Pin Win Chocolate Eggs With Cheesecake Filling

Pin win!  I tried these adorable cheesecake filled chocolate eggs I found on Pinterest  and they turned out perfect!

 The pin was from raspberri cupcakes and with a few adjustments I was proud to put these on the Easter table.

 First of all I couldn't find premade hollow chocolate eggs so I had to make my own.  No mold-no problem.  I just worked with a half egg mold I had.....I would love to show how I did it for you but apparently cheap molds shouldn't go in the dish washer.....who knew!  Let's just hope you can find a 3D egg mold so you can have an easier time.  I trimmed off that ridge of chocolate to get a smooth joint.

 raspberri cupcakes' cheesecake recipe was delicious but instead of the passion fruit yolk she used, I made up a batch of lemon curd.  Dyed it a deep orange to more resemble a rich yolk.  Also I piped in the fillings instead of using a spoon to shove it in.  

One other adjustment.  I made my eggs freestanding by putting a blob of melted chocolate on wax paper and setting an egg on each blob.  You have to hold them steady for a bit but it worked out great.  If you have enough egg cups you could avoid this step.  Pretty impressive huh.  Kind of like a Cadsbury egg!  But much more delicious.

Diana

Easter Candy Wraps

Oh what to get my kids at church for Easter........chocolate of course!

I started with Hershey solid chocolate bunnies that come six in a package. 

 Once they were wrapped in some cute spring floral paper I attached a label I downloaded from the Silhouette store.

Another quick and easy treat for Easter!

Diana

Easy Push Up Easter Treats

 I needed a treat to take to church for Easter that was quick and easy, and did I mention it had to be yummy too!  I didn't want to bake cookies, cupcakes or make chocolate candies either.  Call me lazy but I had a lesson to prepare and a few other things to get done, so I didn't have a ton of time to devote to this.

 Thank goodness I had hoarded stocked up on push up containers......

 I used my Silhouette to cut out labels......

 Edible grass......

 Cadsbury eggs....

I mean who doesn't like chocolates?

Diana

Chalkboard Bunnies

Quick and easy Easter craft.  In fact my granddaughter did most of it!  We took craft cutouts from Pat Catan and glued a small block of wood on the back so the bunny could stand upright.Then we sprayed the entire thing with chalkboard spray paint.  It only took a few coats to get complete coverage.  That's it.  They cost less than 1 dollar each and look cool.  And the best part is that you can write anything on them.  Names for place settings, greetings for your guests or anything really.  These will look cute at the table.  Diana

Carrot Pin for Easter

So silly yet so cute!A pin to wear for Easter that only took a few minutes to make.

I used my embroidery machine but it would be so easy to stitch on a regular sewing machine.  Two carrots cut out of felt, some green ribbon and a little stuffing.  Stitch around the outside and embroider a cute little face.

I sewed a pin on the back.  That's it, all finish.  I am sure this will bring some smiles at church!  Diana

Easter Egg Basket Centerpiece

I saw some paper mache eggs at the craft store and thought, "I can do something with those".  I painted them one of my favorite spring colors, popped them in a Goodwill basket with a little Spanish moss and loved the pretty results.  But I still had more eggs.....

So I lined them up in a narrow Goodwill basket, with some more Spanish moss.....Can't get enough of this color!

And to keep them from rolling around while I spray painted them, I used a plastic egg carton.  Once one end was dry I flipped the other end up and painted some more.  Diana

Attack of the Dust Bunny

They are elusive, maybe they know spring cleaning is just around the corner, but I got a couple of shots of one in my dining room.  A dust bunny.This little darling is about1 1/2  inches long and needle felted. 

Oops, he must have seen me cuz he darted under the china cabinet.  Darn dust bunnies.   Diana

Farm Fresh Hard Boiled Eggs

 My children LOVE hard boiled eggs.  In an attempt to make their school lunches more fun I am trying to do some unexpected things in their lunch boxes.  When we were in S. Korea several years ago, we picked up some egg molds like these.   We only picked up two.  What's the point in only boiling two hard boiled eggs at a time?  Then I decided to try to use my ice cream sandwich molds to make a bigger batch.  Guess what--they worked.  Here's how...

Lightly spray your molds with a non-stick cooking spray.  The first time I didn't do this and some of the detailing stuck to the mold.

 Bring your eggs (preferably more than a week old.  They will peel easier) to a boil.  Once a boil is acheived quickly lid the pot and remove from heat.  Let sit in the lidded pot for 15 minutes.

 Remove one egg at a time and run under cold water until you think you can stand to peel them.  The hotter they are the better they will mold.  I was able to peel them after running them under cold water for about 5-7 seconds.  Place the egg in the mold and put the plunger in.  Add a good amount of weight to the top so they press down completely.  I placed mine on my counter top with a cutting board pressing on them.  I had to add a stack of plates to make sure there was enough pressure on the plunger.  It is important that the egg is hot when it is placed in the mold, so I had to do one egg, from peeling to pressure, before I started the next one.  Let the eggs rest for about ten or so minutes before you remove them from the mold.  You can wait longer, but make sure that if you do they are in the fridge while they are being compressed.

 Then pop off the bottom of the mold and your egg should slide right out.

Eat Your Vegetables!

I'm not sure these qualify as vegetables but if they did, I'd sure become a veggie lover! Check out the high contrast between the outline and the flooding icing! For recipes go here. I gave the carrot tops a little texture with some green jimmies.

For these cookies I used a little less corn syrup in the icing so they had less gloss. Another thing I noticed is that the color deepens as the icing sets up. My black was more of a dark gray when it was wet and now it is jet black. Diana

Silver Rabbits and Copper Chickens

This cookie started because my sweet sister in law Milly called and asked me for the sugar cookie recipe I used to bake. Alas, I had thrown away my 30 year old Betty Crocker cookbook years ago when I got the new edition (I thought it would have all the old favorites but I was SOOOO wrong). For many years I have been searching the web for the recipe but I had never found it. Milly didn't realize that the sugar cookie recipe was the old Betty Crocker version and said she still had that cookbook!!! Happy day, she sent me the recipe and I began looking for an occasion to try it out again. The Sweet Adventures of Sugarbelle cute rabbit cookie was featured on a blog I follow and I had found a cookie I NEEDED to try. Never mind that I have never "outlined" or "flooded" icing before! Hours of research convinced me that I would not like working with or eating royal icing so that left the softer glace. And here is my first EVER fancy smancy decorated cookie. A copper chicken. Who would have guessed they make edible copper dust!!!

Or edible silver dust too!!!!

Glace spreads more than royal icing so I think I will still use RI when I want really fine detail. And glace has a high gloss (though I did read you can eliminate the corn syrup if you want a matte finish) so the copper and silver didn't stick as well as it would have to the RI.

This is the paper I used as inspiration for the scroll work. This chicken cookie is HUGE, 5 inches tall and 6 wide. The rabbits are much smaller.

I took the cookies and the lollipops I made to church on Sunday for a few friends. I am already thinking up a new cookie to practice on. But until then, here are the recipes I used so you don't have to dig up the old cookbook!!!

Betty Crocker Sugar Cookies

2/3 cup shortening

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

4 teaspoons milk

2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream shortening, sugar, and vanilla. Add egg; beat till light and fluffy. Stir in milk. Blend dry ingredients into mixture. Chill 1 hour. Bake on greased (parchment covered instead) sheet for 6 to 8 min (8-10, depending on size of cookie). at 375.

Sugar Cookie Frosting Recipe (Glace) 1 cup Confectioners Sugar (powder sugar) 1 Tablespoon Milk 1 drop Lemon Juice (fresh or processed) 1 Tablespoon Light Corn Syrup Combine powder sugar, corn syrup, and lemon juice in a bowl. Do 10 second test (dip knife in icing and cause a peak to form. now count slowly to 10. if peak completely disappears before you reach ten then add more sugar and if peak stays after ten then add more liquid), remember, you might want thicker frosting to outline. If you have already outlined your cookies and need to fill in your cookies, you can add more milk (as much as you would need) to make your frosting very runny, like honey. If you are using food coloring, be sure to use LESS milk. Most food colorings are liquid and can make your frosting more runny. If you are using a gel food coloring, your milk quantity can remain the same. If you want to add different flavors, you can add drops of vanilla extract, almond extract, lemon, etc. to flavor your frosting. If you want more SHINE, use more corn syrup and less milk. This frosting will stay good for days in the fridge.

SweetSugarBelle's Top-Secret Royal Icing (Almost Wilton's Recipe) •3 Tbs of meringue powder •4 cups (about 1 lb.) confectioners' sugar •6 Tbs liquid (1-2 Tbs oil free flavoring, 4-5 Tbs water) Beat all ingredients until icing forms peaks (7-10 minutes at low speed with a heavy-duty mixer, 10-12 minutes at high speed with a hand-held mixer).

Diana

Spring Lollipops

What is it about lollipops that bring out the kid in us all? And the cuter the shape the better! Skip to my Lou has a great tutorial on how to make lollipops using molds that they carry in their on line shop. Here are a few of the ones I made this weekend. This pink blossom looks right at home in a little clay pot.

Here are all the other lollipops. I decorated them with royal icing.

This is one easy craft and doesn't take a lot of time. And who doesn't love a lollipop, especially ones shaped like flowers and bluebirds! They yell SPRINGTIME. Diana

Polymer Easter Egg

This craft is amazing. And can you believe it is polymer clay? Over a real egg? From my chickens? I found this video over at Mill Girl and while it did take all day (waiting for drying, not actually crafting), I had a lot of fun doing it.

And it was my first attempt at cane making. I made mine smaller and so they didn't stay as round as the one on the video but I like it all crazy. Diana

Silver Leaf Egg

Who knew paper mache could look so good. I had picked up a large egg at my local craft store over a month ago and didn't have any idea what I would do with it. But yesterday I got out some paint and silver leaf.... First I painted the egg black with craft paint. After that dried, I painted silver/gold leaf sizing over the paint and let dry til it was just tacky (about 10 minutes). Then I used 1 1/2 sheets of silver leaf over the entire egg. A little black paint showed through here and there but that made it look a little aged. Brushed off any extra silver and gave the egg a light spray of gloss sealer. I then loosely tied a ribbon around the egg and that's it. Simple, easy and I don't think it cost me more than 5 bucks total, and it adds a little sparkle to my Easter display on my mantel. Diana

Ducky Cupcake

This is not a rubber duck, it is a cupcake. And I love him! My grandmother's birthday was today and this is one of the cupcakes I made.

I used a Wilton's mold to make the heads and wings out of yellow candy melts. The heads are lollipops. That makes it easy to stick them into the cupcakes.

I piped orange bills and blue eyes out of more candy melts. The cupcakes were filled with lemon custard. The frosting was also lemon and then rolled in yellow sanding sugar.

Looks so cute in an Easter basket.

So many duckies! Diana