Treat of the Week: Easter 2014

Once again, the Easter Bunny was very good to us.  By that, I mean my parents, of course, though, as I've said before, I am convinced of the existence of the aforementioned anthropomorphic, long-eared mammalian giver of sugary delights and eggs.  Bertie enjoyed a long weekend at "Grandma and Grandpa's" and I got a chance to visit with my parents during the Easter holiday.   

Our Easter mornings always start with a nice breakfast of bacon and hard-boiled, dyed eggs.

We always marbleize the eggs.  This is accomplished by first dying them one (or more) base colors.  Then, the dyed eggs are rolled in dishes containing food coloring and vinegar, and a little oil.  The oil doesn’t combine with the other media and, therefore, causes a marbling effect on the surface of the egg.  The finished eggs are then gently buffed to a shine with paper towels.

After breakfast, we began the preparation of dinner—a lengthy process (almost entirely for my mother), but very much worth it.  In between, we snacked on the the candy the Easter bunny left in footed silver compotes.  

We enjoyed roasted pork tenderloin with a savory sauce and sour cream seasoned with mustard, fresh sugar snap peas (garnished with sesame seeds), roasted potatoes and sweet potatoes, and a gruyere tart in a lovely homemade pastry shell topped with herbed squash and zucchini.  A lovely Springtime meal!

My father even added to the festivities with a handsome homemade brioche!

And, then, came dessert.  

This year, a new edition came in the form of beautiful sugar cookies--hand decorated.  Bunnies and butterflies!  Chicks and carrots!  Flowers and Eggs!  They were as tasty as they were cute.  Sweet in every way!

And, of course, there was the traditional Easter cake!  Regular readers know about my family's Easter cake.

The tradition of the checkerboard Easter cake continued this year.   Since I was a little boy, my mother has made checker-board cakes from scratch and, though I'm aware of how it's achieved, it's still a bit of magic to see that pattern when the cake is first cut.  This year, some of the squares in the cake would be chocolate cake and some would be white cake. The combination of flavors changes year-to-year.

Once again, it's frosted in scrumptiously smooth buttercream icing and adorned with bright, piped spring flowers.  Little chocolate bunnies play amongst the giant blossoms.  A lovely, thick and creamy chocolate ganache was spread between each later, giving each bite a luxurious blend of textures and flavors.  

I always look forward to the Easter cake, but, most of all, I look forward to spending the holiday with my mother and father and Bertie.

Here's hoping everyone enjoyed as peaceful and pleasant a weekend.