Easter Birds' Nest Treats

One year at Easter many moons ago, I found a recipe for birds' nests made with chow mein noodles mixed with a hot, gooey peanut butter mixture. I started making them for our family's Good Friday hikes, and handed them out to all the nieces and nephews for dessert with our lunch which we ate on the trail. They were fun to make with my own two kids, and it became a tradition for me to bring the birds' nests on our hikes each year.

As the years went by, there were fewer and fewer of us going on the Good Friday hikes. When the kids were no longer joining us, I stopped making the birds nests. My daughter came home for the Easter weekend from university and texted me earlier this week asking "are you making the birds nests for Easter?!" Well, I couldn't disappoint her, could I? So an old tradition was revisited this weekend. My sister and I were the only two who went on our Good Friday hike this year (there used to be 20 of us on the trail). When we stopped along the trail to have our lunch, she asked "so no birds nests anymore?". And I had to admit I hadn't made any for our hike, but that I was planning to make them when we got back home at my daughter's request. These are full of sugar and chocolate and peanut butter ... but fun to make and fun to serve to kids (no matter how old).

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Birds' Nests

1/4 cup butter

4 cups mini marshmallows

1/4 peanut butter

1/4 chocolate chips

4-1/2 cups chow mein noodles

candy-coated chocolate eggs (I use Cadbury's)

Melt butter with the marshmallows in a large saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Heat and stir until smooth. Add peanut butter and chocolate chips and stir until all melted and mixed together. Remove from heat and add chow mein noodles. Mix until noodles are thoroughly coated. With buttered fingers shape roughly into nests and set them on a cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Fill nests with about 3 or 4 chocolate eggs (or other egg shapes such as jelly beans). 

Allow to cool before eating. Makes about 20 nests, depending on size. Enjoy!

Thanks for dropping by today!

Wendy