Quail Eggs...Hard Boiled

If you're anything like me, you've seen all the cooking shows where they have elegantly showcased the quaint little quail egg.  Then the judges (or whomever is lucky enough to be eating the dish) proclaims how wonderful it tastes and how it adds just the right aspect to the dish.  
So, of course, I just had to find these little things and see for myself what all the fuss was about.  I hit up every high end grocery store within 30 miles of my house.  Nothin.  Depressed I figured it just wasn't meant to be.  Now, here's the part where the fact that I'm not a native to SoCal (and in fact grew up in the desert of Vegas) stands out.  Never did I think to check the farmers markets.  Duh.  And naturally, my first visit this past Sunday found me beaming at a dozen petite quail eggs.  
The question I asked myself when I got home was...now what?  After surfing the net for a bit I decided to settle on hard boiling them and making cute little egg snacks.  I know my girls will love peeling these babies!  Here's how to do it:

Aren't they pretty lil' things?

How to Hard-boil Quail Eggs 

Fill a saucepan with enough water to cover the eggs and an inch more. Place the saucepan on a burner over high heat. Carefully place the eggs in the water. Don’t crowd them.

Cover the pan and bring the water to a boil. As soon as the water comes to a boil, turn off the heat. Leave the pan covered on the burner for five minutes.

Immerse the eggs in cold water, or better yet an ice bath, to stop the cooking process. 

When they are cool, crack the shell by tapping it on a hard surface and peel. The membrane between the shell and the white is a bit thicker than chicken eggs, but not too much so. Serve with salt to taste. 

To me, I think the yolk had a much creamier texture than chicken eggs.  Delicious!

Store leftover peeled eggs in cold water in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Prep-time: 5 minutes
Cook-time: 5 minutes