March 23, 2009

Easter Ideas

This year I've amassed quite a lot of ideas for Easter but with the packing I need to do for our upcoming move and the tax paperwork still to do (ugh), I'm not sure what I'll actually manage. So here's a list so that I don't lose any I can't find time for.

Two fellow Michigan foodbloggers made homemade versions of classic Easter candy.
-Melitta from Cafe Chocolata made Homemade Kinder Surprise. I bought some new Lego mini-figures to place in the ones I'm going to make for my son Alex.
-The ultimate Easter treat, Cadbury Creme Eggs, was recreated at the Speedbump Kitchen. Her Egg-free Creme Eggs are egg and dairy-free and don't even require cooking except to melt the chocolate. It's my husband's dream come true!

I also collected ideas from Better Homes and Gardens Easter Recipes and Craft Ideas.
-These Egg-shaped Cereal Treats are the perfect quick addition to an Easter basket. You could make these really colorful with the right cereal.
-The Piped Easter Egg Cookies are so cute! I love that you don't need an egg-shaped cookie cutter to pull them off. I'm going to give them a try substituting dairy-free margarine for the butter.
*The egg cookie photo is not my photo but property of BHG, permission was obtained for it's use.

The allergy-safe Easter candy selection is expanding wonderfully this year.
-Chocolate Emporium is my longtime source for dairy-free white chocolate. I also always buy a couple of their strawberry white chocolate bunny pops because they're Alex's favorite.
-I bought truffles and filled hearts from Premium Chocolatiers for Valentine's Day after reading a review from Alisa of One Frugal Foodie. Their dairy-free milk chocolate hearts were a huge hit with Alex. For Easter they're offering dairy-free milk chocolate bunnies and other Easter chocolates.
-Divvies is another source for dairy and nut-free chocolate bunnies. Alex doesn't care for the dark chocolate in their bunnies but he loves their cookies. We always let him get one when we visit the Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City.

I'm hoping to have another go at natural egg dyeing again this year. The photo below is of my Easter eggs from last year and this post has my thoughts on what worked and didn't work for me. I'm going to try the grape juice and orange peel recipes from BHG's Natural Easter Egg Dye Recipes this year.