10 Easter DIYs and Recipes That Your Family Will Love

Pastels, chocolates, and my kids chasing after dyed eggs in a green yard surrounded by blooming flowers…these are a few of my favorite things! There are only a few days left until Easter, and if you’re looking for some creative ideas to top this special day off, you’re going to love these!

1. Chocolate Egg Treats

• Hershey’s chocolate eggs
• Waffle cones
• Cellophane or cellophane bags
• Ribbon

Directions

1. Fill waffle cones with eggs.
2. Wrap in cellophane or put in a cellophane bag.
3. Tie with ribbon.

2. Rice Krispie Treat Bird’s Nest

• 1/4 tsp water
• 4 drops green food coloring
• 1/2 cup flaked coconut
• 3 Tbsp butter or margarine
• 1 ten ounce package regular marshmallows
• 4 cups miniature marshmallows
• 6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
• Miniature marshmallows
• Assorted jelly beans
• Mini chocolate eggs

Directions

1. In small bowl stir together water and green food coloring. Add coconut. Stir until coconut is tinted. Spread on baking sheet to dry.
2. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat.
3. Add Rice Krispies cereal. Stir until well coated.
4. Divide warm mixture into sixteen 2 1/2-inch muffin-pan cups coated with cooking spray.
5. Shape mixture into individual cups. Cool. Remove from pans.
6. Finally, fill the cooled nests with coconut, marshmallows, jelly beans or chocolate eggs!

3. Glow-in-the-Dark Easter Eggs

• Plastic eggs
• Glow-in-the-dark bracelets

Directions

1.  If you have bigger eggs, you can just fold up an entire bracelet and slip it into your egg.
2. To get the spattered look, cut up your bracelets over a sink. Put a small section of bracelet inside each egg, close up the egg and shake (any loose paint washes off easily with water).
3. The glowing effect is shorter when the bracelets are cut up this way, but you will still have plenty of time for a terrific nighttime hunt!

4. Mini Easter Cheesecake Nests

• 2  8 oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 12 Nilla Wafers
• 2 cups shredded coconut
• 1 cup egg shaped chocolate candies

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with a mixer until well blended. Add eggs and mix just until blended.
2. Place one cookie on the bottom of each paper-lined muffin cup. Top with cream-cheese mixture about two-thirds of the way up the cup. Bake for 20 minutes until centers are almost set.
3. Remove from oven and cool. While cakes are cooling, turn the oven up to 400 degrees. Spread coconut onto a large shallow baking sheet. Toast in the oven until coconut is golden brown, about 7 minutes. Cool.
4. When cheesecakes have cooled, top each one with coconut and chocolate eggs.

Serves 12

5. Cadbury Mini Egg Blondies

• 3/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 whole egg
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 – 10 oz bag Cadbury Mini Eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 8×8 or 9×9 pan.
2. Cream melted butter with sugars using electric mixer.
3. Add in vanilla and eggs.
4. Gradually add flour, salt, and baking soda; beat until combined. Fold in Cadbury Mini Eggs. Pour into pan and smooth out.
5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
6. Cool for 30 minutes before serving.

Serves 8

6. Edible Easter Egg Basket

• 4 Theater box candy boxes
• 2 Laffy Taffy or Nerd ropes
• Glue gun and glue
• Cardboard
• Fake grass

Directions

1. Glue the candy boxes together as shown.
2. Cut out a piece of cardboard that will fit the bottom of the basket. Glue it to the bottom of the boxes.
3. Hot glue one end of the Laffy Taffy rope to the middle and top of the candy box. Glue the other end of the rope to the middle of the other box of candy. Do this one more time with the remaining rope.
4. Fill basket with grass and goodies.

7. Jelly Bean Jewelry

• Jelly beans
• Thread
• Needle (a thick one works best)
• Scissors

Directions

1. Thread your needle and tie a double knot at the end of your thread.
2. Push the needle through the jelly beans until you have strung enough to form a bracelet or necklace.
3. Cut thread and tie in a knot.
4. Enjoy your edible jewelry!

8. Decorative Speckled Eggs

• Blown-out eggshells
• Needle
• Straw
• Blue and green food dye
• White vinegar
• Brown craft paint
• Old toothbrush
• Brown paper sack, shredded for the nest

Directions

1. Wash the shells of raw, uncooked eggs.
2. To ‘blow out’ your eggs, use a large needle or nail to poke a small hole in each end of a raw egg.
3. Stick the needle in far enough to break through the yolk and membranes.
4. Place a straw over one end and blow.  The egg whites and yolk should come out as you blow. If they’re not flowing easily, try increasing the size of your hole slightly.
5. Wash out each empty shell, blow out any water and allow them to dry.
6. Dye your shells in a mixture of 1 cup of warm water, a few tablespoons of vinegar, 4 drops of blue and 1 drop of green food dye. Since your eggs are empty and essentially weightless, you’ll have to hold it down into the dye.
7. Shake out any liquid from inside your shells and let them dry again.
8. To speckle your eggs, use an old toothbrush. Dip it into brown paint and then run your fingers over the bristles to flick the paint onto the egg.
9. A brown paper sack shredded makes the perfect nest for your pretty, blue eggs.

9. Paper Flower Place Settings

• Paper napkins
• Wire
• Scissors
• Cardstock

Directions

1. Cut through the folds of the napkin so that you have a stack for four individual pieces. You can use more for a fuller flower.
2. Fold accordion style, each fold about ½” wide.
3. Twist a piece of wire around the middle.
4. Round off each end with scissors.
5. Fan out each side of the napkin.
6. Pull each ply of the napkin up towards the center.
7. Scrunch and pull the layers to create desired shape.
8. To make place cards, print each guest’s name on the bottom of a 4×8 inch piece of cardstock. Fold in half, then punch two small holes near the center fold and use the wire on the flower to attach.

10. Paint Chip Egg Garland

• Paint chips
• Egg shape template
• Scissors
• String
• Small hole punch

Directions

1. I searched on Google Images for an egg shape. I printed it and cut it out to use as a template to cut my eggs.
2. I used Behr paint chips because they have a nice white line in-between the colors that looks great for this egg garland.
3. Using the egg template, trace and cut out as many eggs as you want.
4. Punch two small holes in the top of your eggs.
5. Thread the eggs with string.
6. Find the perfect spot to hang up your colorful Easter garland.