Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone! I hope that you are all enjoying the festive morning and are working your way up to the obligatory diabetic coma by this afternoon. Here in Dubai, we don't get any Christian holidays off of work (yes, including Christmas) and we also have to work on Sundays so that pretty much limits any Easter day plans.

I however, was not going to let Peter Cotton Tail, dyed eggs, doughnuts, and jelly beans go quietly into that good night. So even after a full weekend of events I convinced Matt that we needed to hold a traditional Easter breakfast. He was in agreement on the idea of a breakfast, but NOT in agreement on what is considered 'traditional' fare. When I approached him with a prospective menu of sweet treats and savory dishes, he said - and I quote - "I refuse to make sausage gravy, can we have anything besides nasty Pennsylvania food?" and "Casseroles are gross, are you really making those?"

That's right, I'm a loud and proud PA-er who grew up in the heart of the Amish community, and by golly we will be having sausage gravy and one-dish wonders whether Matt helps me or not! And so - that's right - I cooked. I preheated, grated, chopped, peeled and crushed by way to this menu:


Egg and Sausage Casserole
Egg Salad and Smoked Salmon Tartines
Baked French Toast with Maple Pecan Praline
Dirty Sausage Gravy with Flaky Biscuits
Parma Ham and Cantaloupe bites
Toast and Bagel Bar with 3 types of jam, butter and Philly cream cheese of course
Fresh Fruit Salad and Vanilla Yogurt (courtesy of Fiona)
1 dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts (courtesy of Lisa)

Matt got in on the action and relented on making the sausage gravy! And he also made some awesome pancakes and made to order scrambled eggs with dill, chives, and cheese.  While not at the stove our resident mixologist delighted the crowd with some belinis and signature raspberry lemonade mimosas.

Of course, there was plenty of candy to fill any voids.  We were able to find robin's eggs, reece's peanut butter eggs, and jelly belly's - but alas, no Peeps for us.

I'm happy to say the entire menu was a success and I have a new profound respect for the incredible, edible egg!

Mom - check out these yolks!  Are they yellow or what?  (I followed a hard boiled egg "recipe" so you don't get that weird greenish color...)

For me the offical smell of Easter is vinegar!  I found a kit by our old friend Paas, and we were quickly engaged in a tie-dye egg competition.

Matt is demonstrating the technique, it involved using a pipette, oh yeah.

Trippy, no?

The perfect centerpiece.  We bought a sq ft of wheat grass at the store for that Easter egg hunt feeling.  (The huge gold egg was Matt's choice - an After Eight, dark chocolate and mint shell)

The signature pink drinks.

Matt tending to the spread.  We even found Easter egg decals for the windows!

Yum!