fly the nest

When you've lived in a house long enough to go through life stages like a marriage, birth, graduations and family holiday gatherings, you start to notice physical elements of the house, like a door or a chip in the wall, that hold special memories, a part of your personal history...sentimental objects that you'd wish you could take with you wherever you go.

In our hallway along the doorway trim to our kitchen, we've marked through the years, the growth of our children.  Every so often the kids would want to see how much taller they've become, and they'd stand with the world's most perfect posture, almost on their tippy toes, in hopes that a new pencil mark will be drawn just a notch above the last one.

As Easter approaches, I am reminded yet again, on how life has many little "pencil" marks as indicators of how far we've come, showing the notches of our history.  Every year, during this sweet season of Easter, I empty a dozen eggs (I use this germ free method so we can actually eat them) and rally the kids around the table, with little cups filled with dyes, to colour them.  It's a magical process- the kids watching with intense patience as each egg becomes more vibrant as they sit in those little cups of dye.  Colours and patterns are planned out, stickers are placed and at the end, their creations are displayed as souvenirs of our time together.  But as the years pass I've found this activity, which once would occupy their interest for at least a full morning, would be done quicker and quicker every year, now being completed within a few mere minutes.

However, as we sat around the table with finished projects, I realized that the time that was once filled with childhood activities are now just replaced with time filled with more meaningful discussions instead (and in this case, a deeper understanding of what Easter really means to us).  Although I will continue to prepare the eggs for our yearly ritual, I will cherish these family traditions, not just as another holiday activity, but as another opportunity to spend precious time together, filling these kids with vibrant confidence so when they're ready to fly the nest, they'll become beautiful contributors to this world we live in.

Wishing you a Happy Easter 

filled with rejuvenation and love!

Easter Egg Nest Cupcakes
(makes approximately 1 dozen)

There are a few ways to make these cupcakes.  The easiest way to make them (for those who do minimal baking) is to buy pre-iced cupcakes, a bag of shredded coconut, and candy coated chocolate eggs.  Bake the coconut as directed below.  Remove the icing from the centre of the cupcake, add the coconut to the perimeter of the cupcake and add the chocolate eggs.  If you like to bake from scratch, the directions are below.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups shredded coconut (about 5 ounces)
• Chocolate Cupcakes (recipe below)
• Chocolate Frosting/Icing (recipe below)
• Candy Covered Egg Shaped chocolates

Assembly/Preparations

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
• Spread coconut on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until light brown, 8 to 10 minutes, rotating pan once. Set aside to cool.
• Lightly frost cupcakes with 1 cup chocolate frosting; set aside. 
• Form each nest with 2 tablespoons toasted coconut. (I also piped a small amount along the perimeter of the cupcake, so the coconut has something to adhere to
• Using candy covered chocolate eggs, place in the middle of the nest.

Chocolate Cupcakes

Ingredients

• 3 cups sugar
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for pans
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 cups milk, room temperature
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
• Line standard muffin cups with paper liner. 
• In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. 
• Add milk, vegetable oil, and 1 1/2 cups warm water; whisk to combine. 
• Add eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until smooth.
• Divide batter among muffin cups (filling each about 2/3 full) and bake until a toothpick inserted in comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 20 to 25 minutes. 
• Let cool in pans on wire racks, 5 minutes, then transfer cupcakes to racks and let cool completely. 

Chocolate Frosting (for 12 cupcakes)

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 4 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 2 tsp. milk (or 35% whipping cream for creamier texture)

Preparation

• Combine butter, sugar and cocoa powder and blend with an electric beater, until well combined.
• Add milk and beat on high until smooth and creamy.

Enjoy!

birth of spring

A few years ago, we had the pleasure of witnessing robin's eggs laid and hatched right outside one of our bedroom windows.  It was a phenomenal thing to watch...robin's blue eggs are so indescribably blue, that it is no wonder why we try to mimic it's beautiful hue in our homes.


It was a slow process.  The robin would lay one egg, one day at a time.  Robins usually lay about four eggs in their clutch, and this one was no exception.  By the end of the week, she laid about four eggs in the little nest on our windowsill.

She sat, incubating the eggs for a good two weeks.  Even when we went out and about on the weekends, when we returned, the mother robin was still sitting.  Patiently.  We were careful not to disturb her...she didn't mind that we took pictures, so long as we didn't touch or go too close to her nest (of course!).  I read that if the mother robin smells another scent on the eggs, she would not return to them for fear that they've been tampered with.  So we just watched in awe.


Then came the moment when they were to hatch.  Robin's eggs usually hatch one day at a time, in the order that they were laid.  

And indeed mother nature did work it's wonders.  One by one, the little birds, blind at birth, were hatched.  Wide mouths instinctually open to be fed by their mother.

It was amazing to be able to witness and capture this wonderful moment of spring.  With Easter around the corner, I love to make egg's nest cupcakes, to remember that lovely moment when these birds were born...into spring.

Simple Egg's Nest Cupcakes

Here are instructions on how to simply decorate cupcakes to look like an egg's nest.  For the cupcake recipes (I made chocolate cupcakes and icing), scroll below.  

To Decorate: 

I placed the icing in one of my baker's pipes, and iced each cupcake circles, creating the nest.

I then cut miniature marshmallows in half for the eggs (you could use blue jellybeans...I didn't have them on hand at the time), and place the marshmallows in the centre of each nest.  

Using a vegetable peeler, shave a bar of chocolate (baker's chocolate will do), and sprinkle on top.  

Serve.

Chocolate Cupcakes 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
• Line a muffin pan with paper or foil liners. 
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 
• Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla. 
• Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk; beat well. 
• Fill the muffin cups about 1/2 full.
• Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Chocolate Icing

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1-1/4 cups baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions:

• In a large mixing bowl, cream butter. 
• Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar, cocoa and vanilla. 
• Add enough milk until frosting reaches spreading consistency.