I’m back with what’s quickly becoming a seasonal tradition. Last Spring it was all about flowers. This Winter it was all about snowflakes. Now Haniela’s has brought us all together again with Easter treats and crafts. And there are a whole bunch of us this year. Which means a whole bunch of ideas for the holiday. Why, it’s a virtual Easter Extravaganza! Just click on each picture above to visit the bloggers’ posts.

To see all the bloggers’ creations, click HERE to visit Haniela’s, and be sure to stop by everyone’s site for the full tutorials. For the direct links, scroll to the bottom of this post.

I kept things simple with some bow tie bunny cookie pops. When given the only parameter of “Easter-inspired,” I was overwhelmed with directions. Eggs, baskets, pastels, chocolate bunnies, gingham, daisies, carrots, cookies, cupcakes, fondant, marshmallows… So I scratched all that and just stuck with a plain white bunny. Two dots for eyes and a sprinkle nose makes these even simpler, and that, my friends, was purposeful. Defiant, almost, against complication. Though I guess the over calculating of simplicity erases said simplicity. And there you have my psyche in a nutshell. Sigh.

To make these…

First, make the cookies. Prepare cookie dough according to the recipe, chill, roll out 3/8-inch thick (for pops) or 1/4-inch thick (for regular cookies), cut out bunny heads (I cut off the heads of my copper bunny cutter, but you can cut the heads off any you prefer), insert lollipop sticks (found at the craft store), and bake according to the recipe. Let cool completely. For tips on making cookie pops, click HERE.

Second, make the icing. Prepare royal icing according to the recipe. Tint about about two cups of icing (depending on how many cookies you are decorating) white using Americolor Soft Gel Paste Bright White food coloring. Prepare a disposable decorating bag with coupler and size “3″ decorating tip (found in the craft store). Fill with half of the icing and close tightly with a rubber band. Reserve and cover the remaining white icing. For tips on finding supplies, click HERE.

Third, decorate the cookies. Pipe an outline on the cookies and let set about 15 minutes. Thin the reserved white icing with water, a few drops at a time, until the consistency of thick glue. Fill an empty decorating bag with the thinned icing, snip the tip about 1/4-inch and loosely pipe to fill the cookies, encouraging the icing as needed with a toothpick. Let the cookies dry well, several hours at least, or overnight preferred. For tips on basic cookie decorating, click HERE. When dry, use a dab of light corn syrup to adhere a little heart sprinkle, and draw two dots with an edible writer.

Fourth, add the bow tie. To make the bow ties, fold a piece of decorative paper in half and cut out half a bow tie at the fold. Cut a couple slits at the top and bottom of the center of the bow tie to thread the lollipop stick through.

Thank you to Haniela’s for including my bunnies in such a great collection! Visit each blogger at the links below:

3D Easter Bunny by Marielle – De Koekenbakkers
Chick Cupcakes by Robin – Bird On A Cake
Mrs. Bunny Centerpiece by Myriam – Chapix Cookies
Cheesecake Easter Eggs by Beth – Hungry Happenings
Cho “Bunny” Greek Yogurt Pops by Jill – Kitchen Fun With My 3 Sons
Hidden Easter Eggs by Stephanie – Ellie’s Bites
Easter Egg Cupcakes by Liz – Hoosier Homemade
Easter Treat Pouches by Elena – Just Me
Mini Meringue Cake by Karyn – Pint Sized Baker
Bunny Cake by Kathia – Pink Little Cake
Easter Gumball Machine by Marlyn – Montreal Confections
Easter Island by Laura – A Dozen Eggs Bake Shoppe
Easter Bunny Sandwich by Michelle – Creative Food
Bunny Garland by Sue – Munchkin Munchies
Egg Hunt Pound Cake by Jennifer – Not Your Momma’s Cookie
Dutch Easter Egg by Lorraine – Lorraine’s Cookies
Easter Egg Painting Chicks by Mike – Semi Sweet
Easter Basket Cookies by Amber – Sweet Ambs Cookies
The Carrot Patch Cake by Kim – The Partiologist
Cookie Bunny Pop by Meaghan – The Decorated Cookie
Pretzel Bunnies by Sarah – Miss CandiQuik
I, Robot Egg Cookie by Hani – Haniela’sTweet

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You know the drill. In my part-laziness, part-actual-exhaustion-from-life thing I am capitalizing on the wealth of stuff in my archives to get me through seasons. No, I mean, I’m sharing these things for all you folks new to my blog. Yeah. It’s total consideration for the new folks. Let’s go with that.

Above are little lamb cookies, now in 3D! As always, find everything seasonal up in that Seasonal button, but below you’ll find links to a few that I especially like.

BUNNIES! Lots o’ bunnies. Some peeking bunny cookies, fuzzy bunny tail cookie pops, easy Peeps cupcakes, raining jellybean marshmallows, super easy bunny candy pops, and bunnies and a silly chick.

This was a roundup of Easter egg decorating ideas I did for Reader’s Digest. It was a few years ago, and still one of my favorites.

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So I thought my last post was all about last minute, but these chocolate bunny pops are reeeeeeally last minute. And they take no time at all to make. And they are easy enough for a four-year-old. Mine made these all by herself. I did nothing but melt the candy melts and snip the tip, she did the rest solo.

If it isn’t obvious, those are flowers (see the flower and the leaf halfway down the stick… I thought that was brilliant, of course).

how to make chocolate bunny pops

you will need:*

candy melts (white or any color)

disposable decorating bags

rubber bands

scissors

baking tray(s)

wax paper

lollipop sticks

confetti sprinkles

*Find the candy melts, decorating bags, lollipop sticks and sprinkles in the craft store.

what to do:

1. Prepare the baking trays by lining with wax paper. Have the sprinkles handy in a bowl (I used tiny pink and purple confetti sprinkles, my daughter used hearts.)

2. Melt the candy melts: Fill a disposable decorating bag with about 1/2 cup of candy melts. Microwave at 50 percent power for 90 seconds. Massage the bag and continue to microwave at 50 percent power at 30 second intervals, then 15 second intervals just until the candy melts completely. (Don’t overheat!) If you don’t have a microwave, you may also melt the candy melts in a double boiler or in a heat-proof bowl resting over simmering water and transfer to the decorating bag. Close the bag with a rubber band if kids are handling.

3. Snip 1/2-inch from the tip of the bag. To make a bunny, first pipe the ears and a small dot on the tray. Lay a lollipop stick on the dot and pipe another dot on top, about the size of a nickel or slightly bigger. Immediately place a confetti sprinkle on the candy for the nose. Because candy melts dry quickly, complete one pop at a time. (My daughter just placed a lollipop stick on the tray, and piped her design on top, then added sprinkles.)

4. Let the pops dry at room temperature, about 1 hour.

NOTES:

• Candy melts cool quickly, but they may be hot when first taken out of the microwave. Use caution when handling and let cool slightly before giving to children.

• If you run out of candy melts, don’t reheat more in the same decorating bag. Dispose of the decorating bag and start with a new one.

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I had to be pretty specific in the title because I’m not so sure what these are supposed to be is obvious. These are basically the Easter equivalent of my Valentine’s Day warm and fuzzy cotton candy heart cookie pops. I have the same concerns as I did for those: Fuzzy and cute? Or strange and sort of gross?

I found a bag of this Charms cotton candy fluffy stuff cotton tails, and well, these pops just had to be made. Though when I opened the bag, the cotton candy was not in those cute little balls of fuzz as pictured on the bag. Rather the whole lot was blended into one big mass.  Worked the same, though, I think.

To make these, follow the same exact instructions as for the heart pops, but use a circle cutter instead. I also just used white icing as the background, not pink, but you can use any pastel color. And the same warning applies here: The icing will start to dissolve the cotton candy, so serve these the same day you make them!! Do not let them sit overnight, or the cotton candy will look even odder the next day.

So hippity hop to it, little fuzzy tails, and go find Peter Cottontail’s butt.

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Feel free to share (nicely)! While my blog's photographs and text are protected by copyright, I do allow (and encourage) you to share ONE photograph with credit to "the decorated cookie" and link to this blog post. PLEASE don't reprint any part of the blog post and PLEASE don't post a photo without credit. Thank you!

“Is it Easter yet? Is it Easter yet?” I’ve heard this every morning since Valentine’s Day.  Soon, my darling four-year old, soon. Look, I even spotted the Easter bunny peeking around the corner.

To make these, I cut out 2 1/2-inch squares from my cookie dough. Made my royal icing and tinted pink, green and blue with Americolor Soft Gel Pastes (Electric Pink, Electric Green and Sky Blue). Then I outlined and flooded the background and let dry overnight. I prepared white fondant, rolled it out, cut out 1-inch circles, then cut those in half for the heads. I used scissors to cut out the ears. I attached them to the cookies with light corn syrup. Then I used edible writers to draw the eyes and pink in the ears. Easy peasy! I even bent one of the ears forward.

Have you seen any bunnies lurking around your house?

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Feel free to share (nicely)! While my blog's photographs and text are protected by copyright, I do allow (and encourage) you to share ONE photograph with credit to "the decorated cookie" and link to this blog post. PLEASE don't reprint any part of the blog post and PLEASE don't post a photo without credit. Thank you!