The Yum Yum Factor

Every easter, my mom made ham, scalloped potatoes, baked beans and because there were five kids and that means there were A LOT of hard boiled easter eggs, she would always make devilled eggs. Her's were not fancy. She would mash the yolks with a fork and mix in Miracle Whip - YES SHE USED MIRACLE WHIP- a bit of sweet pickle relish, salt and pepper and a bit of finely chopped green onion. There was no piping of the filling either. She just heaped the creamy yolk filling into the hollows of the whites and sprinkled a bit of paprika over the top. I love those simple eggs although I don't use Miracle Whip for anything but I also love the look of these pink eggs. The curry gives a nice balance to the slight tang from the brine but you can totally use your own favourite recipe for the creamy yolks. Unlike my mother, I prefer to using a piping bag (or a sandwich bag if you don't have a piping bag handy) so I can achieve maximum pretty. A bit of parsley (or dill or ...

After I make ham for Easter I am always left with this big, meaty bone and a meaty bone means soup. It's always a toss up between black bean soup or split pea soup because we all love them equally. What with the lentil contest last month, I have been all about the lentils lately so split peas won out this time and I ended up making a straight up, old fashioned split pea soup.  My grandmother made an insanely good pea soup and my mom said that growing up in her very Catholic household, they ate pea soup and fish every Friday. I didn't have the heart to tell her that pea soup that includes a big old hambone does NOT qualify as meatless but then I realized that vegetarian back then only meant that you didn't plunk an actual hunk of meat on the dinner table. If you only used meat in the broth, you were good to go for Friday so meaty soup and fish was the go to meatless meal in most French Canadian homes.  The only thing I did that differed from the split soup I wou...

We always go to my sister's house for Easter and I usually cook a large part of the meal. I am so busy cooking a big turkey dinner with a ham and a million sides, I don't pay much attention to dessert. This year, after a difficult month, we are staying home and having dinner with The Neighbours and she is a bigger control freak than I am. She is letting me make brussels sprouts and dessert so for the first time in a long time, I can really turn my attention to something sweet.