Blog POP! Spring Fling- OREO Robin's Egg Nest Recipe + $75 Amazon GC Giveaway

Momma Told Me: Spring has sprung.

Spring arrived here in Southern California a month ago- right about the time the pollen began coating my car top in a thick yellow-green haze, and the temperatures broke 90F. With it being Easter weekend, the kids are all out on break, and the roads and stores are quite abuzz with the excitement of reconnecting and relaxing. Everywhere I go I am asked, "Big plans for this weekend?" Living on the beach, and in such a pristine climate, it's expected Southern Californians celebrate big. However, this year my father's visiting his family on the East Coast, and my nieces and nephews are up in Oregon. With Jay working (most likely a 12 hour shift) this is going to be one relaxing holiday.

Big Easter plans, or not, one of my favorite things about Spring is the chance to play with colorful ingredients and playful recipes. When I first made OREO truffles, a few years back for the holidays, I knew the recipe was simple and versatile enough to be applied to more creative seasonal creations. I've seen baseballs, pumpkins, shortcake stuffed, birthday cake, Easter bunny OREO Truffles, and more! But what I really wanted to try was a new twist on the classic (Chow Mein) Peanut Butter Nests. So I present to you- OREO Robin's Egg Nests!

OREO Robin's Egg Nests

****Click here for the printable OREO Robin's Egg Nests recipe

Ingredients:

8oz Softened Cream Cheese

1 Package of OREO Cookies (I used mint for the theme)

1 Bag (8oz) Wilton Chocolate Melts, White

1 Bag (8oz) Wilton Chocolate Melts, Blue

1 TBS Coconut Oil

12oz White Chocolate Chips

1/4 C Peanut Butter (Creamy or Stone Ground)

2 Cans (10oz) Chow Mein Noodles

1 TBS Coconut Oil 

1/2 C Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1/4 TBS Coconut Oil

Toothbrush + Paper Towel for Speckling

1. Prepare your OREO Truffle (egg) base by first pulverizing your OREO cookies until you have 3 C finely ground crumbs. Combine your softened cream cheese and OREO crumbs together in a large bowl, until even and well combined. Shape into 1" oblong balls and set on a lined baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator to chill while you prepare the remainder of the recipe.

2. Microwave white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl on Medium-High heat for 1 minute. Remove from microwave and stir thoroughly. Add coconut oil and microwave and additional 15-20 seconds. Remove and stir until mixture is even. Add peanut butter and combine until well blended.

3. Add Chow Mein noodles to chocolate mixture and toss until evenly coated. Drop in generous clumps (about 2 TBS) onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Create a little nook in the center of each clump to serve as the center of your nest. Place the tray into the refrigerator for 15 minutes, or freezer for 5 to help set.

4. Melt Wilton melts according to package directions, beginning with white and adding a few pieces of blue until desired color is achieved. Add coconut oil and stir until slightly thinner. Drop chilled eggs into chocolate mixture one at a time, on a dipper or fork. Allow excess chocolate to drain momentarily to evenly coat the egg. Place each egg on a slatted cookie rack with parchment paper below and allow them to set. If desired, place dipped eggs in the freezer for 5-10 MINS to aid in setting.

5. Microwave semi-sweet chocolate chips for 1 MIN at Medium-High heat. Remove and stir in coconut oil until smooth and even. Dip the head of the toothbrush in the chocolate and tip the neck of the brush gently on the side of the bowl to remove any clumps of chocolate. With the head just lightly coated in chocolate roughly flick the brush over the OREO egg truffles, in a quick downward motion to spray them with a light speckling of chocolate. If you have any areas where chocolate clumps or falls heavy, gently daub the speckles with a dry paper towel. Allow to set, and enjoy!

If you're not big into peanut butter you can substitute the peanut butter for butterscotch morsels- but the texture of your nests will be less creamy. Mint isn't exactly the ideal pairing for a peanut butter base, but I thought the Mint OREO truffles fit the Robin's Egg theme well- and not everybody will eat this treat all at once. Regardless, they sure look adorable on a Spring brunch table setting!

What Daughter Says: Easter Sunday signals the confirmed arrival of Spring!

As a part of Blog POP! Spring Fling we're offering one lucky reader (International entries welcome) a $75 Amazon gift card! Enter below then hop along to the other great giveaways on the LINKY!

Coconutty Chick Cupcakes for Spring + Easter Celebrations! What April Means To Me.

Momma Told Me: A holiday is about the people you spend it with, not the food you eat.

I often wonder how slow time would move without seasons- without those little celebrations peppered throughout the year to look forward to and plan. Granted, as a grown adult with not kids of my own, yet, I celebrate holidays a little different than I once used to as a little girl. Though, much like the eb and flow of seasons, everyone around me is now beginning their own little families in a cycle that is as old as time. Cousins, friends form high school, and current best friends are settling down and hatching their own little chicks. I suspect it will still be several years before I begin my own flock, but, for now, I indulge in celebrating the beginning of new life with the ones I love.

When I was a little girl, and actually the eldest grandchild of our family, we would venture up past Los Angeles every Easter to spend the afternoon with Momma's parents, Sister, and her family. Sometime after church we would arrive in town, stiff from the ride, and I would spill out of the mini van making a beeline for my grandma's foyer. Without fail, every Easter, the baskets would get larger and larger- she was always sure to see that our Easter baskets outdid us in size! Then we'd scour the front yard, side porch, and backyard for carefully colored eggs. I'd peek my head in the old outhouse (where Grandpa was always certain to hide at least one or two), peer between the lily pads in the pond, and check the cow-shaped mailbox. (Grandma's house was the most magical place!)

Nobody in our family cooked on Easter, it was a tradition. Any other holiday you would find Great Aunt Bea's famous fruit salad, Grandpa Vince's Peanut Sauce Pork Kabobs, and Grandma Pony's famous Glazed Ham. But Easter, Easter was a family holiday where we all put down the hustle and bustle of entertaining to come together over a hearty meal. As unconventional as it was, our entire family, from across the state, would file into the local City Of Industry Marriott, where a live piano would serenade us, and a buffet  that wrapped through two halls was waiting for us to feast. Every year, for 15 years, we would eat our Easter brunch at that Marriott.

As a child, the coolest thing about this tradition was trying to make the professional pianist laugh, and piling my dessert plate full of fruits and sweets to be dipped in the massive chocolate fountain. Truth be told, the food was never much to raise a glass too- I always preferred Grandma's cookies and Grandpa's burnt ribs to anything they ever served at those banquets. But the joy in my grandmother's eyes at seeing her entire family gathered before her, and the sparkle of knowing she wold not have to wash one, single, plate- was priceless.

As we approach Easter, no matter your religious background or personal beliefs- I feel EVERY holiday is a chance to take stock of what truly matters. A moment marked on the calendar to remember all which we are so very thankful for; my baby cousin all grown up and now with a baby of her own, my grandfather growing stronger every day in his journey without my grandma, and all of the wonderful memories of that special woman, still so very much alive in my memories today.

 Spring traditionally marks the beginning of something new and young- This year will be filled with many new life's in my family, personal and extended. To celebrate the spirit of the season I whipped up these Coconutty Chick Cupcakes. Much like a giant snowball, these inverted cupcakes are frosted on individual plates (with a daub of frosting as 'glue,' then turned upside down and rolled in colored coconut for 'feathers.' Creative liberties can be taken, but I found an almond serves as a fine beak, mini chocolate chips make great eyes, and fruity licorice can be thin slices for feet and accents. Whether you're a fan of coconut or not, it's hard not so smile at these little chicks sitting on your Easter table, this Spring!

What Daughter Says: Make some new memories over food, and craft these chick cupcakes with your family and friends.