Vernal Equinox Weekend

To ring in the spring equinox and Ostara yesterday, I went for a long walk with David and our two dogs on a lovely trail that runs close by. The weather was simply gorgeous, perfect for a leisurely walk under a late afternoon sun that was just warm enough to leave the coats and sweaters at home. We observed the blossoms and buds on the foliage, all about to pop at any moment, the sound of the birds busily making nests for the babies soon to come, the squirrels playing tag with one another around tree trunks, the crocuses peeking out from under the bushes in our front yard, and as evening set the sound of peepers calling to potential mates in the wetland behind our house.

I gave myself the weekend off from the seemingly endless spring cleaning I've been doing every weekend for the last month or so (in my usual desperate bid to finish it all before Beltane) and instead, and with only a small amount of guilt for shirking off, did little more than enjoy the beauty of the new season. I did, however, make a multi-layered yellow cake, with buttercream icing and filled with a lovely lemon egg custard and since I normally eat very little sugar, managed to get quite hyper after eating a really large slice.

The only sad note to the weekend was when a sweet little brown marmorated stink bug that had been living in my kitchen for quite some time accidentally toppled off the ivy on my windowsill and into the sink while I was working on my lemon cake and became a very interesting bit of boiled sugar decoration (that, trust me, never made it onto the cake).

I hope everyone had an equally (or even more) lovely weekend and I wish a very happy Ostara to one and all. Blessed be.

Photo courtesy of TT_MAC on flickr.

Ostara Orange Custard

This is a very simple little custard that not only uses the traditional Ostara ingredient of eggs, but also is the color of the still-cool spring sunshine. Garnish them with fresh cut (non-toxic) flower blossoms or the candied violets seen here recently (Candied Violets, March 3, 2010).

Ostara Orange Custard serves 4 to 6

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup organic orange juice

1/4 cup sugar

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange rind

pinch of salt

fresh whipped cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 325f degrees. Combine all the ingredients and blend well. Pour mixture into individual custard ramekins and place the ramekins in a pan with an inch of hot water in it. Bake on the center rack for 40-50 minutes or until a silver knife gently inserted into the center of the custards comes out clean. Cool thoroughly and refrigerate until ready to eat. Top with a dollop of whipped cream and garnish with colorful flowers. Serve.

Photo courtesy of Delicious Desserts on flickr.