Chocolate bunnies, with their creepy little candy eyes, line the shelves every spring. While I usually wait for the day after the holiday to buy discounted chocolate, some bunnies were calling my name. Most chocolate bunnies are hollow, which makes them the perfect vessel for this edition of Whiskey Cocktail Hour.
But why use a chocolate bunny in place of a glass? Well, if you are hosting an Easter brunch, it really saves on having to wash extra dishes. Cleaning up is simple…eat it. You can get creative with presentation. I chose to melt a little hole in my bunnies for a straw, but you can honestly decapitate it if you want.
For the cocktail, however, I have had Cadbury Mini Eggs on my mind for months. They are my favourite Easter candy, and I am hoping the United States will be as keen as Canada and make them available year round. I buy the one pound bag because I do not give up chocolate for Lent, and I used them to make a chocolate syrup for Bunny’s Delight.
The sweetness of the chocolate syrup will be balanced by the Old Forester Rye, Cardamaro, and chocolate bitters. I know. I know. That is a lot of chocolate mentioned for one cocktail, but you can adjust the sweetness level. Cadbury Mini Eggs come in dark and milk chocolate, and you can get bunnies in dark, milk, or white chocolate. Any chocolate bitters will do, but I decided to use Pitch Dark Chocolate from Portland Bitters Project.
I have seen Easter cocktails in chocolate bunnies before, but I found myself asking why bunnies are hollow and when did chocolate bunnies become an Easter tradition. I went down a research rabbit hole, and my Google search history is now even weirder. The answers were surprisingly straightforward.
Chocolate bunnies are hollow because of rationing during the Second World War. The bunnies were considered novelties, so the War Production Board axed them so cocoa could be used for “staple civilian and military purposes, such as breakfast cocoa and candy bars.” Because of that children across the world are disappointed on an annual basis with the lack of a solid chocolate bunny statue.
Secondly, chocolate bunnies are representative of the Easter Bunny, but the Easter Bunny is not a bunny at all. It is a case of mistaken identity when in reality the Easter Bunny is an Easter Hare. It started back in the mid-19th century in Germany, but they did not gain popularity until 1890. Across the Atlantic to the United States, Robert Strohecker created a five-foot-tall chocolate bunny as an Easter promotion in his drug store.
Now that I have shared some Easter fun facts with you, steal your children’s (or a child’s) Easter chocolate and make the Bunny’s Delight.
Trending Stories
Bunny’s Delight
Ingredients
- 2 ounces Old Forester Rye 100 proof
- ¾ ounces Cardamaro
- 1 ounce Cadbury Mini Egg Syrup*
- 2 dashes Chocolate Bitters
- Chocolate Bunny
Tools
- Shaker Tins
- Hawthorne strainer
- Funnel
- Metal Straw
- Lighter
Steps
- Prep the chocolate bunny by heating the end of a metal straw to bore a hole in it. Make sure the hole is wide enough to fit the funnel.
- Fill a shaker tin with ice and all ingredients but the chocolate bunny.
- Top with a second shaker tin, make sure it is sealed securely, and shake vigorously until the tin is frosty.
- Strain with Hawthorne strainer into a funnel to fill the chocolate bunny.
- Serve immediately or keep chilled in the refrigerator.
- Enjoy responsibly.
*In a saucepan over low to medium heat, combine equal parts Cadbury Mini Eggs and water. Once the Mini Eggs are fully melted, add an equal part of sugar (1:1:1). Once the sugar is dissolved, take off heat and let cool until ready to use.
Latest News