Pbenjay's Blog

I did NOT hatch these eggs

Easter is yet another religious holiday that has been appropriated by the general secular public aided and abetted by Hallmark and Russell Stover!  But what the hey-fun times to be had by all; the Easter bunny is non-discriminating.  I just wish Yom Kippur was a universal fun day too lol.

There are at least 10 fun things about Easter we all enjoy, well some more than others.

1. Chocolate Bunnies – White chocolate, Milk chocolate, Dark chocolate and even Strawberry chocolate.  Those little rabbits multiply in all flavors.  Which kind do you prefer?  Every kid hopes to get a solid chocolate rabbit or chick in his or her basket but most get the hollow kind- you know the Easter bunny finds shopping in Stop & Shop so much easier these days.   When I was a kid (and didn’t know any better) I always wanted a white chocolate rabbit and often got one.  My God, what was I thinking? It’s like eating Crisco and sugar!   Last question;  Do you bite off the ears first?
2. Peeps – Oh just admit it, you like them?  I think most people are willing, I mean want to pop one into their mouth.  Bright yellow dye #5 sanding sugar over sweet white elastic; why wouldn’t you want to eat them?  Or you can wait an hour or two when even their multiple chemical compounds can’t keep them pliable and they harden into plaster chickens.  Biting into one of those hardened yellow critters either affords you a rock candy-like mouthful of marshmallow or a chipped tooth.  AND NOW through an intricate process of cross-breeding the little yellow peeps can be had in shocking green,  electric blue or bright orange!
3. Jelly Beans:  Gone are the days of the funny tasting white, bright yellow, green, red and nasty black.  Our kids get mango, cherry, coconut, green apple, and pineapple.  You gotta have jelly beans – how else could you weight down the basket so the kids think they’re full.
4. Patent Leather shoes: When I was growing up, one of the best things about Easter was the anticipated purchase a new pair of shoes to wear to Church on Easter morning.  Patent leather was always our choice as we all knew you  only wore patent leather in the Spring.
5. Easter Bonnets:  I carried the tradition of getting a new hat to wear every Easter for many many years.  Then there was about a 15 year hiatus; based pretty much on that I stopped attending Mass.  BUT now I’m back in the hat groove and have been for the last 10 years or so.  Why? Back to the Church? No-the Easter Parade on Fifth Avenue.  Now the hats are floral creations.   Look for me on the rotogravure.
6. Easter Egg Hunts: When my kids were growing up, I used to make an Easter egg hunt for them at home with some of their friends and we parents drank Bloody Marys.  Lots of towns hold Easter Egg Hunts for the kids, the White House has a great one but you have to get an invitation to that one OR you can go to Central Park where en masse swarms of kids gather the thousands of eggs on the Great Lawn.
7. Pizzagaina, Pizza Rustica: There’s a traditional Italian Easter dish my grandmother used to make.  I loved it and we only had it at Easter time.  It is also known as Easter Pie and is made with eggs, cheese, ham, proscuitto, bread dough, salami.  Maybe I’ll post the recipe next Tuesday.
8. Corsage:  Too bad nobody gets one anymore for Easter but certainly having your Dad buy a corsage for both my mother and me was a great delight.   Pink carnations and baby breath and I thought I was a princess.
9. Dyeing Easter Eggs:  Paz, that seemed to be the only brand of Easter Egg dye made for the first 20 years of my life.  Now you can get kits that will give you sparkly eggs, confetti eggs, and sticker eggs.  Ahhh the smell of white vinegar and blue fingers, the hallmark of Holy Saturday afternoon fun.  Eggs half  pink and half green and so many that ended up kind of murky blue purple.  And did you ever master the wax crayon?
10. Hot Cross Buns:  My other Grandmother was a great pastry baker and she always made those yummy yeasty buns with the white icing cross on top and raisins inside.   And on Easter morning what a delicious breakfast treat they were!

And one more! Diorama Eggs:   Large hardened sugar or styrofoam eggs beautifully decorated on the outside and with 3-D Easter scene.

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