Yay for Peeps

I think we've all had them at some point in our lives - those fluffy, yellow, marshmallowy little birds known as Peeps. I remember getting them in my easter basket as a child. They were pretty much a staple every year. I would try to make them last as long as possible. A little nibble here, a little nibble there, but inevitably they'd be gone withing 5 minutes.

As I got older, I got a kick out of sticking the pink bunnies in the microwave and watching them mutate into giant bunnies a la Ghost Buster's style. Sure, they're pretty much pure sugar, but they are also an Easter basket right of passage.

There are tons of fun things to do with Peeps. Our local MOPS group is considering an Easter craft which creates an edible diorama - S'mores in a jar.

1. Take a basic mason jar.
2. Crumble up a sleeve of graham crackers.
3. Place 2/3 of the graham cracker crumbs in the bottom of the jar.
4. Add 1/4 cup of M&Ms - using green ones make it look like grass, but any holiday colors would be equally festive.
5. Arrange 8-12 peeps (bunnies work great)around the perimeter of the jar.
6. Place the remaining graham cracker crumbs in the center of the peep circle to help hold them in place. You'll want to press the crumbs down to help it stay more secure.
7. Add 1 1/4 cup of M&Ms on top.
8. Top it off with 1/3 cup of Brown sugar and fill any remaining space with M&Ms.

Here's what you can put on the tag:
Holiday S'MORES
1. Empty contents of the jar into a bowl. Cut the peeps into bits with kitchen shears or
cut up with a knife. Return the bits to the mixture. Mix well.
2. Melt 1/2 cup butter; add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour this over the dry ingredients,
mixing well. Pat into a greased 8" or 9" square pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15
minutes. Cool and cut into bars.

Sounds pretty tasty, huh! I first learned about this from a site called designswithheart.net. There is a huge collection of jar based recipes for gift giving and since Peeps come out for a variety of different holidays, these jars can be customized all year long!

Did you know that Peeps now has an online store called Peeps & Co. where you can find all sorts of fun candy inspired products!


Enjoy this exclusive offer for SocialMoms: Use this promo code at checkout - SMSPRING11 for 20% off all of your purchases until 5/4/11!




“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and PEEPS blogging contest, for a chance to get a gift card worth $50. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”