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Easter articles, Easter egg
dye and other recipes, and Easter scrapbooking ideas.
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Pysanki-Decorated
Easter Eggs:
by Brenda Hyde
A special decorated egg called Pysanki, which comes from the
Slavic word pysati which means "to write" are a beautiful
tradition for many families. The eggs are "written" on with hot
wax making beautiful and elaborate designs then dipped into
colorful dyes. You can do this yourself with some simple
designs.
You will need:
Room temperature hard boiled eggs
a sewing pin stuck into a pencil eraser
candle
Be sure to do this with children ONLY if adults are present
to help at all times. Stick a small needle or pin into the
eraser head on a pencil. Light a candle. Dip your pin into hot
wax and immediately write on the egg making a design. After
making a few designs, dip the egg into a light color dye. Dry
the egg by patting gently with a cloth and add more wax designs.
Dip again into a slightly darker color. Repeat this process
until your egg is decorated as you wish!
Brenda Hyde may be contacted at
http://www.seedsofknowledge.com
chuckbrendakids@worldnet.att.net.
Brenda Hyde is a work at home Mom of three, a freelance writer
and editor. For more old fashioned recipes,crafts and free
family newsletters visit
http://oldfashionedholidays.com or
http://seedsofknowledge.com
Easter Recipes
Dye for Easter Eggs
1/4 tsp. food color
3/4 c. boiling water for each color
1 tbsp. vinegar for each color
For each color, measure food color, water and vinegar into bowl
about size of a cereal bowl. Mix well with spoon, use separate
spoon for each color. To make orange dye: mix equal amounts of
red and yellow. To make purple dye, mix equal amounts of blue
and red. To make green dye mix equal amounts of blue and yellow.
Chocolate Easter Egg Cake
1 c. boiling water
3/4 c. cocoa
1/4 c. butter or margarine
1/2 c. shortening
2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. unsifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. buttermilk or sour milk
Chocolate Frosting
Stir boiling water into cocoa. Cool. In large mixing bowl cream
butter, shortening and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla,
beating well. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and
salt; add alternately with buttermilk and chocolate mixture,
beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Pour into well
greased and floured 9 x 6 inch egg shaped pans (or 13 x 9 x 2
inch). Bake on lowest rack in 350 degree oven for 60-65 minutes
for egg-shaped pans, 40-45 minutes for oblong pans. Cool. Trim
base so cake sits level; trim layers to fit together evenly.
Frost, trim.
Chocolate Frosting
2 2/3 c. confectioners' sugar
1/3 c. unsweetened butter or margarine
3-4 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
Combine together. Blend until spreading consistency.
Easter Egg
Candies
2 lbs. confectioners' sugar
2 cans coconut
1/2 c. mashed potatoes
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. chopped nuts
1/4 stick butter or margarine
In large bowl - mix all and mash together - shape into egg
shapes. Melt 1/2 pound unsweetened chocolate and 2 tablespoons
melted paraffin - dip eggs in chocolate mix - dry on waxed
paper.
Maple Flavored
Easter Eggs
10 lbs. powdered sugar
1-1/2 sticks oleo
1 egg
1-1/2 tsp. maple flavor
2 c. chopped nuts
Mix together by hand powdered sugar and oleo. Beat egg white
stiff, add maple flavor and nuts. Mix with first ingredients
then shape eggs and then coat with melted chocolate disks.
Chocolate
Easter Eggs
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
3 tbsp. instant coffee granules
3/4 c. water
1-1/2 c. sugar
3/4 lb. (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
6 eggs
1 pt. (2 c.) whipping cream
In a medium saucepan combine chocolate, coffee and water over
low heat, stirring constantly until chocolate is melted and
mixture is smooth. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Cut
butter into small pieces and stir into hot mixture. Immediately
remove from heat and stir until butter is melted. Whisk in eggs
one at a time. Line a 10 cup metal bowl with several layers of
freezer foil. Pour in chocolate mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for
1 hour or until the top has formed a thick crust. Remove from
oven and cool. Mixture will sink and crack as it cools. Cover
top with foil and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 days. Before
serving, remove chocolate from bowl with the foil. Tear or pull
off foil. Place on serving platter crust side down. Whip cream
until stiff. Spread whipped cream over chocolate to cover
completely.
Easter Nests
12 oz. butterscotch chips
1/2 c. peanut butter
1 c. Spanish peanuts
5 oz. Chinese noodles
Melt butterscotch chips, add peanut butter and blend. Add
peanuts and Chinese noodles and blend well. Form into nests on
waxed paper and cookie sheet. Cool in refrigerator. Add jelly
beans, M & M's or candy of your choice.
Easter Scrapbooking Ideas
by Rachel Paxton
Easter is a
great time to capture family photographs for scrapbooking. Even
if you don't scrapbook, planning your picture taking ahead of
time ensures you won't miss any of these great family memories.
No family traditions? Then this is a great time to start!
Here are some Easter photograph ideas for scrapbooking:
Photograph spring flowers in bloom. Daffodils and tulips will
make a colorful contrast to your other photographs.
Have your kids help you make Easter cookies or an Easter cake.
Snap a picture of them working in the kitchen and then make sure
to take a picture of the finished product. We made a layer cake
and arranged it on a thick piece of cardboard covered with
aluminum foil. It was lemon cake with lemon filling and pink
frosting. We decorated it with store-bought Easter candy. Around
the base of the cake we arranged Easter grass and added
chocolate eggs and peeps for decoration. It made a great
picture!
Gingerbread houses aren't just for Christmas! Make a gingerbread
house and decorate it for Easter with pastel colors and lots of
Easter candy. The possibilities are limitless.
If your family attends Easter church services, make sure to get
a picture of your girls in their Easter dresses. Dressing up is
a great excuse to take a picture.
Coloring Easter eggs never gets old, whatever the age of your
kids! They never get tired of showing you how creative they are.
Join in on the fun and then take a picture of the finished
product.
Easter egg hunts are also fun for the whole family. Take some
good action pictures and get a picture of your kids with their
Easter baskets.
Easter dinners are a great time to take family pictures. It's a
good time to take pictures of relatives you don't often see, and
fun to get pictures of the family laughing and enjoying a meal
together. Take pictures of any of the good food you want to
remember later. Have fun picture taking, and have a happy
Easter!
About the Author
Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom who is the author of
What's for Dinner?, an e-cookbook containing more than 250 quick
easy dinner ideas. For recipes, tips to organize your home, home
decorating, crafts, and more, visit Creative Homemaking at
http://www.creativehomemaking.com. |
