easter eggs

How a Chocolate Easter Egg is Made

Filed under: Dining, Luxury Travel & Hotels

Last weekend, many of us ambitiously filled our Easter baskets with as many eggs as we could carry, and now we find ourselves with a refrigerator full of naughty things to eat.

Rather than feel guilty about the obligatory chocolate gorging going on, let's celebrate by learning from a master chocolatier at Burie how chocolate Easter eggs are made. The video above shows the step by step process.

This same step-by-step piecing together is used to create all kinds of different chocolate things, from chocolate celebrity heads to the famous Burie chocolate hands and chocolate diamonds ("for and by Antwerp"). Hans Burie even, quite famously, created an 1,800 pound Belgian chocolate car, complete with a life-like interior and completely edible.

Check out some more chocolate creations we saw in the Burie factory, as well as their charming Antwerp boutique, below.

Gallery: A Visit to Burie in Antwerp

My visit to Antwerp was sponsored by Tourism Antwerp and Cool Capitals, but the opinions expressed in the article are 100% my own.

Tags: antwerp, burie, chocolate, chocolate bar, chocolate eggs, easter eggs

A Chocolate Safari for Easter Sunday

by Carrie Coolidge (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining

For Easter 2010, world-renowned Master Chocolatier Giles Marchal has created an exquisite chocolate safari for La Maison du Chocolat. Giles, who is the Creative Director of the Paris-based chocolatier, created a collection that was inspired by the mythic fables in Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book and Eric Darnell's animated film Madagascar.

The collection, which evokes images of the African Savannah in all it's splendor, is a limited edition and is created entirely by hand in many different steps requiring three days of work.

The Safari collection is a chocolate collage that is a true example of the artistry and savoir faire of La Maison du Chocolat. It features an original and colorful (and edible) African landscape that is a beautiful background for Alex the lion; Gloria, the happy hippo and, Melman, the beautiful giraffe. The Easter collection includes a variety of masterfully created chocolate eggs, as well.

Gallery: Easter Chocolate Safari by La Maison du Chocolat

Easter Classics by La Maison du Chocolat

Chocolate Easter Egg by La Maison du Chocolat

Chocolate Safari Animals by La Maison du Chocolat

Milk, dark and white chocolate animals are filled with praline eggs and traditional French chocolate fish. Smaller individual pieces are also available.

Individual Animals are priced at $70 each and weigh .44 lb. The Medium-sized Safari scene is priced at $150 and weighs 1.54 lb, while the large Safari chocolate scene costs $700 and weighs 11 pounds.

A selection of La Maison's Easter Eggs are available online, while the animals and safari chocolates can only be purchased in La Maison du Chocolat boutiques around the world. In New York, La Maison du Chocolat has boutiques on Madison Avenue, Rockefeller Center, Wall Street and Fifth Avenue. La Maison du Chocolate also has boutiques in Paris, Cannes, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong. For more information, visit www.lamaisonduchocolat.com or call (800) 988-5632.

In February, La Maison du Chocolat was a nominee for a Luxist Award for Best Chocolate and in the Best Truffle categories.

Tags: Africa, awards-main, chocolate, easter chocolate, easter chocolates, easter eggs, jungle book, la maison do chocolate, la maison du chocolat, luxist-awards, madagascar, madagascar escape 2 africa, rudyard kipling, safari chocolates

Spring Treats From Bouchon Bakery

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining

Ready for your Easter treats? Chef Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery in New York City has created some tempting treats in celebration of Spring/Easter. The list includes seasonal macarons in flavors like Lemon Meringue, Pistachio, and Coconut, buttery cookies in bunny and egg shapes. You've got just another day or so to nab the homemade flourless chocolate cake being offered through Passover. Shown above is the Easter Egg Carton, a six-piece egg carton with marshmallows and chocolates eggs for $10.75. The full menu of treats is after the jump.

Tags: bouchon, bouchon bakery, easter, easter eggs

Continue reading “Spring Treats From Bouchon Bakery”

Vivian Alexander Easter Eggs Purse, Handbag of the Day

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

Easter is such a happy holiday, full of bright whites and pastels and of course all the new life and greenery that comes with the spring season. We covered Vivian Alexander's egg purses awhile back but I think they deserve a revisit -- especially because of this cheerful Easter Egg Purse that catches the whimsical side of the holiday. It features a pattern of multi-colored pastel eggs on a pearlized white background with 18k gold trim, feet, and chain. There's also this darling Easter Parade Pink Mini Purse -- a perfect gift for a daughter or niece.

Made from real eggshells that are enameled and decorated with precious metals and gemstones, $475.

Gallery: Vivian Alexander Hand-Embellished Evening Purses

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Tags: easter, easter egg, easter egg purse, easter eggs, EasterEgg, EasterEggPurse, EasterEggs, vivian alexander, VivianAlexander

Carved and Sculpted Eggs

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor

Forgo those cheap plastic eggs that seem to be overflowing supermarket shelves in the weeks before Easter and satisfy your craving for the seasonal egg-shapes with something that will last. Real eggs of various sizes can be carved and sculpted into a variety of surprising shapes and astonishingly beautiful patterns. Ron Cheruka, the "Egg Man", has been doing egg art for many years and uses modified dental tools with carbide and diamond bits to hand cut every egg that he makes. He uses ostrich, rhea, emu and standard eggs in his work. The emu eggs are visually stunning due to the natural pigments in the shells, which range from teal to black, but the nearly cantaloupe-sized ostrich eggs are the most spectacular. Their thick shells allow for the most detailed carvings, like the dragon pictured here, and the finished egg resembles polished ivory. Dragon Egg Price: $500.