Howdy true be-loggers, welcome to Sunday Leftovers! Today is Easter which isn't a big deal except that it has caused me to question some of the traditions that have come out of this religious holiday. We will be discussing my curiosities in today's article as well as a variety of other things, so let's open the fridge and see what is left over.
[The Back Window]
CREDIT: Lawrence Arabia - Apple Pie Bed
[Easter Eggs]
During Easter Dinner with my family (yes I still do religious dinners even though I don't care about religion), my mother was talking about Easter Eggs and I wondered out loud "where the hell did the idea of Easter Eggs come from?". Of course nobody knew, so I took to the internet to find out what Easter Eggs were all about.
It seems that Easter Eggs cannot be discussed without bringing the Easter Bunny into the conversation (which is another preposterous concept)...
***RANT***
I find it somewhat odd and a little cruel that Bunnies are the symbol of Easter when many cultures practice eating rabbit as part of the Easter meal. Decades ago (and I am sure still to this day), it was not uncommon to give a child a "pet bunny" for Easter. I imagine that gift was sort lived (figurative and literally) as little "Bugs" was going to be a big part of Easter just not as a child would expect. Dig in!
***/RANT***
Sorry for that unscheduled rant, getting back to Easter eggs...
So the Easter Bunny seems to have it's roots in German paganism. Thousands of years ago, the civilizations that occupy what is now Germany believed in a Goddess named "Eostre" (wow that name looks eerily similar to "Easter" - who would have guessed that a Christian holiday would have pagan roots?). The people commonly assigned sidekick animals to their Gods/Goddess and Eostre's animal was a rabbit. The pagan's celebrated the Goddess during a month they called "Ēostur-monath" which scholars think is the month of April. Eostre is celebrated as a "Spring-like fertility Goddess". The rabbit was picked as her totem animal because of it's reputation of rapid reproduction. Eggs were also associated to Eostre and thus the rabbit as a sign of fertility. The eggs are brightly colored to reflect the colors of spring time flowers.
The tradition made it's way to America thanks to the Pennsylvania Dutch (aka Germans) about 300 years ago.
The Christian usage of an egg also has ties to the Jewish tradition of dipping a hard-boiled egg in salt water symbolizing new life and the Passover sacrifice. Consuming an egg was also (apparently) done to mark the end of the Lent.
Sources:
Breakfast with Pandora
Wikipedia
Natchez Democrat
[Old School Driver]
I had a situation with a man and a car yesterday. Read about it here
(Anything that I feel can stand alone, I will break out of "Sunday Leftovers" so people can actually find it in a search engine)
[Recipe of the Week: Joey's Mac & Cheese]
INGREDIENTS:
9 Cups of Sharp Cheddar Cheese (shredded) (6 for the sauce, 3 for the topping)
2 Lbs of elbow macaroni (or whatever the hell you want to use)
6 tablespoons of butter
6 cups of milk
5 tablespoons of flour
3 cloves of garlic (diced)
2 tablespoons of yellow mustard
2 tablespoons of hot sauce
1/4 cup of barbecue sauce
1/2 tablespoon of salt
1/2 tablespoon pepper
DIRECTIONS:
Starting Tasks:
* Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
* Boil water and cook the macaroni as directions dictate. (After you drain the pasta, keep it in the pot you cooked it in so you can pour the sauce in there and mix it up)
1. In a sauce pot, melt the butter and and the garlic, let it cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add the milk and bring to medium-low heat.
3. Add the flour and start to whisk (with an egg beater) to eliminate any lumps. (NOTE: After several minutes, if you still have lumps, take them out with a spoon).
4. Add the cheese slowly (make sure to keep the reserve), continuing to whisk. Keep whisking until the cheese mixture is totally smooth.
5. Add the mustard, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and BBQ sauce.
6. Pour the cheese sauce into the pot with the macaroni. Mix it well.
7. Transfer the macaroni into a large casserole dish and top with the reserve cheese and add salt and pepper to taste. (OPTIONAL: Some people like to add bread crumbs or potato chips, you can do that if you want now).
8. Put in the pre-heated oven and let it cook for 30 minutes.
[DIY of the Week: Fancy Easter Eggs]
Since we talked about Easter Eggs, here is a cool DIY for better looking Eggs (might want to file this away for next year you Pagan!)
Indie Fix - Better Easter Egg Technique
[Video of the Week]
[Conclusion]
Did I go overboard with the Easter Stuff? Meh... deal with it. If you need to reach me, you can do so via email at: "blog at joeylombardi.com". As always, don't take shit from anybody.
Smell You Later,
~ Joey
Joey Lombardi | Create Your Badge
