Happy Easter one and all!!! Whilst taking a walk around a rather empty town centre today, my boyfriend and I were talking about how Easter has become less of a religious holiday and more of a celebration of all things chocolate and an extra two days off work; we were actually quite surprised the majority of the shops remained closed (the pubs seemed rather full mind you!).
Image courtesy of Google
So, on to a few facts about Easter eggs….
- Easter became associated with eggs as historically, it was tradition to use up all the eggs in the house before the beginning of Lent as eggs were forbidden during this period of fasting.
- The Spanish dish of hornazo is associated with the end of Lent as it contains hard-boiled eggs which were the surplus produced by chickens during the Lent period; in many Christian countries dishes featuring eggs are eaten at the end of Lent.
- Easter eggs were originally dyed or painted chicken eggs; many were dyed red to symbolise the blood of Jesus Christ.
- Chocolate Easter eggs were first made in France and Germany in the early 19th century; most early eggs were solid until suitable moulds were devised to make hollow ones although the process of making hollow eggs was very slow as they had to be created one at a time.
- Cadbury’s first made Easter eggs in 1875, three years after John Cadbury made his first ‘French Eating Chocolate’.
I really did intend to make Easter eggs for those nearest and dearest to me but Mr MAC talked me out of buying an egg mould. I then decided to make highly decorative Easter egg cake pops, I even bought the lollypop sticks, however I did not get around to doing this either! In the end, as we had people over for dinner last night, I made some chocolate truffles. Not very Easter themed perhaps but some of them look decidedly egg like and they were really very tasty so I thought I would share the recipe…
Chocolate Truffles
Makes 15 – 20
150ml double cream
225g dark chocolate, broken into very small pieces
25g Stork
25ml brandy
Coco powder, ground almonds, icing sugar, edible glitter and chopped nuts for dusting
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Put the chocolate, brandy and Stork in a bowl.
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In a small milk pan, heat the cream until almost boiling.
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Pour the cream into the bowl filled with the chocolate etc.
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Stir constantly until all the chocolate is melted and the mixture is lump free.
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Pour into a small roasting tin/casserole dish and transfer to the fridge and allow the mixture to set overnight.
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Use a teaspoon to roll small amounts of the mixture into balls and then roll in the topping of your choice.
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Once rolled, pop the truffles in a dish lined with greaseproof paper and put in the fridge for a few hours to firm up.
Recipe courtesy of Bridge 67 Cookery School.
The above recipe is so simple and absolutely divine. The taste of the brandy is barely there but adds a certain sweetness to the mixture.
Image courtesy of google
And now for a second truffle recipe that I devised this weekend – I love peanut butter so just had to give peanut butter truffles a shot!
Memoirs of an Amateur Cook’s Peanut Butter and Whiskey Truffles
Makes 15 – 20
150ml double cream
225g milk chocolate, broken into very small pieces
25g Stork
25ml whiskey
2-3 tbsp smooth peanut butter
Coco powder for dusting
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Put the chocolate, whiskey, peanut butter and Stork in a bowl.
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In a small milk pan, heat the cream until almost boiling.
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Pour the cream into the bowl filled with the chocolate etc.
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Stir constantly until all the chocolate is melted and the mixture is lump free.
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Pour into a small roasting tin/casserole dish and transfer to the fridge and allow the mixture to set overnight.
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Use a teaspoon to roll small amounts of the mixture into balls and then roll in the coco powder.
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Once rolled, pop the truffles in a dish lined with greaseproof paper and put in the fridge for a few hours to firm up.
Two truffle recipes, both absolutely delicious. The ‘grown up’ alternative to Easter eggs although you certainly get very messy making them!
