Elegant Easter Bunnies

The Easter Bunny is coming to town! And for me, at least, his approach raises the annual question, “Why a rabbit?” Why does a mammal—a warm, fuzzy, flop-eared animal—deliver Easter Eggs which are the purview of birds and reptiles, and, okay, that oddity, the platypus.

The Bible makes no mention of a rabbit, nor does it allude to Easter eggs, but the symbols have become so engrained in the modern celebration of Christianity’s most important holiday it is impossible to envision Easter morning without them.

Some say the Easter bunny arrived in American in the 1700s with German immigrants who imported their tradition of an egg-laying hare called Osterhase (and here I thought of Germans as being more associated with Hassenpfeffer). German children made nests in which the mythical creature laid colorful eggs. It was a whimsical tradition that quickly caught on in the soon-to-be United States.

Germans are often seen to be stolid sorts and this kind of whimsy might seem out of place but it must be remembered that they popularized Santa Claus, another mythical, gift-giving friend of children. Even the German medical profession entered into the Easter fantasy. The first mention of the Easter Bunny is found in a medical essay published in 1682 where one finds a 16-page dissertation on Easter Eggs written by a young German doctor and theology buff named Johannes Richier.

In his dissertation, Richier described the "Osterhase" who hatched and hid multicolored eggs for children to discover around their homes on Easter Sunday. Richier took the occasion to offer some medical advice to children prone to gobbling up the eggs “without salt, butter or any other flavoring,” resulting in nasty tummy aches. That same admonition is echoed by parents today but now is associated with the chocolate rabbits and Easter eggs that have become ubiquitous on the holiday.

Whatever its derivation, the tradition of the Easter Bunny has morphed into a sweet observance of the coming of spring. Easter is the second best-selling candy holiday in America after Halloween and among the most popular sweet treats associated with the day are chocolate eggs which date back to early 19th-century Europe. The largest Easter egg ever made was more than 25 feet high and weighed more than 8,000 pounds. It was built out of chocolate and marshmallow and supported by an internal steel frame. There is a tummy ache in the making!

Chocolate Easter bunnies can be found everywhere, from the corner pharmacy to box stores and, for the luckiest of recipients, at gourmet chocolatiers. There are a number of these throughout the region and here are a few who offer specialty items for the holiday.

Perhaps the most imaginative of these outlets is Thorncrest Farm & Milk House Chocolates, 280 Town Hill Road in Goshen, a family farm where Clint and Kimberly Thorn feed their cows the finest, sweetest hay and natural feeds to produce their delicious artisanal chocolates.

For the season the shop is offering an Easter Egg-stravaganza of chocolate conies—from little three-and-one-half inch table-setting rabbits, to adorable “Baby Bunnies” that come in their own little gold boxes. The farm’s signature chocolate half eggs have bunnies, carrots, ducks and mini eggs in cameos on their surfaces. Or how about the chocolate lattice designed Easter egg, nearly five inches tall and filled with mini chocolate Easter eggs wrapped in colorful foils.

These are not all the creations available at the farm. Check their website at Thorncrest Farm.

Other chocolate delights can be found at Bridgewater Chocolate which has outlets in Bantam, Bridgewater, New Milford, Washington and Brookfield. It was founded in 1995 by Swedish chef Erik Landegren, who applied European techniques and brought ultra-premium ingredients to Bridgewater Chocolates.

For Easter, Bridgewater Chocolates is offering a variety of items, including nine-inch-tall, three-dimensional bunny centerpieces—both realistic and humorous—charming little flop-eared conies, chocolate hatching chicks and, perhaps more representative of the actual holiday, chocolate crosses. Check out their Easter offerings at Bridgewater Chocolate.

Handcrafted chocolates are available in the New Hartford area at Six Spoons at 141 Main Street. Emily King, a former “Crand’s kid,” has carried forward the half-century-long Crand’s Candy Castle tradition in her shop. At Crand’s the chocolates were mixed in giant copper kettles over an open flame, a luxury she does not have in New Harford, but all chocolates are still handcrafted in small batches “with minimal ingredients and manipulation.”

For Easter King is creating such things as solid, half-profile bunnies, Easter chocolate pops, Giant Dipped Eggs filled with chocolate fudge, peanut butter, raspberry or coconut and chocolate bird nests topped with candy eggs. Go to Six Spoons to see her full range of products.

Moving up to the Berkshires, one finds Mielke Confections which has continued the tradition of hand-dipped chocolates made and sold locally in the Berkshires. Mielke’s now has two locations: 44 Main Street in Stockbridge and the flagship store at 260 Stockbridge Road in Great Barrington. Military veterans Steve and Trent Kinney changed the name after buying the store in April 2019, appropriately just before Easter.

Mielke’s has ramped up production for Easter and has a number of intriguing offerings including a seven-ounce solid chocolate bunny sitting on a tree stump; Bugs Bunny solid chocolate lollypops; assortments of chocolate and caramel bunny Minuettes, and hand-dipped chocolate Oreos with Easter decorations. Find them at Mielke Confections.

There are fewer choices of Easter designs at Chocolate Springs Café in Lenox at 55 Pittsfield Road but its Easter Bunny is truly handsome with its mantel of metallic blue foil showing off every curl in its coat. It is available in Chocolate Springs’ signature milk, dark and white chocolates.

Joshua Needleman, creator and chocolatier of Chocolate Springs Café, has been fascinated with chocolate all of his life. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in 1994, he refined his skills at Wheatleigh in Lenox before relocating to France to learn French culinary traditions. While there, he worked with Maitre Chocolatier Michel Chaudun. Back on this side of the ocean he worked at La Maison du Chocolat in New York City with founder and Maitre Chocolatier Robert Linxe. He returned to the Berkshires to open Chocolate Springs Café in September 2003.

To view the Chocolate Springs collection go to chocolatesprings.com.