A Sweet Egg-scape
Published April 15, 2022
Hop to it! Easter is coming. Make your table top pop with splashes of pastels and soft touches of neutrals and nature.
Lemon and Blueberry Speckled Egg Cake
Feelin’ a little bit egg-stra this Easter? Naturally flavored and colored - topped with a life-like chocolate bird’s nest brings nothing but touches of whimsical to your dessert display.
For the cake:
2 ½ cups flour
1 ½ cups sugar
1 ½ cups butter, softened
6 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp milk
1 lemon, juiced and zested
Blueberry preserves
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line 4 six inch cake tins and wrap with wet cake pan wraps to allow for even baking. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, salt and baking powder. In a stand up mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one a time, until smooth. Fold in the flour mixture, milk, lemon juice and zest. Dispense evenly in baking pans. Bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
For the frosting:
2 lbs powdered sugar
2.5 sticks unsalted butter
8 oz mascarpone
1 lemon, juiced
½ tsp salt
½ package of McCormick’s natural food coloring powder in sky blue
1-3 tablespoons milk
In a stand up mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Gradually mix in the mascarpone and sugar and beat until smooth. Add lemon juice, 1 tablespoon milk and food coloring. Add more milk, if needed until desired consistency is achieved.
For the garnish:
8 oz dark chocolate melted¸ for speckling and egg nests
Cadbury mini eggs, for garnish
Vermicelli rice noodles, for egg nest
Melt dark chocolate over double boiler until smooth. Reserve 3 tablespoons of chocolate for speckling and set aside. In a medium bowl, break 1/5 of the package of vermicelli rice noodles into 3 inch pieces and separate so that no clumping exists. Add chocolate to the vermicelli and mix well until all noodles are coated. In a bowl covered in plastic wrap and sprayed with cooking spray, add some noodles to the bowl and form into a nest shape. Set in fridge until formed firm. Repeat with remaining noodles to create additional garnishes.
Assembly:
On a cake board set on a cake pedestal, place one layer of cake. Add frosting to that layer and spread evenly. Using a piping bag, pipe a frosting rim around the edge of the cake layer to prevent the filling (in next step) from sliding out. Set in fridge for 5 minutes. Add a thin layer of blueberry preserves within the rim. Continue with next two layers repeating with frosting, rim and filling steps. Add the 4th layer to the top and crumb coat the entire cake. Set in fridge for 30 minutes. Continue frosting cake with remaining frosting.
Speckling:
Using the reserved 3 tablespoons of chocolate noted above, be sure the consistency is thin by adding a dash of vegetable oil and/or reheating, mixing well until runny and smooth. Using a fork or food brush, dip into the melted chocolate and tap the brush against your hand or finger to spread speckles across the cake. Repeat until desired speckle effect is achieved.
Add the pre-made chocolate bird's nest and Cadbury eggs for garnish.
An Egg-celent Cocktail
Make it an egg-stra special Easter weekend – craft up an egg-celent coconut cocktail.
1 1/2 ounces vanilla vodka
1 ounce coconut rum
1/2 ounce cream of coconut
1 splash pineapple juice
Mango nectar, frozen for "egg yoke"
Speckled Blue Meltables, for rimming
Create the most adorable and lifelike egg yoke by freezing mango nectar in a 1-inch sphere candy mold. For an egg-celent finishing touch, rim the glass with speckled Blue Malt Meltables. Shake vodka, rum, cream of coconut and pineapple juice in a cocktail shaker with ice. Pour into rimmed glass. Using a small spoon, carefully slide the frozen "yoke" into the drink.
Naturally Ombré Colored Hard-Boiled Easter Eggs
Looking for the perfect Robin’s Egg Blue Hue? Look no further. Using just a few simple ingredients, you can achieve just that. And, don’t let that purple-colored liquid fool you. With patience and time, your result will range from the lightest to the darkest hue of Robin Blue.
1 dozen white eggs, hard boiled
½ cup of white vinegar
1 head red cabbage, sliced thin
Water
In a pot over medium-high heat, add sliced cabbage and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and let simmer for 1 hour. Strain out solids reserving liquid and return liquid to the pan. Add ½ cup white vinegar and stir well. Set in fridge to cool. Once cooled, add eggs to the liquid and cover. Let eggs sit in liquid until desired color is achieved. If sitting out too long, you can move liquid to the fridge to keep cool. To achieve an ombré effect of varying shades, remove 1 egg every 30 minutes to 1 hour from the liquid, carefully wiping dry and returning to an egg crate in the fridge to keep cool - allowing the last few eggs sit for 3-6 hours additional, or overnight, in the liquid to achieve a deeper color. Timing may vary depending on pot size and amount of water used.
Naturally Colored Easter Bread
The sky is the limit when creating beautiful breads for Easter. This sweet and striking one is colored naturally by using butterfly pea flower powder, which gave it the perfect hue of Robin’s Egg Blue. Adapted from Suncore Foods recipe - I've converted and adjusted the measurements with the results and directions noted below.
2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup water
1 1/2 oz vegetable oil
1/8 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp instant yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp butterfly pea flower powder (dissolved in 2 tsp water)
Sesame seeds, for coating
Coconut oil, for brushing
In a stand up mixer, combine flour, water, oil, sugar, yeast and salt. Cover and let it sit for 10 minutes. Using the hook attachment, turn mixer on low-medium speed until the dough comes together and is smooth. Cover and let proof for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 350°F. Transfer the dough to a working surface and divide into 8 equal portions. Roll out each portion until flat, then roll up tightly and roll into a long rope. Dip 4 of the 8 rolls in water and coat with sesame seeds. Shape the dough into the desired braid (options for bread braid instructions here). Transfer the braid to a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Cover and let it rest 1 hour. Brush dough with melted coconut oil. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden.
Enjoy!
Renée Meuse Lovley