At some point I fell down an Easter google bunny hole, wherein I discovered that the Pace Egg is not only a peculiar play at Heptonstall, but also the name for beautifully dyed boiled eggs. Also the word 'pace' is closer to 'påske' (Danish for Easter) than 'easter', making me wonder about origins of both traditions. I've tried dyeing eggs naturally before but it didn't work that well, probably boiling is the trick. I used mainly this recipe, but took the tip about using flowers and leaves from this one.
**save red and brown onion skins for a few weeks before Easter!**
Eggs
Onion skins
Small, pretty flowers and leaves (e.g. curly parsley)
Dampen the eggs, then press leaves or flowers (could also try cutting shapes from larger leaves, or plastic bags) gently onto them to stick.
Wrap onion skins (red, brown, or a mixture) around the eggs, covering the leaves/flowers.
Wrap tinfoil around the onion skins, encasing the egg.
Put the eggs in a pan along with the rest of the onion skins. Cover with water and bring to the boil.
Boil approx. 8 min, then let cool in the water.
Remove the wrapping carefully to see the pattern. Polish with a little butter to make them shine, if you wish.
They are mainly decorative - they are edible, but not the best-tasting boiled egg you ever had.
I tried shapes made from paper, but it didn't work very well - perhaps could cut shapes from larger leaves instead? I considered other dyes (turmeric? red cabbage? beets?) - but the beauty of onion skins, besides the good strong colour, is that it makes use of something I'd otherwise throw out.
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