Mine’s a gin & tonic Easter egg!
... or one that’s hot cross bun flavoured — or has 22,500 calories (and costs £250). Have Easter treats ever been so ludicrously eggs-travagant?
FanCy a splash of gin and tonic in your easter egg? or how about a marmite-flavoured one? and what about an egg that’s a dead ringer for a pineapple, a coconut or a hot air balloon?
if you thought you’d seen it all, it’s time to think again. this year, easter eggs are weirder and wackier than ever before — and definitely not just for the children.
here, TESSA CUNNINGHAM looks at some of the more unusual offerings available.
SUPERSIZED TREATS FORTNUM & MASON THE COLOSSAL EGG, £90, 1.4kg
fortnumandmason.com (click and collect only), calories per 100g: 540 THIS showstopper weighs in at a giant 1.4kg — that’s almost two dozen chicken eggs. Five different flavour eggs sit inside each other so there’s something for everyone. Flavours include milk chocolate caramel, chocolate orange, and mint.
HOTEL CHOCOLAT CLASSIC OSTRICH EGG, £75, 1.1kg
hotelchocolat.com, calories per 100g: 565 OSTRICHES lay the biggest eggs of any living bird. So perhaps it’s no surprise that there’s over lkg of chocolate in this stonking choccie version. as if that isn’t enough, it’s stuffed with 27 chocolates and six individual milk chocolate mini-eggs.
HOTEL CHOCOLAT EXTRA-THICK EASTER EGG, £27, 390g
hotelchocolat.com, calories per 100g: 394 you virtually need a saw to get through this extravagantly thick shell. Filled with different selections of chocolates, it comes in a variety of flavours, including white, caramel and dark.
BEHEMOTH CHOCOLATE EASTER EGG, £250, 4.5kg
choccywoccydoodah.com (in store only), calories per 100g: 500 (adding up to 22,500 for the whole egg!) Flamboyant chocolatiers Choccywoccydoodah command up to £25,000 for their most extravagant creations. So £250 for this monster of an egg may seem a snip to fans.
made of the finest quality belgian milk chocolate decorated with swirls of dark and orange chocolate, it stands 50cm tall and is bursting with 50 individual caramel mini-eggs.
FANCY FEASTS M&S SINGLE-ORIGIN MILK CHOCOLATE RIDGED EGG, £25, 750g
marksandspencer.com, calories per 100g: 557 THIS futuristic milk chocolate egg (main picture) might have come straight from a trendy art gallery. it’s glazed with an eye-catching metallic bronze, silver and gold lustre. Perfect for arty types.
BETTYS LARGE SPRING FLOWER EGG, £57.50, 600g
bettys.co.uk, calories per 100g: 560 BLUEBELLS, pansies and narcissi piped on to the shell give this charming egg all the prettiness of a springtime meadow.
it’s made from Swiss Grand Cru chocolate and the flowers are crafted from royal icing.
SELFRIDGES SELECTION EASTER EGG, £29.99, 230g
selfridges.com, calories per 100g: 570 Pretty as a picture. the delicate spring colours, handpainted on the milk chocolate egg by chocolatier al Garnsworthy, of Somerset-based the Chocolate Society, are inspired by French impressionist painter Claude monet.
CHARBONNEL ET WALKER EASTER EGG WITH TRUFFLES, £45, 450g
charbonnel.co.uk, calories per 100g: 555 THIS heartmeltingly pretty milk chocolate egg is filled with pink champagne truffles and tied with a huge pink bow. Perfect for showing your mum how much you love her.
TESCO FINEST EASTER EGG IN AN EGG, £15, 650g
tesco.com, calories per 100g: 557 THIS tastes as decadent as it looks. it’s a stunning golden egg that is thin and crisp and is encased in a larger chunkier one.
on looks alone it punches way above its price bracket.
MORRISONS THE BEST BELGIAN DARK CHOCOLATE EGG, £4, 200g
morrisons.com, calories per 100g: 537 Eat your heart out Jackson Pollock. this stunning egg, crafted from pure Belgian milk chocolate, has been spattered — Pollock style — with jewel colours.
NOVELTY FACTOR FORTNUM & MASON GOLDEN PRALINE EGGS, £25, 300g
fortnumandmason.com, calories per 100g: 550 Each real hen’s egg has been intricately hollowed out, painted gold and then filled with praline chocolate.
this offers a whole new take on the six-pack.
HESTON FROM WAITROSE EGGSTRAORDINARY DIPPY EASTER EGG, £20, 440g
waitrose.com, calories per 100g: 563 It must have been a giant hen that laid this particular egg. But crack open the white chocolate handpainted shell and — surprise, surprise — you’ll find a yummy dark chocolate egg.
It’s crammed with mini-eggs filled with sea salt caramel nestling on a pile of edible soil (actually freeze-dried passion fruit).
ARTISAN DU CHOCOLAT BALLOON EGG, £25, 300g
artisanduchocolat. com, calories per 100g: 523 DISGUISED as a hot air balloon, this charming egg is made from passion fruit flavoured milk chocolate and stuffed with minieggs. the edible candy laces complete the olde worlde effect.
M&S DISCO MILK CHOCOLATE GLITTER BALL, £10, 350g
marksandspencer. com, calories per 100g: 536 THIS shimmering silver egg is just like strictly come Dancing’s famous glitterball trophy. and you can even make it spin. It’s perfect for getting into the party spirit.
M&S BENDY BOB, £15, 375g
marksandspencer.com, calories per 100g: 375 GUARANTEED to bring a smile to Dad’s face, Bendy Bob is like a smiley humpty Dumpty with moveable arms and legs made from sweets.
he’s filled with strawberry-flavour-jellies — perfect for sharing with little ones.
EGGS WITH A TWIST COCOA CABANA CHOCOLATE PINEAPPLE EGG, £29.99, 750g
cocoa-cabana.co.uk, calories per 100g: 563 PREPARE to be amazed. this pineapple Easter egg is made from solid chocolate and sprayed in gold. choose from milk, dark or white chocolate.
CHOC ON CHOC BELGIAN CHOCOLATE HUSKED COCONUT WITH MINI-EGGS, £20, 390g
choconchoc.co.uk, calories per 100g: 550 BRING a tropical twist to your Easter celebrations with this clever milk chocolate egg.
It perfectly resembles a coconut, right down to the ridges and grooves. split it open and inside you’ll find a handful of mini-eggs.
M&S WHITE AND MILK CHOCOLATE LAID BACK LAMB, £15, 420g
marksandspencer. com (in store only), calories per 100g: 558 KIDs will love this farmyard lamb sunning himself in the sunshine — specially as he looks like Dad after one too many. the woolly coat is made from white chocolate swirls and the lamb’s fat little body is a milk chocolate egg.
PIERRE MARCOLINI KIMONO DOLL, £125, 1.3kg
uk.marcolini.com (in store only), calories per 100g: 550 From uber-fashionable Belgian chocolatier Pierre marcolini comes this elegant egg in the guise of a geisha doll. made from dark and white chocolate, the Kimono Doll comes with two drawers containing 30 minieggs and 30 caramel animals and white chocolate bells.
ROCOCO & ROALD DAHL ENORMOUS CROCODILE EGG, £20, 150g
rococochocolates.com, calories per 100g: 556 You may want to keep this away from grandma. the huge milk chocolate egg is full to bursting with realistic-looking green baby crocodiles (made of chocolate, of course).
EGG-CENTRIC FLAVOURS SAINSBURY’S WHITE CHOCOLATE EGG WITH PISTACHIOS, £6, 220g
sainsburys.co.uk, calories per 100g: 560 DECORATED in cool green, this Belgian white chocolate egg in the taste the Difference range is studded with pistachios for a crunchy bite.
PRESTAT HOT CROSS BUN SPICED EASTER EGG, £16.99, 170g
ocado.com, calories per 100g: 562 Is THERE really someone out there who can’t get enough of hot cross buns? Posh royal chocolatiers Prestat think so. they have infused their milk chocolate egg with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice before decorating with a white chocolate cross. Interesting!
MARMITE MILK CHOCOLATE EASTER EGG, £6.45, 160g
chocolatetradingco.com, calories per 100g: 517 It’s the taste that divides the nation. so you’ll either love or hate this hollow milk chocolate egg flavoured with marmite.
PRESTAT LONDON GIN AND TONIC EGG, £15, 170g
ocado.com, calories per 100g: 512 GET your g&t fix with this super clever egg. the lemon-flavoured milk chocolate egg is filled with gin and lemon flavoured truffles. a double whammy for anyone who’s given up booze for Lent.
HEALTHIER OPTIONS MEGADARK MADAGASCAR CHOCOLATE EASTER EGG, £16.95, 175g
chococo.co.uk, calories per 100g: 580 THE diamondstyle egg mould is stunning. But it’s the mega low sugar content of just 15 per cent (most chocolate is nearer 50 per cent) with super high cocao content of 85 per cent which really appeals. a little goes a very long way.
THE CLASSIC RAW CHOCOLATE EASTER EGG, £9.95, 150g
rawchocpie.co.uk, calories per 100g: 465 DAIRY free, gluten free and soya free, this super healthy egg is made from raw cacao, raw coconut butter, raw agave nectar and no added sugar. Inside you’ll find a mix of unsweetened goji berries and cranberries.
MELT CHOCOLATES DARK CHOCOLATE AVOCADO EGG, £49.50, 400g
meltchocolates.com, calories per 100g: 550 THIS half avocado — made entirely from chocolate — is seriously whacky and healthy too. the dark chocolate ‘shell’ is filled with white chocolate ‘flesh’ and a milk chocolate ‘stone’.
scoop out the flesh to find dark chocolate minieggs topped with bee pollen, almond nibs, cacao nibs, goji berries and quinoa.