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Overflowing Easter Basket? Make Peepsmores & Bunny Bark!

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March 22, 2013

It’s that time of year … Easter baskets overflowing with Peeps, jelly beans, chocolate eggs and Cadbury creams.  According to the National Confectioners Association, last Easter, 700 million marshmallow Peeps, 16 billion jelly beans and 90 million chocolate bunnies were sold.  Easter morning often means a sugar high for the kids, but once everyone is done indulging – what do you do with the leftovers?

Peeps

What are Peeps but shaped marshmallows? So the easiest solution is to use them wherever marshmallows are used.

  • Rice Krispies treats. Just follow the directions on the back of the cereal box, but substitute Peeps for marshmallows. You can even add jelly beans to the mix.
  • Melt a Peep in hot coffee or hot chocolate.  The kids will love watching the bunny or duck swim in the hot chocolate.
  • Peepsmores?  Take a leftover chocolate bunny (or piece) and a Peep and place between graham crackers.  Microwave them in 15 second increments until melted to your satisfaction.  This also helps to get rid of the chocolate bunny.

Jelly Beans

Jelly beans can make the perfect art activity or colorful treat. Here are some ideas for the errant beans.

  • Create a jelly bean art.  Using frosting of your choice (don’t use glue because your child may eat some jelly beans as they create their masterpiece) your child can use their imagination to construct an eatable piece of art.  They can even make it in 3D.
  • Add some to trail mix (or any other of the leftover candies).  Now you have a quick take along snack.
  • Add jelly beans to cocktails.  Fun way to add a sweetness to your favorite 5:00 drink.

Chocolate Bunnies

Don’t let their animal shape fool you. Melt these bunnies down to pour over ice cream, cake or fruit.

Cadbury Eggs

This is probably my favorite Easter candy. I love the creamy center. Like the bunnies above, you can melt it down and pour over ice cream. Or you can hide it in a recipe.

Using a brownie mix, make the brownie batter according to the instructions on the package.  Line a mini muffin pan with cupcake liners or spray the pan with a non-stick cooking spray.  Bake the brownies for approximately 8 minutes until slightly set.  Quickly add a Cadbury egg (cut in half) and slightly press into batter.  Continue cooking for the remainder of the time on the time listed on the box until brownie is done.  You can even add one to the center of a cupcake for a pleasant surprise.

Bunny Bark

Chop up, or leave whole, jelly beans, malt ball eggs, even those Peeps (scissors come in handy here) and spread on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.  Take your chocolate bunnies and melt them in the microwave along with a little butter. Pour the melted chocolate over the candy on the cookie sheet and let harden and you have an Easter bark!

You can also chop up the candy and add to pancake or waffle batters, cupcake or cake batters or even hide them in cookie dough.

These are just some fun ideas to change up eating all the candy the Easter bunny left behind.

photo credit: Christi @ Love From The Oven

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