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!

easter monday

Wishing you a Happy Easter 


filled with rejuvenation and love!

good friday

Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.

~S.D. Gordon

colour your world

Ever since we had robin's eggs hatched at our window sill a few years ago, I've looked forward to our annual tradition of painting Easter eggs, just so I can admire a few blue ones in our batch.  Every spring, I occasionally look at that window sill...wondering, if another bird will return...and use the sill as a home for it's nest.  I guess as a mother, I can appreciate and still watch in awe, how another mother or parent (human or not) is so dedicated to prepare it's offspring for the world.

It is no different than a pregnant woman, eating all the right foods, eliminating all the bad habits and taking care of herself, and therefore readying her baby to arrive in our world.   It is no different than a father, teaching his child how to stick handle a puck, so his kid can play road hockey with his friends, and beat his "world" record.  


I guess you can say I'd rather watch the journey instead of the goal.  A friend of ours told me a funny story about how they had a difficult time blowing the contents out of an egg to prepare them for painting. They wanted to use empty egg shells instead of boiled eggs, so they can admire and display the painted eggs for a longer time. Unfortunately, by the time they finished emptying all their eggs, they were too out of breath and didn't complete their original intention of painting them. (I wish they had told me this sooner).

Although I love the end result of a beautiful array of coloured eggs in our basket...I enjoy watching the process even more.  Children (of all ages!) delicately placing egg shells in dye, patiently waiting for the colour to transform.  Their eyes widen...how quickly an egg goes from basic white to beautiful shades of pink, yellow and blue.  A world of possibilities, of colour, of beautiful creativity.


With a little preparation, this can be such a simple activity with so few elements...empty egg shells, a little dye, and plastic cups.  And I find it one of the most calming things to do this time of year.


So, as a simple way to prepare eggs for painting this Easter, I'm sharing with you, my "trick of the trade"...on how to empty them without losing your breath, so you too can sit back and enjoy watching curious eyes widen, as they discover a colourful world of possibilities.

Simple, non-traditional way of emptying eggs

Using a very sharp paring knife, pierce a hole at each end of the egg.

Take a spaghetti noodle and put it through the egg,
so the yolks are no longer intact.

Take a turkey baster, and squeeze air into the egg on one end...
the liquid contents will easily come out of the other end of the egg.
Since you did not use your own breath, you can empty the contents
into a bowl, for later use (scrambled eggs or quiche, perhaps?)

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.

Simple Easter cupcakes

I had a recent request from a friend to provide a quick and easy idea to decorate plain chocolate cupcakes for Easter.   As I am sitting watching the kids paint their Easter eggs this morning, I came across this old photograph of bunny cupcakes I made last year, so I thought I’d share.  You can make these using pre-made cupcakes and store-bought frosting, or my homemade cupcake and icing recipes (found here)

The way I decorated my cupcakes might be a little more time consuming, as I baked sugar cookies for the bunny ears.  But I figured,  if I am going to bake, I might as well bake cupcakes and cookies at the same time! (I was baking for two crowds).  An easier alternative would be using vanilla Oreo cookies cut in half for the ears (instead of the sugar cookies I baked).

Once the cupcakes are iced with simple buttercream frosting, I added a little cocoa powder to what was left over from the butter cream frosting, then piped the eyes and whiskers.  I used mini candy coated chocolate eggs for the nose.

Fairly simple…and a big hit with the kids!


Enjoy!

Simple Bunny Treats

With Easter approaching, I'm am in "treat" mode...chocolates and jelly bean eggs fill the shelves at the store, taunting me to purchase all those delectable sweets.

For Easter, what's more fun than eating something fluffy and "bunny" related.  Something as simple as a marshmallow that looks like...a bunny tail!

When I usually give out treats (like in a loot bag), if there is something I am not making from scratch, I usually want to do something to the packaging so it looks personal.

Here's a quick and easy "packaging" idea for the marshmallow "bunny tails" (cotton candy or chocolate dipped marshmallows can be fluffy tails too).  This literally took me 10 minutes to do (not including the disruptive pleas like "Mommeee, can I eat some marshmallows now???").

I took a simple sheet of paper (although I think card stock would have worked even better), and wrote my Easter greeting on the side (length wise) of the paper, then cut along the middle so I have two copies:  

I folded each sheet again then sketched bunny ears on the top part of the fold.  Then I cut along the lines:

I folded and then attached this to the top of a regular ziplock bag with the marshmallows enclosed (prettier party loot bags would look nice too...the creative possibilities are endless!)...and voila!  

Bunny Tail Treats!  

Simple.


Happy Easter everyone!