Recipes and Fun Activities For Easter

By Tammy Embrich

It's that time of year again when daffodils will soon be in bloom, trees will be budding, and a lot of folks will be anxious to get out and work in their flower beds. It's called spring! And with spring comes the Easter bunny. An exciting and fun time for both kids and parents.

My all-time favorite Easter candy were those marshmallow peeps. Every spring (to this day), I indulge in a package or two. I love them so.

There are lots of fun activities for kids on this special spring holiday. Go beyond egg decorating and help your little ones decorate cute things for the house. Maybe some homemade crayola pictures to display in the windows or perhaps create an Easter tree. Egg relays are a lot of fun as well. You know the game with the egg and the spoon where teams are paired up and the winners are the ones who carries the eggs from point A to point B? This game can be mixed with children and parents for even more fun!

Cookie decorating can be a fun activity too. Bake the cookies ahead of time and make them in all shapes. Egg shaped, bunny shaped, or anything you wish. Make sure you have plenty of pastel food coloring for the frosting along with lots of sprinkles. Another cool idea...have your kids help you prepare the Easter meal. Put a special, homemade apron on them and they will feel like a real chef. It's pretty much tradition to prepare a ham for the meal. But what can you make as side dishes and desserts?

Let's explore a couple of ideas...

Easter Cupcakes

Ingredients

(for basic cake recipe-about 12 cupcakes)

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 cup self rising flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbs milk
2 large eggs
12 Easter-themed cupcake liners
frosting
food coloring
sprinkles
cupcake or muffin pan
small chocolate bunnies

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. With a wooden spoon, mix the butter and sugar together until smooth, ( about 2 min). Add the eggs and milk and stir thoroughly.

Gently fold in the flour and mix until completely blended. Divide the batter evenly into the cupcake liners. Place the pan of cupcakes on a shelf just above the center for 15 minutes.

After cooled, frost the cupcakes in the color of your choice. The kids will have fun decorating the cupcakes with the sprinkles and the chocolate bunnies.

Family's Favorite Potato Salad

Ingredients

2 lb small red potatoes, unpeeled
6 eggs
3 celery stalks
1/4 cup finely diced red onion

For Dressing:

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1 green onion, including the tender green tops, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Boil the potatoes and eggs. I always put them in the fridge overnight to prevent the potato salad from turning out mushy. Peel the potatoes and the eggs and cut into small chunks and toss them into a large bowl. Add the celery and red onion and toss briefly to mix. Set aside.

For Dressing: In a small bowl and using a fork, stir together the mayonnaise, mustard seeds, green onion, parsley, dry mustard, salt and pepper, mixing well. Pour the dressing over the potato and egg mixture and mix well.

For best flavor, cover and chill for up to 2 hours before serving. Sprinkle the parsley over the top and serve.

Extra Family Activity

With today's global economic conditions...there are many children and families in need. Why not make up some special baskets that you can donate? This is something that kids can help with as well. You will be putting smiles on many faces. Share the joy of giving this Easter.

Article Written By Tammy Embrich

You can find more articles by Tammy at Parenting Articles

Tammy also offers free work at home job leads, free business tips, free work at home articles, and more work at home resources at Work At Home Forums

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Super Bowl Fat or Fun? Try this Delicious Low Fat Dip

By Sara Gray

Yep! The Super Bowl is just around the corner. And that usually means a lot of food, a lot of calories, a lot of carbs. But you don't have to miss out on all the fun eating if you are watching your weight.

Even if you are on a diet, I've learned that flavor does not have to be sacrificed. Yes, fat does tend to make things taste better, but when flavored correctly, you won't even miss it in your recipe.

Are you going to or hosting a Super Bowl party? Then, this Chickpea Dip served with vegetables is perfect to serve right along side of all the heavy, fatty dips that everyone else serves. It tastes so good that no one will ever think, "uh oh, low-fat... boring!"

What you'll need:

- 1 12.5-ounce can chickpeas (drained and rinsed well)

- 2 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

- 3 drops hot pepper sauce

- 2 cucumbers (peeled, seeded and diced)

- 1/4 red onion (diced)

- 1 cup plain low fat yogurt

- 1/2 Tablespoon olive oil

- 1 carrot (grated)

- 2 Roma tomatoes (finely chopped)

- Pita bread or toasted wheat bread

First, blend the chickpeas, yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, and hot sauce in a blender or food processor until smooth. Put all the cut vegetables in a bowl and mix gently. Next, transfer the dip to another shallow serving bowl and spoon the vegetable mixture on top of the chickpea dip, leaving an outer rim of dip in view.

Serve the dip with cut up pita bread or toasted wheat bread triangles. You can also serve this low fat appetizer with any of the chip recipes found on
my Chips and Dip page.

Not only is this dip nice to look at, but it is really delicious. Everyone will devour it and not feel guilty! Even the die-hard fans of greasy chicken wings and fat-full dips and chips will like this.

This very pleasing easy appetizer recipe serves 6 people. Serve with pita bread or toasted wheat bread triangles.

Nutrition Information per Serving

Calories 157

Fat 4g

Cholesterol 2mg

Fiber 5g

Sodium 42mg

Enjoy!

Sara Gray is an avid lover of appetizers and has created a great website called Easy Appetizer Recipes where you can find delicious ideas for all kinds of hot and cold appetizers, raclette grilling, tapas small plates, snacks, chips and dip ideas, and appetizer soups.

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Superbowl Recipes - No Fuss Chicken Wings

By Brandy Summers

Finger lickin good chicken wings that will fall off the bone.

25 whole chicken wings

1 (12 oz.) bottle chili sauce

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup molasses

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

6 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon salsa

1 teaspoon garlic salt

3 drops hot pepper sauce

Directions

Cut chicken wings into three sections; discard wing tips. Place the wings into a 5-quart slow cooker.

In a bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and pour over the chicken. Stir to coat completely. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until the chicken is tender.

=> Superbowl Recipes: Game Time Nachos

These cheesey nacho chips are really easy to make and will be a big hit!

1 (6 oz.) pkg. processed cheese product, cubed

1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

3 tablespoons milk

1-1/2 teaspoons taco seasoning mix

1-1/2 cups Roma tomatoes, finely chopped

Fresh cilantro, chopped

Tortilla chips

Directions

In a medium saucepan, cook the cubed cheese product, Cheddar cheese, milk and the taco seasoing mix over medium low heat; stirring frequently. Cook until the cheeses are melted and a smooth consistency.

Meanwhile, arrange the tortilla chips on a large serving platter.

Pour the warm cheese mixture over the chips. Top with tomatoes and cilantro. Serve immediately.

=> Superbowl Recipes: Popular Party Mix

This version is made in a slow cooker, which allows the spices, cheese and butter to mingle together into a savory snack.

4 cups Wheat Chex

4 cups Cheerios

3 cups pretzel sticks

1 (12 oz.) can salted peanuts

1/4 cup butter

2 to 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon celery salt

1/2 to 3/4 teasoon seasoned salt

Directions

In a 5-quart slow cooker, combine the Wheat Chex, Cheerios, pretzels and the peanuts.

In a bowl, combine the butter, Parmesan cheese, celery salt and seasoned salt; mix well. Drizzle over the cereal mixture and mix thoroughly. Cover and cook on low heat for up to 3 hours; stirring every 30 minutes.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

When you need to make a quick meal, there's nothing like a hot, bubbly homemade casserole to make mouths water and have 'em lining up for seconds. Go here for instant free recipes => http://www.best-casserole-recipes.com

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