Secret Recipe: Wild Herbed 'Easter Egg' Biscuits and Gravy With Golden Eggs
Once again I am so excited and honored to share this special recipe with my Patrons! It’s my creative solution to what to do with too many hard-boiled eggs resulting from over-eager decorating parties and spring holidays. A rich cheddar and sage biscuit is the perfect base for a gravy filled with chopped eggs and some special seasonal herbs. To elevate this hearty meal to something truly celebratory, I like to top them with crispy nests and gilded quail eggs that have been marinaded in a rich, foresty brine for a couple of days! (And yes, I know that they totally look like chocolate eggs ;) ) If you’d like to jump straight to the recipe, you can find it here.
Below is a little of the inspiration behind creating this recipe, including lots of lore about eggs. Have a read if you’re so inclined. :)
I have vivid memories of waking up on Easter morning, filled with the buzzing anticipation of the egg hunt to come. The Easter Bunny that visited our house was a trickster - he liked hiding color-coded jellybeans all over the house (black jellybeans on the black piano keys, yellow ones inside the daffodils on the table, caramel ones sticking out of the cracks in our log walls.) Then, there was the community hunt to come later, scores of eager kids ready to run out across the soft grass of the golf course in pursuit of colored eggs. Our small town really came together at that yearly celebration; everyone was welcome! Perhaps you have similar memories, or your children also return to you, breathless, with a basket full of eggs. As a child I didn’t think too much about the symbolism of the eggs I was avidly hunting, but upon greater reflection now, I have to ask: Is there any more potent symbol of springtime than the egg?
Eggs show up in cultural traditions around the world. Thousands of years before Christianity spread throughout Europe, ancient cultures saw the Equinox as a “time for people to pray to their pantheon for a bountiful harvest. This included the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, Eostre ((sounds like Easter, doesn’t it?)” Written descriptions of feasts in her honor can be found dating back to the eighth century, writes Alexandra Churchill in this article. And guess what? Eostre was often pictured with a basket full of eggs on her arm.
In fact, the tradition of a basket full of colored eggs hidden by a rabbit was woven into European folklore throughout the ages before it was adapted to fit our modern-day Easter traditions. As Churchill further explains: “Eggs-decorated or otherwise-have historically been mythological motifs for new life. Ancient Egyptians, Asians, and Greeks all believed in the premise of the world being born from a cosmic egg. For Christians, the egg symbolized the empty tomb of Jesus, and they stained them red to represent the blood of Christ. When cracked open, this represented his resurrection.”
Whatever celebrations you take part in this time of year, it’s likely that eggs feature heavily in them. After all, what would religious OR secular Easter be without dyeing hardboiled eggs? Or going on a wild hunt to collect different kinds of eggs hidden throughout the home or across a lawn? I think it’s safe to say that many families end up with a plethora of hard-boiled eggs! That’s what inspired this recipe.
I first heard about “Easter Egg Toast” when a wife discovered her husband’s boyhood tradition of eating a white sauce filled with chopped up eggs over buttered toast every Easter. What a brilliant ritual to introduce to make something delicious out of all of those eggs and avoid waste! I decided to adapt the recipe to a version of biscuits and gravy with a special presentation.
Whether you serve this as brunch after a morning egg hunt or save it for lunch or dinner, this dish is delicious with golden, tender cornmeal cheddar biscuits and herbed egg gravy flavored with the sharpness of spring cress and wild garlic, but I like taking a few extra steps to make it really special! Shimmering golden eggs flavored with the rich umami notes of the forest are held in delicate pastry nests jauntily perched atop the biscuits and gravy. The nests add a wonderful crunch, while golden quail eggs are a delicious savory treat. Most components can be made ahead of time so all you need to do on the day of celebration is heat up the biscuits, make the egg sauce, and serve!
Don’t be intimidated by the nest and golden eggs. Both are easy to make and can be prepared a couple of days ahead of time. In fact, I’ll bet any family members that get into an egg hunt would also be eager to join the process of forming sweet little nests and making magical golden eggs! That said, the biscuits and gravy are perfectly delicious on their own too!
Don’t forget, you can find this special Secret Recipe on My Patreon Page! Being able to share the occasional secret recipes with my patrons is one way that I thank them for contributing to my patreon, which is how I am able to throw surprise free gatherings for strangers, create artwork to give away in times of need, and create more recipe posts to share with all of you. This year I have introduced a few fun new rewards, too, including collectable seasonal posters!
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Join me for a little winter night magic as we bake this cake full of rich seasonal flavors and black cocoa!