Growing up, my family kept the holidays simple. Our traditions centered around time together: baking banana bread loaves to take with us when we went caroling, reading the Christmas story, singing carols, and even driving around the neighborhoods looking for the best Christmas lights. Experiences took front seat to the presents, and now as an adult I can’t remember most of the presents I received, but I can remember the experiences we had as a family and the memories that we made.

My favorite Christmas tradition happened every Christmas Eve. We would gather together in our living room and sing. Some Christmases we sang through every Christmas carol we could think of, and some we sang three or four before heading to bed. My dad would sing “O, Holy Night,” and my sister and I might sing a duet of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” followed by a reading of Luke 2. The peace and serenity of those memories come back to me now, even though my dad has been gone for several years now.

These beautiful family memories instilled in me the importance of family amidst the hustle and bustle of the season.

 So, to me, spending time with family is always my priority during the holidays. Sometimes I get distracted, but for the most part I plan our holiday around family time (a lot of which is centered around food!). We go to family parties, hang out on the weekends, or spend the entire day just enjoying each other’s company.

This past Thanksgiving I celebrated with my older sister, her husband, one of my cousins, and my little family. I prepared most of the feast (just because I wanted to be able to eat everything!) and created these deviled eggs as an appetizer. They were a big hit, and no one even noticed I had used veganaise! It was delightful to share clean food with my family.

One of the problems I have with traditional deviled eggs is that they have loads of soy-based mayo in them, which is something I can’t eat without getting sick! Also, there are usually raw eggs in mayo, which is a no-no while breastfeeding. So I created this recipe, substituting organic, vegetarian fed chicken eggs for conventional eggs, and Follow Your Heart’s Soy-Free Veganaise. It is the best mayonnaise I have ever tasted and it’s definitely clean eating! (Note: Veganiase does contain Brown Rice Syrup, but I feel that it’s a small sacrifice since the ingredients are so clean).

 

10 hard-boiled, organic free-range eggs
3 tbs Follow Your Heart Soy-free Veganaise OR Primal Mayo
2 tbs organic mustard
1 tsp salt
pinch of paprika

1. Shell the hard boiled eggs and make sure to rinse off any left over shell pieces. Slice eggs in half, dumping hardened yolks into a medium mixing bowl. Place the whites on a separate plate to be filled later.
2. Smash the egg yolks until there are no large chunks left. Stir in veganaise, mustard, and salt. Your mixture should be slightly sticky.
3. Spoon the mixture into the natural bowl of each hard boiled egg white. Sprinkle with paprika and you are done!