Chocolate Bird Nests. Photo by Felicia Orth
By FELICIA ORTHThis Week’s Recipe: Chocolate Bird Nests
I contributed refreshments to a party Friday night at Fuller Lodge for the first night of an art show connected to the imminent opening of the new Nature Center. It’s a wonderful show based on PEEC’s mission in operating the new Center: inspiring connection with the canyons, mesas, mountains and skies of the Pajarito Plateau.
The two recipes most frequently requested that night were the Pueblo Stew and the Chocolate Bird Nests. I’ll share the stew recipe next week; the bird nests would be a fun activity for kids at Easter. No baking necessary; it’s a lot like preparing a mud pie, but tastier. I adapted one of the many similar recipes to be found online over the past few years; variations call for mini pretzel sticks or salty potato sticks. Although any real bird with my nest construction skills would go extinct in a hurry, the chocolate nests were enjoyed as a sweet treat by people of all ages.
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups chow mein noodles
2 1/2 cups coarsely crushed cornflakes
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips (an 18 ounce package)
54 jelly beans (the “gourmet” jelly beans have speckles)
Directions:
Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper.
Toss noodles and cornflakes together in a large bowl.
Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave oven (30 seconds at a time), or in a saucepan on the stove over low heat, stirring until smooth. Pour the chocolate over the noodle mixture and stir gently until evenly distributed.
For each nest, mound 2 tablespoons of the mixture on the baking sheet. Shape and make an indentation in each mound for the eggs. Press three jelly beans into each indentation and set in a cool place until the nests are firm, about 2 hours. Makes 18 nests.
