Easter Bakes

One of my goals this year was to make a simnel cake.  I’ve never made one before and I used the recipe from Nigella Lawson’s Feast.  This recipe calls for one kilo of marzipan!  I had several discussions with my friend, Hannah, about the number of apostle marzipan balls appropriate for the top of the cake.  Traditionally any number between eleven and thirteen is acceptable, eleven is often chosen to reperesent all the disciples minus Judas.  I picked thirteen to denote all the disciples plus Jesus.  I think if Judas had not taken his own life he could have been redeemed.  The ultimate sacrifice would have covered the ultimate betrayal.

We had a friend of my husband from university days and his family to lunch and I made these creme egg brownies.  The recipe is from the scrumptious Eric Lanlard.  You can find the recipe here.

I bought these cupcake confetti Pop Tarts in New York and squirreled them away.  Fortunately,  they contain so many preservatives they’d last forever!

With chocolate bunnies!

And on her Pope John Paul II plate.

I spent Easter Monday with my family at my sister’s house in the New Forest.  For dessert she made a Percy Pig pavlova.  It was a fitting finale to a fantastic roast pork dinner.