When I was very little, I thought that the best meal in the world was breakfast in bed. I imagine that some children’s book put the idea into my head because I can’t recall a single time that I actually ate breakfast in bed - not until I was an adult and could orchestrate it myself, anyway. So when Mother’s Day rolled around, I always wanted to make breakfast in bed for my mother. Something simple - eggs, toast, coffee and orange juice - qualified as the ultimate luxury meal in my mind and I tried hard to pull it together.

Suffice to say, it never went quite as smoothly as I hoped. But I still think that breakfast in bed is a great idea for Mother’s Day and is not only sweet, but definitely more fun than waiting in line at a packed brunch hot-spot on Sunday morning.

• The Simple Menu

Freshly squeezed orange juice
Hot coffee
Creamy scrambled eggs
Toast, Banana Bread or Coconut Bread

• The Diner Menu (no reservations required!)

Freshly squeezed orange juice
Hot coffee
Red Pepper, Onion and Cheese Omelet
Diner-Style Hash Browns
Bran Muffins or Blueberry Muffins

• The Indulgent Menu (some of everything!)

Favorite juice
Hot coffee
Snickerdoodle French Toast
Dutch Babies
Chocolate Chip Pancakes (a good choice if kids are involved)

Mother’s Day is this weekend and, while I already put together a gift guide to provide some ideas for Mom, we’re coming down to the wire and I know that not everyone has done their shopping. Fortunately, there are plenty of great last minute ideas out there - and this is one of them. The Adjust-A-Measure Set is a three-piece set of measuring tools that will come in handy in every kitchen because it does the work of many more tools.

Each of the pieces - two measuring spoons and a measuring cup - has adjustable measurements, so for instance one spoon can be used for a teaspoon and then have its stopper slid back to become a tablespoon measure. The cup adjusts vertically and anything you fill it with can be pushed out by raising the adjustable bottom. If you’re a fan of the Tv show Good Eats, you’ve probably seen Alton Brown using this gadget many times. It is ideal for sticky solids and liquids, from shortening to peanut butter to honey, because it s so easy to get everything out of it without fussing with a spatula or other tool.

These gadgets may not seem like the most exciting gifts, but they really come in handy in the kitchen. You don’t realize how quick and easy it is to use measuring spoons like these until you have tried it - and realized that you don’t have to even set the tool down before all your ingredients are measured. And if you can remember one time when you have struggled to scrap peanut butter out of a regular measuring cup, you’ll find value in the cup from this set. And Mom, assuming that she’s a cook or a baker, definitely will, too.

It’s almost the end of April, which means that Mother’s Day is just around the corner. The holiday falls on May 11th this year (just under two weeks away) and it’s time to get serious about shopping for something special for Mom. Last year I made up a little gift guide to provide some inspiration and decided to add a few new things to the list.

• At the top of my list this year is jewelry from Amyville. I’ve mentioned her amazing food-themed earrings, which come in a variety of flavors from pie to donuts, but she also makes adorable necklaces and charm bracelets, as well. My favorites are the cupcake necklaces - and I’m not saying that just because I happen to have one!
• When it comes to making baked goods instead of wearing them, you can’t go wrong with a new pan of some kind. I really like the fact that manufacturers now make more pans with matching lids that make it easy to store and transport your goodies. This Bake and Store Brownie Pan is a good one because the see-though lid snaps into place and help keeps things fresh.
• As far as gadgets go, my picks of the moment are the side swipe stand mixer blade, which eliminates the need to scrape down the sides of the bowl while you’re working, and the Chef’s Quad Timer. The timer was one of my pick’s around the holidays, too, but timers are one thing you can never have too many of in the kitchen - especially when you’re baking and don’t want to be tied to the oven.
• Every home cook is going to appreciate some home-grown herbs or veggies, but not everyone has the space to have a full garden. This Grown Your Own Marinara kit is cute and quite useful. The kit includes seeds for tomatoes, oregano and basil - and each plant can be grown directly in the bag it comes in, provided you find a nice sunny place for it. You can also opt for just an organic heirloom tomato plant for the countertop, as well.
• Finally, while I’m always an advocate of baking up homemade treats for gift-giving (or general celebration), I think that ordering treats can be a good idea in some situations. Mostly situations in which you can’t get your own package in the mail fast enough and what you’re getting is too good to resist. Eleni NYC’s Mother’s Day Cookies (pictured above right) fit the bill perfectly. They won’t last quite as long as a bouquet of flowers, but the “I love mom” message is one that definitely won’t fade.

Passover starts this weekend and, along with near-continuous TV showings of The Ten Commandments (starring Charlton Heston, of course), those who celebrate the holiday are obligated to abide by some rather strict dietary requirements. There is a fast before the holiday starts, a seder full of symbolic dishes and a ban on leavened bread. That ban on leavened bread generally extends to an almost total ban on flour, excluding only the flour that is used in making matzo. The reasoning behind this is that flour and some other grains can ferment and produce natural leavening over time and, although that risk seems low with something like chocolate chip cookies these days, it’s tradition and flourless desserts are the order of the day.

When I was younger, I remember that some kids would bring chocolate-covered matzo in their school lunches around Passover. That is a quick fix - although it can be a good one with high-quality chocolate - and we can certainly do better.

Flourless peanut butter cookies, plain or chocolate, are quick to make and dangerously addictive. Mini-Coconut Macaroons and Wheat Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies would be good choices, too. They’re also dairy free recipes. Cloud-like Lime Souffles, Light Chocolate Mousse and Silken Raspberry Mousse are all also dairy and wheat free. The raspberry mousse is a chilled dish, made with tofu at the base. It adds a rich texture, but berries are so flavorful at this time of year that you won’t taste anything but their sweetness in the dessert. This Silken Chocolate Pie has a similar recipe and can be served as a mousse, as well.

If you don’t mind a bit of dairy in your dessert, whether from butter or milk, your options expand to include Custard and Rice Pudding, both of which can be made with nondairy milks, as well as Raspberry Chocolate Mink and Boca Negra cakes. Flourless Chocolate Cakes are usually a big hit, too.

For more ideas, including links to other flourless chocolate cakes, meringue-based cookies, flour-free cheesecakes, take a peek at Smitten Kitchen’s list of Passover Dessert Ideas.

 Dying Easter eggs - perhaps second only to eating lots of Easter chocolate - is one of the most fun parts of the holiday. It’s something that the family can do together, or a fun art project for kids. Typically, you need to start with hard boiled eggs when dying. Raw eggs can be used, but they’re a bit more fragile than hard-boiled eggs and they definitely make a much bigger mess if you (or a sugar-charged child) drop them onto the floor. If I am going to make hard boiled eggs, I always use Elise’s technique to get them done perfectly every time.

But had boiled is not my top choice for egg decorating. I prefer to use hollowed out egg shells, blowing the yolk and white out of the raw egg. The shells are surprisingly solid and more resilient than hard cooked or raw eggs when it comes to cracking - plus, they keep indefinitely, so if you end up making some gorgeous eggs, you can keep them around until next year.

My method for blowing out the eggs was taught to me by my grandfather. Poke a small hole in the top of an egg with a thick needle, a larger hole in the bottom and blow into the smaller hole until the egg is empty. An easier method is to use a gadget like the Blas-fix Egg Blower, which blows the egg innards out for you. Either way, you get perfect, long-lasting eggs to dye as you wish.

Hotel Chocolat’s Engraved Easter Egg is, hands down, the most beautiful chocolate Easter egg I’ve ever had. This particular egg is made of 72% dark chocolate and, while it is hollow, the shell is generously thick. It stands about 6 inches high and ships on its own little display stand. Truth be told, I was tempted just to leave it sitting around so that I could look at it longer, rather than just cutting into it for a taste. The design on the egg is actually a series of cocoa pods, a kind of tribute to the chocolate. It’s incredibly artistic and a nice change from the usual chocolate chicks and bunnies that crop up around Easter.

Getting past the visuals, the chocolate is excellent. It has the satisfying bitterness that you want a good dark chocolate to have, but also a round and slightly fruity sweetness. The chocolate melts well into your mouth and definitely left me wanting a second piece.

Hotel Chocolat has several other types of Easter eggs on offer, as well. They have a 40% cacao milk chocolate egg in the same shape as this dark egg, and a couple of filled eggs, which open to reveal a selection of other dark and milk chocolate goodies. The only drawback with the filled eggs is that you don’t get the beautiful design on the outside - which isn’t saying much, since the assorted chocolates inside of those eggs are probably the best part.