Easter Quesadillas

Easter doesn’t have to be all about the candy! Here’s a fun and quick lunch idea that the kids will love after hunting down all those eggs. Quesadillas are so versatile and you can use whatever filling you like or what you have on hand. Here I used some thin deli ham and shredded cheddar cheese on flour tortillas. Just plain cheese quesadillas work great, too!

Here’s how to make them:

Take some Easter themed cookie cutters and cut out your shapes from the flour tortillas. Obviously you need 2 of each shape for each quesadilla.

The metal cutters work better because they are sharper, but the plastic ones are fine, too. I just had to press down in sections and wiggle my cutter to get through the flour tortilla.

Heat up a skillet over medium heat. Place one tortilla shape in the pan. Add in some shredded cheese first, then some of the meat.

Top the meat with some more cheese.

You need cheese next to both tortillas to glue it together.

Top with the other tortilla shape and press down on it (with a spatula or carefully with your hands) so it all melts together.

In just a few minutes it will be golden brown. Flip to brown other side and melt the rest of the cheese.

Remove from heat and enjoy!

The kids will love this exciting new take on grilled cheese and the shapes make them fun to eat.

Now, not so fast. You are left with a bunch of tortilla scraps, right? It’s a shame to toss them so why not make baked tortilla chips with them?

Just cut up the scraps and lay them in a foil-lined baking sheet. Spray the chips with cooking spray and season to your liking. You can use just salt and pepper, or add in garlic powder, chili powder…whatever! Bake in a 350 degree F oven for about 10-12 minutes, or until crisp.

I hope you give these a try. If you like making quesadillas as much as I do, you might like to try my Roasted Asparagus and Pancetta Quesadillas soon!

Enjoy your holiday!

Easter Bunny Cupcakes

When I saw these mini Lindt chocolate bunnies in the store, I immediately envisioned them sitting on top of some cupcakes!

I used my Wilton #233 tip to create grass for the bunnies to sit in. The tip has a bunch of tiny holes so when the frosting flows out it looks like grass. It’s a technique that you can learn easily if you have some basic cake decorating skills. You can also use this tip for “monster hair”.

I baked up some cupcakes and made my Brown Sugar Frosting. Then I used some gel food coloring to make it green like grass. You can use any frosting recipe that you like, but it should have a medium consistency so it holds up. After a while, the frosting starts to warm up from your hands holding the bag and your grass may start to droop. If this happens, just pop it in the fridge for a few minutes. {FYI – Frosting from a can will not hold up to this type of decorating.}

Making sure you are holding the piping bag correctly, squeeze the bag to form grass. When the grass is long enough (about 1/8-1/4 inch), stop pressure on the bag and pull up and away. If you want natural looking grass, pull up and over to the right and the left. For neat grass, keep it all the same length and pull straight up. Keep the grass clusters close together so the cake does not show though.

Grab one of those little bunnies of chocolate goodness and plop one on top of your cupcake. Done!

As you can see, I also frosted some with the green icing and placed some Cadbury mini eggs on top for two reasons: #1) Those bunnies aren’t cheap so I only bought 2 packs of 5 — and #2) My hands were getting tired! If you have ever made one of those cakes that are decorated entirely with the star tip, you know what I’m saying!!

I really like the way the cupcakes look all together on a tray, as if they are in a big, green field. So give this technique a try and if it doesn’t work out, at least you are still left with cupcakes and chocolate!

Have a Hoppy Easter my friends!

Jelly Bean Bracelet

Who doesn’t love those candy necklaces and bracelets that let you wear a sweet snack? Anytime you feel the urge, you can just reach down and bite off a piece of candy! These jelly bean bracelets are made with the same idea and would make a nice little gift tucked into an Easter basket. Wrap in a cellophane bag tied with a ribbon and you’re done!

Here is what you need:

Jellybeans (Make sure they are regular sized ones, and not the little Jelly Belly ones.)

Elastic cord (found in the jewelry aisle of craft stores)

Large needle (It needs to be a thick, heavy duty one that won’t bend when you go through the jelly beans. You can get an idea of the size from the photo below — sorry I don’t know what size mine is…)

Damp paper towel (not shown)

(Optional) Ribbon

Here’s how to make it:

Cut off about 18-24″ of elastic cord. It’s more than you will actually need but you want to have enough to easily tie the ends when you are finished. Thread about 4″ through your need as shown below.

Hold a jelly bean so it’s longer from top to bottom and stick the needle all the way through it. Sometimes this gets a little tough, but you can stick it in there to start and then put the needle head (eye) on a piece of cardboard and pull the jelly bean down and through the needle. Do not stab yourself. Blood and jelly beans do not go well together.

Thread the jelly bean all the way to the other end of the cord, leaving about 4″ to tie it and still leaving that 4″ from the needle. (Does that make sense?) Now grab your damp paper towel and wipe the needle. You want to wipe the needle after every jelly bean you add. It’s gets too sticky otherwise. Make sure the jelly beans are close together without gaps. You don’t want to see the elastic cord.

I added ribbon to mine, but you don’t have to do that. For a larger bracelet, I used 12 jellybeans and tied a ribbon after each set of 4. For a smaller bracelet, I used 9 jelly beans and tied the ribbon after each set of 3. My daughter is 8 years old and the smaller size was good for her.
Small – 9 jelly beans, 3 ribbons
Large – 12 jelly beans, 4 ribbons

When you have them all strung and there are no gaps, you are ready to tie the ends together. I just tie it together with a regular knot and then repeat it 3 times so it’s nice and secure.

My daughter barely let me take a photo of the finished project before she claimed it
and ate it.

What do you think? Will you make one? How many jelly beans will you eat in the process?
(Those speckled pastel ones are mighty tasty, by the way…)

Happy Jelly Bean Stabbing!
~Micha