Ma’s Blancmange Easter Eggs Or Party Dessert

My ma’s colorful blancmange-filled Easter eggs are a childhood treat so delicious that it’s etched my memory. So cooling and yum, these delightful eggs are a cooling treat for hot summer days!

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I remember sitting on the kitchen platform watching Mom standing in the kitchen so meticulously filling the empty eggshells with blancmange way back in the 80s. (Yes, I’m that old!) She’d have already washed the eggs and dried them on the windowsill for a few days. The sun did them good she said!

Her eggshells looked a lot better than mine do, they were carefully broken to make just a small hole at the top to fill in the blancmange. I think that’s one of the times I decided that I wanted to become a chef. Of course, the other times were when she allowed us to stir the marzipan or vanilla cream for Christmas.

What is Blanc Mange?

Blancmange, as we know it here in India, is a sweet dessert made with china grass (also known as agar-agar), sugar, and milk, that’s set in molds and served cold. In Europe, it was commonly made with milk or cream and sugar, flavored with almonds and thickened with gelatin, rice flour, corn starch, or Irish moss. Blancmange comes from the Old French word Blanc Mangier or basically ‘white dish’.

Every culture has a different way of making blancmange, and ours used china grass.

China grass is a plant-derived gelatin, so it is quite commonly used by vegetarians in India. It is actually derived from red seaweed or red algae. The dried seaweed is processed till it’s white in colour and semi-translucent, and is available in packages as washed and dried strips or in powdered form. We prefer to use the dried strips because it’s natural and you know there are no chemicals added to it.

Blancmange eggs are pretty easy to make, you just need to keep empty eggshells handy for when you decide to make it.

I asked mom where she got the idea for this Easter dessert from. She doesn’t remember if it’s from some old newspaper clippings or from one of her friends from work. But she tells us about the eggshells that were saved, decorated, and then hung on bare-branched trees during the weeks leading up to Easter. This tradition seems popular in European countries too.

I remember the last time we saw eggs hanging on trees was when we visited Aunty Onida at dad’s childhood home years ago. The old tree in the garden was filled with eggs and streamers. I wish we had a garden again so we could resurrect that tradition! But I think I’m rambling. Let’s get back to the blancmange eggs dessert recipe.

What Ingredients Do You Need For Blancmange-Filled Easter Eggs?

All you need to make blancmange dessert eggs is some empty eggshells, china grass or agar agar, milk, and sugar. You can also add food color to make it more enjoyable. Flavoring or vanilla essence is optional.

How To Make The Blancmange Eggs

What you need to do first is get your eggshells ready. Make a small hole on the top of the eggshells and empty the content into bowls. You can use this to make Egg bhurji or Salli eggs fry or to even to bake a cake.

Do not break the top off too much, like this egg below. It’s not going to hold enough dessert. Try to make a smaller opening that is big enough to pour the blancmange.

Place the eggshells in bowls of water and allow them to soak for an hour or so, so they are washed well.

After washing the eggshells dry them in the sun for some time. A few days is a better option. But if you leave it too late, you can do it for half a day.

You can choose to decorate the eggs now, or even after you have filled them with the blancmange and they are set, or you can also leave them as is with no color too. Just remember if they are kept to set in the fridge, you will have a little precipitation on the eggs once you take them out. So it’s best to decorate before filling them. It’s also a fun project for us kids! 😉

In a stainless steel vessel, add milk, sugar, and china grass. Also, add in the food colour, as you can see we have used pink and green in 2 separate vessels. Allow the china grass to soak for a while.

On the stove, keep stirring the milk until the china grass dissolves, and then let it come to a boil. Don’t boil for too long or the milk will split.

I know, if it was mum, the color would have been a delicate light pink. Me on the other hand, I prefer bold beautiful colors. Once it boils your blancmange is ready. Prepare to pour it into the eggshells.

Place your eggshells in an egg tray or a bowl or box where they can stand upright and not tilt. Pour the Blancmange into the eggshells slowly. Don’t even think about holding the eggshells in your hands while doing this as they get really hot and you’ll burn your fingers. Well, you could wear thick gloves, but where’s the joy in that?

Once the eggshells are filled, you can leave them to set outside at room temperature or in the refrigerator for a while. Definitely tastes better than simply colored boiled eggs!

Recipe Pointers For My Mom’s Blancmange Eggs Dessert

• Stir the milk until the china grass dissloves completely.
• You can add any food colour that you like.
• You can add essence to the blancmange if you like, but its not necessary as it has its own flavour.
• This recipe is gluten free and vegetarian.
• You can also try marzipan Easter eggs, my sis’s vegetarian Easter eggs or the chocolate marzipan Easter eggs.
• The eggshells can be decorated before or even after you fill them or even not at all.
• The eggshells can be emptied and kept ready days in advance as well.

What you should know About Blancmange Eggs

What is Blancmange?

In India, blancmange is a dessert made using china grass or agar agar, milk and sugar. It is poured in moulds and allowed to set. In Europe, it can be made with milk or cream, sugar, and gelatin, rice flour, corn starch, or Irish moss. It really varies depending on the location and culture.

How Long does Blancmange last For?

Blancmange can last for a few days, but it’s best eaten within about 3-4 days from when it is made. So it’s okay to prepare it up to a few days in advance too.

How Long Does Blancmange take to set?

Blancmange will set in about 1 to 4 hours in a refrigerator and a little longer at room temperature.

What does Blancmange mean?

Blancmange is an old French term that means ‘white dish’ or ‘white food’.

Is Your Mum’s Easter Egg recipe vegetarian?

Yes, these colorful blanc mange Easter eggs are vegetarian and gluten-free.

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