My father never came home for holiday meals because the restaurant was the family business.
If I ever saw him, it was during an early morning stop at Aunt Julia’s house, interspersed with greetings and updates from the adults, while my cousin Paul and I ran around busting out joints.
Dad had pulled some of Aunt Julia’s wonderful stuffed mushrooms out of the aluminum foil pie tin he had wisely repurposed as a tray (they were Depression-era kids), and it was goodbye.
I’m leaving for work.
But holiday crafts? My mother was always careful about that.
She didn’t really participate, but every year she prepared the dye cups for the Easter eggs and supervised me dropping the pills into the vinegar. I loved putting together and showing off the little cardboard “holders.” I loved the stickers.
What year did Paas come out with their glittery kits? Oh, I almost lost my mind.

Having said that, my mother was also interested in health foods. Sure, we enjoy a little candy during the Easter season, but colored eggs took precedence over cookies. In hindsight, it was a good foundation in nutrition that really benefited me throughout my adult life. I have an amazing mom.
But when you see these Easter Bird’s Nest Cookies from bestfriendsforfrosting.com…it’s the kind of thing you wish your kids were little again so you could make them together. Or maybe you can go back to when you were little and make it with your mom or grandma.

What if you have a parent or grandparent who doesn’t bake? These are *definitely* the Easter craft cookies for you.
4 ingredients, no baking required, and literally from pot to table in minutes. Just melt some chocolate.
Easier than rice krispie treats. And of course, there’s always room for creativity in the type of “egg” you put in your fried noodles nest.
Let’s continue taking photos with dirty faces!

bird’s nest cookie
Recipe provided by: bestfriendsforfrosting.com/bird-nest-cookies
Some tips: Assembly can be a little tricky. If you end up with dark chocolate on your eggs, there’s a solution. Using a cotton swab and hot water, you can carefully remove any dirt after placing the chocolate. Also, if you have to use Hershey’s eggs like I did, you can use this same method (more daring with your fingers) to “clean” the powdery finish from the eggs, revealing the shiny candy and potato chips underneath, and bringing the eggs to life like you can see here.

material
1 cup chocolate chips
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups 2/3 cup
1 5 oz can of Yakisoba noodles
1 cup Cadbury spotted eggs
Instructions
1. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper.
2. Pour the chocolate chips and peanut butter cups into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave the chocolate for 1 minute, stirring. Continue heating in the microwave, stirring every 10 seconds, until all the chocolate is melted.
3. Mix yakisoba noodles and melted chocolate.
4. Use a spoon to drop the mixture onto the sheet pan to form cookies. Use a spoon to press down to create a nest shape.
5. Push 2-3 candy eggs into each nest. Let stand until set or refrigerate for about 10 minutes. Store in a tightly covered container.
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