Tom's Favorite Spring Recipe...

Ah, Easter... a glorious day of hope and joy and celebration of our Lord's resurrection.

Now, just one day later, there's Easter grass all over the house and extra delicate laundry to be done and leftovers, leftovers, leftovers.  Do you have lots of these hanging around in your fridge?

Hard cooked eggs are great for deviled eggs, egg salad, sliced on a green salad, etc., but every year we have my husband's favorite Spring recipe: Egg Rice Salad.  I know, it sounds a bit weird, but stay with me here.  I found the recipe YEARS ago as a young, I-can-burn-water-without-even-trying wife, in a 1982 cookbook, "Betty Crocker's Working Woman's Cookbook".  Now I didn't work and I was certainly no Betty Crocker, but I gave it a try.  It's been one of his favs since then!  I've since learned that it's a very old, cost-saving recipe with many variations, but here's the recipe I use:

10 oz. frozen peas
8 hard cooked eggs, coarsely chopped
3 cups cooked rice
2 medium stalks celery, sliced (about 1 cup)
1 small onion, chopped (about 1/4 cup)
4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, cut into 1/4" - 1/2" cubes
2 oz. diced pimento, drained, if desired
1 cup mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon prepared mustard
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried dill weed, if desired

Rinse frozen peas under running cold water to separate; drain.  Mix peas, eggs, rice, celery, onion, pimento (if using), and cheese.  In a separate bowl, mix mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and dill weed (if using); toss with egg mixture.  Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours but no longer than 24 hours.  This recipe serves at least six, so I usually halve it.

My husband will be overjoyed when he arrives home to find this on the dinner table!