All posts tagged: Easter

Go Global with 8 Edible Hiding Spots for your Easter Eggs

An Easter Tradition Easter Eggs are a thing in our house. We dye them. We decorate them. We gobble them up in two’s (it’s funny how a purple or green shell can make an ordinary egg taste eggstraordinary). When I was little Mom hid these boiled treats in the yard and, after we found them we ate them, still-warm from the sun. Today plastic eggs have taken over – probably because of one too many tummy aches after an overly hot Easter. But the kids don’t seem to notice; they scramble to collect these plastic shells, cracking them open to reveal stickers, coins, and candy. Each year the plastic eggs become more elaborate. Now they aren’t simply eggs, they’re monkeys or giraffes, baseballs or footballs. It’s fun, yes, but also starting to feel a bit… gimmicky. In the spirit of getting back to basics – to those real Easter Eggs of my childhood, I considered safe ways I could “hide” eggs for my daughter to find. Since it was 84F last week I knew the back yard …

Fun Easter Recipes from Around the World

I always know when it’s Easter. My daughter is surrounded by a sea of plastic eggs. Jelly beans and skittles show up in the oddest places. But sometimes I want something a little less commercial. A little more homemade. And a whole lot delicious. Here are my three favorite Easter recipes from our Global Table Adventure… they are perfect for a fun afternoon of baking with your family, or go fancy and make them for brunch. 1. Easter Cookies, a.k.a. Figolla from Malta [Recipe] These lemon zest infused sugar cookies are stuffed with a marzipan filling, then iced. I love these so much, I even made them for a friend’s wedding. They are such a conversation starter, and it’s nifty they come from a tiny island in the Mediterranean (can we all just shut our eyes for a moment and just… go? 2. Romanian Easter Bread, a.k.a. Pasca [Recipe] Take everything you love about brioche and combine it with cheesecake. In spirit, anyway. This Romanian bread is gorgeous and would make excellent Easter Brunch (just …

Braided Heart Bread | Pleteno Srce

We are closing in on spring … that special time of year, when weddings and baby showers sprinkle our calendars, and everything is awash in the promise of new love. In Slovenia, such times are marked with Pleteno Scre – an ornamental, braided, tender loaf of bread, shaped into a heart. Pleteno Scre is an honored gift. The slightly sweet loaves are painstakingly decorated with edible tokens, like wedding rings and flowers (as I have done), or even astonishingly detailed birds, or paper thin leaves that seem to crackle under the slightest breeze. This art form takes time to master, so I stuck with simple flowers, a wreath, and rings. The best part is that this is something you can do as a family. Little ones love to have a piece of dough to play with. Mashing and rolling, twisting and turning – it’s what they do best. Ava didn’t even want to make any shapes for the heart – she just wanted to play next to me, while I worked. It was sweet. And …

Romanian Easter Bread | Pasca

In my dream Romanian house I am surrounded by tall, sunny windows overlooking cobblestone streets and green, leggy hills. As I sit in a velvet window seat, I nibble copious amounts of Pasca, a traditional sweet bread enjoyed on Easter morning. The bread is filled with sweet cheese (think something like cheesecake) and sometimes raisins. Between bites, I sip a cup of steaming, hot tea. The nearby oven radiates gentle heat that drifts through the house and takes the chill out of the air. In real life, my kitchen has no windows and, instead of warmth floating through the house, my stand mixer tosses my made-with-love Pasca dough off of the counter. Instead of daydreaming by the window, I spend my afternoon Googling what kind of mixer to buy this time. You see, as my stand mixer kneaded the soft dough, she shimmied off the table, crashed onto the tile floor and broke the arm mechanism for good. Even JP Weld wouldn’t put those pieces back together. I know because, love him, Mr Picky tried. The scene …

Marzipan Easter Cookies from Malta | Figolla

Each week, when I sit down to pick recipes, I am surrounded by a mountain of cookbooks, web sites, and emails (this week I’d like to thank Maltese reader, Jym B. for all his help). I scan through dozens, if not hundreds of ideas before settling on my selections. Not today. Not with this recipe. I ran across Figolla almost immediately and knew, without a doubt, this sweet treat was a keeper. Reader, Jym, simply confirmed my selection, stating it is a “wonderful” cookie from his Maltese heritage. So what is it? Figolla is Malta’s popular Easter cookie – two lemon infused sugar cookies surrounding a soft, almond paste center. The cookie is decorated for Easter with frosting and a chocolate egg (which is sometimes left in the foil wrapper – a sparkling nugget of goodness). Pretty much amazing, if you ask me. Especially considering daydreamy stovetop travel will take you here to eat it… Makes just over 2 lbs of dough. Quantity of cookies depends on how big your cookie cutters are! This recipe …

Skillet Eggs with Tomatoes & Peppers | Shakshouka

Serves 2-4 Ava’s my little alarm clock. Most days we get up about 8 am (bless her). On the mornings that I wake up before Ava, I like to sit in the drowsy quiet, by the window. I’m not really asleep. I’m not really awake. I’m just glad for a few minutes to stare into the stillness and daydream. Often my thoughts turn to people in other countries. Slowly, I sip my tea and wonder … what are they doing, right now? Are they sleeping? Awake? Are they happy? Sad? Do they Tweet? Are they obsessively checking their Facebook? Are they sitting by a window wondering about me? Hello? Is any body out there? And then Ava wakes up and the excitement of the day begins. I can tell you one thing for sure – right now, somewhere in Israel, someone is eating Shakshouka, breaking their bread and dipping it in the rich sauce. This simple one-pot dish was once considered the working man’s food and is balanced – loaded up with protein, veggies, and …

Poached Egg Soup | Changua con Huevo

Serves 4 Rethink eggs! Poached eggs swimming in milky broth is a delicious Colombian specialty which is perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or a light dinner. You can easily make this soup vegetarian by using vegetable broth. Ingredients: 4 cups broth (vegetable or chicken) 2 cups milk 4 eggs 3 green onions, sliced sprig cilantro, chopped salt pepper Method: Add stock to a large pot. Sploosh. Then add milk. Splash. Heat the broth and milk to almost simmering. Meanwhile, spread some thinly sliced green onion on the bottom of the bowls. Sprinkle with some chopped cilantro, too. When a few bubbles barely break through the surface of the hot liquid, you are ready to drop your eggs in to poach. Except you never, ever “drop” them. If you do, they’ll break, separate, make a big mess…. Instead, Break the eggs into a small, heatproof ramekin and gently “dip it and tip it” into the water. Let me show you what I mean. In this picture the ramekin is actually on the water… and partially dips …