Our windows have been transformed into a beautiful display of flowers, bunnies, eggs and chocolate in preparation for the most delicious day of the year 🍫
These adorable jam and lemon curd filled biscuits in the shape of Easter eggs are super easy to make with kids over the holidays and make a change from chocolate. (Of course, you can also fill them with chocolate!)
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4 and line two large baking trays with parchment paper.
Put the soft butter and the sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric whisk until smooth and creamy. Add the flour, lemon zest and milk and mix until you have a smooth dough.
Take 2 sheets of parchment paper and put the dough in between them. Roll it out so it is around 3mm thick. If it’s a hot day and the dough is soft, you can chill the dough for up to an hour at this point.
Remove the top piece of paper then cut out about 20 egg shapes, re-rolling the dough from the if you need to. Put half of them onto one lined baking tray. These will be the bottom biscuits.
Cut a hole in the lower-middle of each remaining egg shape using a 2.5cm/1in round cutter.
Put the cut-out centre circles onto the other lined baking tray. Bake the biscuits on both trays for 12 minutes, or until golden-brown at the edges. (The biscuits with the holes will need slightly less time.)
Leave to cool for 2 minutes on the tray and then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
Once completely cool, sift a little icing sugar over the biscuits with the holes. Spread about 1 teaspoon of jam or lemon curd onto the underside of each whole biscuit. Then place a cut-out biscuit on top so the curd comes through the hole slightly. Serve or store in a biscuit tin until ready to serve.
Easter and Spring are the the perfect time to discover Powerscourt when the Estate and gardens are starting to bloom. Don’t miss the opportunity to see 30,000 tulips and Spring bulbs in bloom at this year’s Annual Tulip Festival. At the Japanese Garden you can breathe in an array of exotic fragrances from sweet magnolia flowers, perfumed azaleas and cherry and apple blossom trees, bearing cascades of pink and white flowers. The Camellias in the Memorial Garden and the thousands of daffodils throughout the gardens and Estate bring Spring cheer after the long winter months.
We hope to see you up on the Estate this Easter enjoying the Spring blooms in the gardens.
@paulapastry · Mar 22 Our 2021 Easter egg is inspired by “Pobal” @ashfordcastle We use the Irish word #pobal to encompass everything our local community means to us. The circles and colours signify the power of community circles.
A gorgeous, healthy and flavoursome soup. Serves four as a starter.
Ingredients
200 g (7oz) natural yoghurt
160 g (5½oz) peeled, cored and chopped apple
160 g (5½oz) peeled raw beetroot, chopped (young tender beetroot is best)
0.5 clove of garlic
1 tsp toasted and ground cumin seeds
good pinch of salt
good twist of black pepper
1 tblsp cider vinegar
1 tsp honey
walnut oil or extra virgin olive oil, to serve
for the dill and honey yoghurt
1 tsp honey
3 tsp chopped dill
50 g (2oz) natural yoghurt
Method
Mix all the ingredients for the dill and honey yoghurt together and chill until needed.
Put the yoghurt and apple into a blender with 100ml (3½fl oz) water. First give it a quick blitz, then add all the remaining ingredients except the oil and whiz for a good length of time until as smooth as possible. Pour through a sieve, then chill before serving.
To serve, pour the soup into bowls. Blob on some of the dill and honey yoghurt, then drizzle with walnut or extra virgin olive oil.