Easter Bird’s Nests
2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips*
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup milk
4 cups chow mein noodles (yes, the ones from a can)
Mini Robin’s Eggs or other egg-shaped Easter candy
Melt the chocolate chips over the stove top with 1/4 cup of the milk, stirring constantly over low heat. Add the peanut butter and the rest of the milk and stir until smooth. Stir in the noodles to coat.
Form nests using a spoon and drop the scoops onto a baking sheet covered with parchment or wax paper. Insert the mini eggs in the center (you may need to lightly press the mixture together so that the nest doesn’t separate). Place tray in freezer or refrigerator; overnight is best but if you’re short on time, a couple of hours is sufficient to set the nests.
*Peanut butter chips or butterscotch chips can be substituted for chocolate chips. And in fact, those are the chips traditionally used in this recipe, from what I’ve heard, to give the nest a nice uniform color. However, if your birds are dirty birds, well, then by all means use chocolate. Or make both versions, for a country-bird-meets-city-bird hoedown.
—Renata