It’s Easter time soon; Easter Sunday falls on the 9th of April this year. Easter is a very important date on the Christian calendar. Every year, Christians around the world remember Jesus’ crucifixion and celebrate his resurrection on Easter Sunday. An important part of Easter celebrations today is giving (and eating!) chocolate eggs, and in the UK they buy about 80 million Easter eggs each year! Wow! The question is why eggs?
Throughout history, people have given each other eggs at spring festivals to celebrate the new season. Eggs represent new life and rebirth, and it’s thought that this ancient custom became a part of Easter celebrations.
In the medieval period, eating eggs was forbidden during Lent (the 40 days before Easter) so on Easter Sunday, tucking into an egg was a real treat! This was especially true for poorer people who couldn’t afford to buy meat. Eggs were given to the church as Good Friday offerings, and villagers often gave eggs as gifts to the lord of the manor at Easter. Even royals got involved – in 1290, Edward I purchased 450 eggs, which were decorated with colours or gold leaf and given out to his household.
english-heritage.org.uk
Chocolate Easter Eggs
So when did we start eating chocolate Easter eggs?
While Easter eggs may once have been made from decorated hen, duck or goose eggs, today the eggs we give and receive at Easter are made for people with a sweet tooth!
The first English chocolate egg was sold by Fry’s in 1873, and Cadbury’s quickly followed them, introducing their own chocolate egg in 1875. These early Easter eggs were made using dark chocolate, and were smooth and plain, but in 1897 the famous Cadbury’s Dairy Milk Chocolate was first introduced. Chocolate eggs made with this new recipe were very popular, and soon became Easter bestsellers. Even today, most Easter eggs are made using milk chocolate. There is a huge range available including milk, dark and white chocolate, and even eggs with our favourite sweets and chocolate bars included inside the packaging.
english-heritage.org.uk
Thank you Cadbury!
Easter Craft Ideas
For us, Easter is time to reflect and spend time with our family. A great way to get kids excited about is Easter is to try a few Easter crafts. Why not try this Easter bunny egg hat craft with your kids this Easter or click here to view some other Easter craft ideas.
Easter Giveaway
To add to the excitement, we are giving away an Easter Hamper to one lucky family! All you need to do is:
- Subscribe to our newsletter and join our community (If you have already done this, you are halfway there!)
- Find a pink bunny with the heart tail on our website (there are a few) and tell us where you found it in the comments below.
Congratulations to Luichyn Swarts. Please email denise@familytreasures.co.za to claim your prize! 💕🐰🐇.
Our General Competition rules apply. Products sent will depend on availability.
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