) in my kettle very often.  Still we use the kettle every day.  If you aren't lazy like me, there's no reason that you can't cook more in your kettle than I have listed.

I can't recommend an electric water kettle enough.  (No one asked me to review them, I just wanted to share with you!)

Most quality kettles range from $30-$50.  You can go here for a great selection, but you can get one just about anywhere that sells kitchen appliances. (Ours came from Bed Bath and Beyond for $30ish after a 20% off coupon.)

Now, of course I can't help put point out that you can enter my CSN Store Giveaway for a $40 gift certificate and use it to get your own electric kettle for free.  Just sayin'.  ;)