Ostara

Ostara Tea
5 tea bags black Ceylon or English breakfast tea
1 tsp shredded dried lemon peel
1 tsp shredded dried orange peel
2 tbls jasmine flowers

Remember to use boiling water and use a strainer in the pot for only 5
minutes then remove completely. Add honey for a sweet warm drink when
you need a fruitful cup of cheer!

*****

Steamed Lemon Pudding
For me the smell of lemons reminds me of Spring and the promise of Summer to come. Serve with custard if the weather is still cold or with blueberries if you fancy something lighter.

4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons sugar
3 eggs
1 cup sifted all purpose (plain) flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons apricot preserve
2 tablespoons water

Beat together the butter and sugar until light and creamy.
Beat in eggs 1 at a time.
Fold in flour, salt, baking powder, lemon rind and juice.
Place in a buttered 4 cup pudding bowl. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil.
Place bowl in a steamer. Steam the pudding over boiling water on top of the
stove for 1 1/4 hours.
Heat preserves with the water.
Unmold the pudding. Pour apricot sauce over the top and serve hot.

****

Peeps On a Pond

a skating rink for marshmellow peeps

one 6 oz. pkg. blue raspberry gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 1/2 cups chilled ginger ale
1 cup seedless green grapes
1/2 cup maraschino cherries
1 pkg. peeps marshmallow chicks

Put gelatin in a medium bowl, stir in boiling water. Continuing stirring
until gelatin dissolves. Pour in chilled ginger ale. Place bowl in
refrigerator, chill until gelatin is slightly set but still syrupy in
middle. Stir in green grapes, maraschino cherries. Pour gelatin into an
ungreased glass 8x8 square pan. Arrange peeps on top of gelatin. Return to
refrigerator, chill until firm, at least three hours.

*****

Chocolate Ostara Eggs

two 3.4 oz. pkgs. cook-and-serve pudding mix
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk
5-6 cups confectioners' sugar
2 cups peanut butter
4 cups (24 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips
2 tsp. shortening
assorted decorating icings, cake decorator candy flowers


In a large saucepan, combine pudding mixes, butter, milk. Cook, stir over
medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Cook, stir 1-2 minutes longer
until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in sugar, peanut butter. Cool
slightly. Shape 1/2 cupfuls into egg shapes. Place on a waxed paper-lined
baking sheet; refrigerate until set. In a microwave or heavy saucepan, melt
chocolate chips, shortening; stir until smooth. Dip eggs in chocolate; allow
excess to drip off. Return eggs to waxed paper to set. Decorate with icings,
candies as desired. Store in an airtight container

****

Cadbury Cream Eggs

1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
3 cups powdered sugar
4 drops yellow food coloring
2 drops red food coloring
1 bag milk chocolate chips (12 oz)
2 tbs vegetable shortening


Combine the corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl. Beat well with an electric mixer until smooth. Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time, mixing by hand until creamy, after each addition. Remove about 1/3 of the mixture, and place it in a small bowl. Add the food colorings, and stir well. Cover both mixtures, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until firm. When mixtures are firm, roll a small, marble-sized ball from the orange filling, and wrap a portion of the white filling (approx. twice the size) around it. Form this filling into the shape of an egg, and place it on a cookie sheet that has been brushed with a light coating of vegetable shortening. Repeat process with the remaining filling ingredients and then refrigerate these "eggs" for 3-4 hours, or until firm. Combine the milk chocolate chips with the shortening in a glass or ceramic bowl. Microwave chocolate on HIGH for 1 minute, then stir, and microwave again for 1 minute more; stir. Use a fork to dip each center into the chocolate; tap the fork lightly on the side of the bowl, then place each candy onto waxed paper. Chill. After 1-2 hours of chilling, dip each candy once more, and chill for several hours, or until completely firm.

*****

Ostara Frittata
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1 cup sliced mushrooms
3 tbs olive oil
2 tbs soft butter
1/2 lb ham, cubed
3 cups cooked and diced potatoes
1 cup gated cheddar cheese
8 eggs, beaten
salt & pepper to taste

Saute onion and mushroom in olive oil until tender. Place in a 10 x 10 glass baking dish greased with butter.

Add ham, potatoes, and grated cheese. Pour beaten eggs over and mix well.

Place uncovered in 350 F oven for 25 to 30 minutes until eggs have set. Serve with toast and fresh fruit.

****

Ostara Chicken

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet. For prosperity of your crops(and other projects!), add 12 cup slivered almonds and saute until they areas golden as the sunlight which grows stronger with each passing day of spring.
Sift the almonds out of the butter and set them aside in a round bowl, preferably yellow to symbolize the sun.
Add 2 tablespoons oil to the skillet you used to saute the almonds. Cut up 1 3-pound chicken with a sharp knife, then sprinkled the chicken with salt and pepper.

 Place the chicken in the skillet and saute it until it, too, is golden like the sun. Cover the skillet and cook on low for about 40 minutes. While the chicken cooks, select three oranges--one for money, one for luck, and the third for love in the new season. Imagine the fortunes that come with each. Make a small hole in the top of the first two oranges and squeeze the juice into a cup. Peel the third oranges with your bare hands, remove the seeds and skins and place meat of the orange in the cup with the juice.
Remove the chicken from the skillet and reserve the cooking juices from the skillet. Mix the squeezed orange juice, orange meat, and 2 teaspoons sugar in the skillet with its reserved juices. Boil for about 2 minutes or until the mixture thickens to sauce. While the sauce boils, visualize the coming of a season filled with light and warmth and the return of prosperity and hope.
When the sauce is ready, pour it over the chicken. Sprinkle the almonds over the entire dish and serve hot--like the sun.
Makes 4 servings--perfect for a small Ostara feast.
From Gifts for the Goddess on a Warm Spring Morn
C2001 by Lorna Tedder and Aislinn Bailey

********

Colcannon
Although Colcannon is traditionally eaten for St. Patrick's Day in March, the use of fresh potatoes and cabbage makes it a perfect harvest meal. You can eliminate the bacon for a vegetarian option. Serve up a pot of Colcannon for your Lughnasadh or Ostara celebrations!

3 lbs potatoes, washed and peeled
1 small head cabbage, washed and finely chopped
2 sticks butter (use the real thing, not margarine)
1 1/2 C. cream or milk
1/2 lb. bacon, cooked and diced
4 leeks, chopped
Salt and pepper

Steam the potatoes until they are soft, and then drain and rinse. Place them back in the pot and mash thoroughly, so you remove all the lumpy bits. Gradually add one stick butter, in small pieces, stirring into the potatoes so that it melts. Add the milk in and mix.
While you're working with the potatoes, boil the cabbage. Some people like to use the potato water, and that's fine. Once it's soft, about 8 minutes, drain and add into the potatoes. Add the second stick of butter -- again, put it in using small pieces so that it melts and coats all the cabbage.
Add bacon and leeks. Simmer for about half and hour, and then season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with hearty bread.