Hoppy Easter

Since Easter is this Sunday I thought it would be appropriate to post about Easter.  My family is not super religious so this holiday is not very significant to us.  The "Easter bunny" comes to our house every year and we have a family dinner, but that is about the extent of our celebrating.  This year I asked that the Easter bunny not bring me candy.  I do not need anymore sweets in my room!  

Everything on this post can be found on my Easter Board.

Make your own Lilly eggs! Take an old agenda and mod podge onto wooden eggs. Display in a clear bowl, and you have a cute decoration for your home.

Easter Smores using peeps.

Hand Painted wooden Lilly Eggs.

Lilly Pulitzer Acrylic Monogram Easter Basket Tie-On

I plan on making these this weekend.

Soft Chewy M&M Cookies:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Makes 22 cookies

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon baking soda

pinch salt, optional and to taste

1 1/2 cups milk chocolate M&Ms (or another variety of M&Ms, or chocolate chips may be substituted)

Directions:

To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well-creamed, light and fluffy, about 5 minutes (or use a hand mixer and beat for at least 7 minutes). Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, optional salt, and mix until just combined, about 1 minute. Add the M&Ms and fold in by hand.

Using a medium 2-inch cookie scoop, form heaping mounds. Place mounds on a large plate, flatten mounds very slightly with your palm, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 5 days, before baking. Do not bake with warm dough because cookies will spread.

Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with parchment or spray with cooking spray. and place them on the baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart; I bake 8 cookies per sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until edges have set and tops are just beginning to set, even if slightly undercooked, pale and glossy in the center. Do not bake longer than ten minutes as cookies will firm up as they cool (The cookies shown in the photos were baked with dough that had been chilled for two days, allowed to come to room temp for 15 minutes, and were baked for 8 1/2 minutes, with trays rotated at the 4-minute mark. They have chewy edges with soft pillowy centers). Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing and transferring to a rack to finish cooling.

Adapted from Chocolate Chip and Chunk Cookies

I hope everyone enjoys their Easter weekend! I will be going home for the weekend. 

What Easter traditions do you have?

xoxo

-mQs-