Colored eggs, jelly beans and those tiny, foil wrapped chocolate eggs may be your Easter Bunny's favorite treat. But what the Easter Bunny really likes is CARROTS! Carrots are loaded with Vitamin C and can be made into a delicious dessert to satisfy any sweet tooth. Our Carrot Cake recipe below includes carrots (obviously), applesauce, eggs and walnuts which give the perfect combination of protein, carbs and healthy fats like Omega-3. It'll get you hopping with health like that Bunny!

If your house is overflowing with colorfully dyed Easter eggs, turn them into tasty snacks for nibbling or a whole meal.

Easter Egg Snacks: Try deviled eggs with a few twists. Peel the eggs, cut them in half and scoop out the yolks. To 6 egg yolks add 1 Tbsp of mayonnaise and one of the following combos

• Plain Eggs: 1 tsp of mustard and 1 Tbsp of lime juice or water.
• "Asian" Eggs: 1 tsp of soy sauce and 1 Tbsp of rice vinegar.
• Hot Chili-Lime Eggs: 1 tsp of lime juice and 1 jalapeno pepper. Remove the seeds to reduce the heat!
• Curried Eggs: 1 Tbsp water and 2 tsp of curry powder.

Easter Egg Empanada: Using the filling below with your favorite empanada dough.

• 2 cups chopped broccoli
• 4 hard-boiled eggs
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• ¼ teaspoon of chili flakes
• ½ cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Steam broccoli in a pan with water. Chop broccoli & the hard boiled eggs into fine pieces. Lightly sauté the garlic in a little oil. Add eggs and broccoli and quickly heat.  Turn off the heat, add the cheese and stir. Use the filling with your favorite empanada dough. Bake the empanadas for about 20 minutes, or long enough for the cheese to melt and the dough to turn golden brown.

Top off your Easter snacks with a slice of the moist, delicious carrot cake decorated with a nest of coconut and jelly beans! Yummm!  Happy (and Healthy) Easter from all of us at Harvest Home. Enjoy!

Easter Bunny Carrot Cake

Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 cups of finely chopped carrots (about 6 large ones) 

• 1 cup chopped walnuts

• 2 cups flour

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 2 tsp baking soda

• ¾ cup of apple sauce

• ¾ cup of salad oil

• 2 cups sugar

• 4 eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla

 Preparation

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  

• Chop the carrots and walnuts and combine in a bowl. Use a food processor if you have one. 

• Combine flour, salt, cinnamon and baking soda in a separate bowl.

• Mix together apple sauce, salad oil, sugar and eggs until smooth. Add the mixture to the carrots and walnuts.

• Blend in flour mixture.

• Pour into a lightly greased baking pan and place in the oven.

• If you are using a 9" x 13" pan, bake the cake for 1 hr. If you are using a tube pan, bake the cake for 1 ½ hrs.

• Let the cake cool and then decorate. 

• To make the cake extra healthy, skip the frosting and make a nest of coconut flakes with jelly beans in the middle. Yum, yum, yummmmm!

Tasty Easter Treats

Tips

• Are you coloring eggs? Be sure you hard boil them before you color. 
   
• Easy way to peel eggs: Roll them on a hard surface to crack the shells.
   
• Buy dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate. It's healthier for you! Actually it's good for you.
   
• Slow down and pace yourself when eating chocolate. You don't have to eat it all at once. Let it melt in your mouth...good for twice as long!
   
• Apple sauce goes great with Easter dinner. Make your own and keep it light and simple. Natural sugars make it an excellent snack. 
   
• Nest decoration for Easter Cake. Make a nest out of shredded coconut. Add the jelly beans in the middle. Coconut is deliciously sweet, full of vitamins C, E and B-complex AND can help balance cholesterol. 

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