How to make Chocolate Egg Easter Rabbit or a zombie duck?

I’ve been a member of Cottonpollis WI (www.cottonopoliswi.com) since it was founded in January 2015.  For one of the first meetings we decorated chocolate egg Easter Rabbits as well as chicks, swans and all sorts – it was easy to do so I thought I’d share with you what we did.  I made a zombie duck too – scroll to the end to find out how I made him.   I like cooking and I’ve been known to bake a cake or two in my time, but I’ve never really got my head around decorating cakes. It’s partly because I’m very clumsy.  Here’s the Chocolate Egg Easter Rabbit Deb the tutor made – mine is the one with an orange carrot below.

Last year I joined my very local Eccles Cakes WI and we made the rabbits again – I wasn’t much better at it 😉

Chocolate Egg Easter bunny with flowers

How to Make a Chocolate Egg Easter Rabbit

This was the first time I’d done any piping ever.  He looks a bit ‘max wall’ – my chap was very impressed though

What you need:

• A solid filled mini egg – like a cream egg
• A small amount of chocolate (melted in the microwave for about 15 secs) in a ramekin
• Some almond paste (or marzipan for yellow) – you can get this on the internet or cake decorating shops.
• food colouring for red (for nose), green ( foliage), orange (for carrot) – mix in separate bowls following the instructions.
• Piping bags made of greaseproof paper – wrapped over and cut a small hole in the end.
• Icing paste (one black and one white in the bags) from icing sugar – you also buy it ready made and make the piping bags before you start – video 
• Sugar paste props – flowers etc – again you can get these from cake decorating shops or  internet

Utensils/Props

• Sharp knife
• Small fork
• Spoon for smearing chocolate
• A cocktail stick
• Small cake platters
• Small display bag and some ribbon

equipment needed and all laid out ready

1-4

5-8

9-12

Instructions (see pictures)

1. Take a ball of cream almond paste (about 2/3 size of the egg)
2. Cut it in half (one half will be the head)
3. Cut the other half in half again – so that two feet is a quarter of original ball and two arms are another quarter of the first ball.
4. Roll out two feet and stick to the small cake platters with a blob of warm chocolate – use fork or cocktail stick to mark toes.
5. Blob more warm chocolate between the feet and place the egg carefully in the middle – make sure it’s not leaning.
6. Use the other quarter and roll out two arms – make sure they’re the same length and dab chocolate on the inside of arms and stick to the egg. Use a cocktail stick to mark paws.
7. Take the other half the cream almond ball and roll into a ball – cut half way down into ball and pull two half apart – mould these carefully into ears and make face a bit more pointy– mine are quite thick cos I was worried head would fall off
8. use a cocktail stick to make eyes and nose
9. Dab warm chocolate on top of egg between the top of the arms and place head carefully in middle – press down so it sticks.
10. Roll a small ball of red almond paste for the nose – stick on a small blob of red almond paste with the piping bag.
11. Hold the piping bag with between hand and thumb with thumb at rolled over end – press down firmly from top end towards thin/hole end and take it SLOWLY.  Dab on white eyeballs and then back spot for pupils.
12. Orange almond paste roll into a cone for a carrot and three tiny green leaves – stick them all on with warm chocolate.

Stand back and admire your efforts

Gift wrapping – carefully put the rabbit in the bag and tie a ribbon – Ask an adult if you’re clumsy like me 😉 

My husband inhaled my chocolate egg easter Rabbit on Easter Sunday that year – we kept zombie duck for a year as he made us smile.

My chocolate egg Easter Rabbit is the one with the carrot and Deb (the tutor’s) one has blue flowers – not TOO different I think.

my rabbit in gift bag –

How to make a zombie duck chocolate egg?

I was feeling brave so I decided to do another one – a duck… It didn’t go well…

so how DO YOU to make a zombie duck? Leave the marzipan out for too long so it starts to dry out – oops 😉

He didn’t survive the zombie apocalypse – did you miss that last night? 😉

zombie duck chocolate egg with marzipan head arms and feet

*****

Many thanks to Deb who demonstrated what to do and came round and helped everyone out.  I think you can hire her to come to your group too if you’re local to Greater Manchester.

We all had a great time – I’ll doubt if I’ll be persevering with piping too. I doubt I’ll get less clumsy though 😉

About the Women’s Institute

If you want to find out more about women’s institute look on the National Federation pages to find a group and read about our proud campaining history – Fair Trade, Keep Britain Tidy, Equal Pay, Protecting wildlife, Plastic Polution.

• www.thewi.org.uk/

If you’re local to Greater Manchester come along to one of my Women’s Institute’s or ask and I’ll tell you the local one.

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Are you making anything this weekend? Have you made decorated chocolate eggs?  Do let me know in the comments. 

Carpe Diem

Love Bec xx