Easter Saturday

The egg hunt this morning in Alpine drew lots of kids to the frozen grounds behind the Civic Center to find many many many plastic eggs. It was Kirk’s first egg hunt and it didn’t disappoint—until he opened one of the five eggs that he picked up and tucked into his basket. A frozen Starburst lay therein, which Mama Rose trimmed down to a quarter of its size to prevent choking. It was his first taste of brightly colored candy and he was not impressed. He preferred the Clementine segments, once Mama stealthily swapped them out from the other four eggs.

One of the premier candy holidays of the year, Easter can be a challenge. How can you keep the sugar level under control? Try focusing on those healthy aspects of the holiday.

I did make Hot Cross Buns last night and they are not too hazardous, though some did get piped with icing crosses. The recipe was based on an old one from the New York Times by Florence Fabricant. I will hard boil eggs today and we will color them with the same old Paas dyes that I remember from childhood, though next year I will attempt to use natural dyes. John read out loud at lunch from his Smartie (phone) about the Yellow #5 and #6, Red #40 and #3, Blue #1 and #2. So many hazards these days.

Easter Saturday when I was growing up meant making sure that you had your Easter outfit ready to go for church in the morning. We dyed the eggs that would be hidden around the house. We polished our shoes and made sure we had stockings with no runners. Church on Easter morning was packed to the rafters, everyone in their new Easter outfits, most of us a little amped up from some early morning sampling of jelly beans. And then we sang:  1700 voices singing “Christ is Risen from the Dead” and “Alleluia” as loud as we could in the lower level of St Athanasius Church with Sister Ann Jose leading us through each refrain. It was enough to make us all believers.

Easter with my Babci in Fairpoint, Ohio was different. At St. Joseph’s the songs were in Polish and I didn’t understand them. But after church our reward was to come home and have White Borscht, finally breaking the Lenten fast. That was delicious.

The only thing that White Borscht has in common with the more typical Red Borscht is that they are both soups. White Borscht is much quicker to make and the flavor will depend on the kielbasa, so get the best you can find. Babci’s borscht was very plain, with a strong vinegar tang. I prefer this recipe from Saveur, with the addition of prepared horseradish in vinegar.  

Easter in Wyoming; we will make our own traditions. There are no Asher chocolate coconut eggs but I hope to find a choir to listen to. Or we will just sing—LOUD. And enjoy our little Easter bunnies.