Happy Easter!

What is Easter without little girls in pink outfits? What is Easter without hunting for colorful pastel eggs in the garden - you know, the plastic ones packed with sugary goodness?

What is Easter without brunch?

In our family, no gathering is complete without a feast, and Easter is no exception. This year, we actually gathered a week early on a glorious sunny day to welcome Spring and toast all that goes with it: a nephew's departure for a far corner of the world, the arrival of the clan's latest addition (a boy! welcome Preston Michael!), nieces in their frilly finest, and, of course, food - a great spread put on by my brother and sister-in-law.

Despite the fresh-baked sticky buns and the gorgeous bone-in ham, the centerpiece of brunch was arguably my brother-in-law's scrambled eggs. Of course there are eggs involved in any Easter brunch (that's required, isn't it? I'm sure that's what Jesus would want, right?), but Greg is the only guy I know who'll whip up three dozen, confident that they'll all get eaten. And we are not that big of a family.

But there's just something about his eggs - mm, mm, good. When pressed for a recipe, he can't exactly be pinned down. Like all good home cooks, he just does what feels natural when making the eggs. No stinkin' measuring cups; nothing in writing. Pure instinct. But we do know that there is heavy cream involved, some blending of ingredients in the actual blender (consistency is key - a whisk won't cut it), long cooking times over low heat, some fresh herbs.... and butter. Oodles and oodles of clarified butter he painstakingly makes himself. Julia would be proud.

At any rate, my annual rites of Spring - eating too many Cadbury chocolate eggs (damn them!), secretly enjoying those neon-colored Peeps, falling temptation to the Reese's peanut butter eggs at the check-out stand, and yes, inhaling a healthy serving of butter-laden scrambled eggs - are behind me now. Phew!

So happy Easter to the rest of you; I think I'll resurrect my New Years resolution for healthy eating and start afresh this weekend. Unless, of course, the Easter Bunny has a few more of those pretty pastel seasonal peanut M&Ms that need a home...

Of course he does.