Egg Shell Candles – Easter Centerpiece

By Angela Sellari

It’s been an exciting day around here, but not so much for me as for the dogs. My ears are ringing right now from all barking I’ve listened to today. The day is still young and so far we’ve been visited by the UPS man, had a new sofa delivered by Ashley Furniture, and the AT&T repair man just left. The latter left me with a $99 repair bill, but on a brighter note the new sofa has dual recliners. I can’t wait to put my feet up and watch some television tonight. Almost forgot… I also have some super cute egg shell candles to share with you. They make for a very pretty Easter centerpiece!

Technically my mom, Laura, gets the credit for this craft project. But I’m going to steal a little bit of her thunder and share it with you. She won’t mind… I promise.

Easter is still over a month away, yet I somehow feel like we are running very behind on our Easter projects for the blog. I have to blame Pinterest for this bit of anxiety – since I was seeing tons of Easter pins, before Valentine’s Day was even over.

These egg shell candles were very simple to make, and are great for an Easter centerpiece. This project is a great way to use up a jar candle that has just a little bit of wax in it. We used a yellow jar candle that had already burned about half way down. If you happen to have some beeswax that would be fine also.

What You’ll Need
6 eggs
6 wicks (We removed the wicks from some very inexpensive votive candles.)
candle wax

To begin, use a sharp owl (needle) to make a hole in the top of an egg. Carefully chip away at the egg shell to make the hole bigger. Be sure to not waste those eggs! Pour the eggs into a bowl to reserve for later use. I’ll share a simple custard recipe at the bottom of this post that is perfect for this.

Gently wash the egg shells and allow them to dry completely.

While the eggs are drying, melt the wax. If using a glass jar candle, like we did, simply place the candle in a pot of simmering water. If using beeswax, melt it in a double boiler.

Spoon or pour a small amount of wax into the bottom of each prepared egg shell, to hold the wick into place. Place a wick into the center of each egg shell. Spoon or pour additional wax into the shell, until it’s about 3/4 full. Allow to dry completely.

Simple Egg Custard
If you don’t feel like having scrambled eggs for dinner, here is a simple egg custard recipe. It’s the perfect old-fashioned comfort food.

6 eggs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk, heated until very hot
ground nutmeg or ground cinnamon for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Adjust oven rack to center position. Lightly butter (or use non-fat vegetable spray) six (6-ounce) custard cups and set them into a large baking dish. If cooking custards in a metal pan, cover the bottom of the pan with a layer of newspaper to ensure an even temperature on the bottom.

In a large bowl, beat eggs slightly; add sugar, vanilla extract, and salt and beat until dissolved. Mix in hot milk until blended. Pour egg mixture into prepared custard cups. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon.

Bring the water for the water bath to a light simmer on top of the stove; carefully pour hot water into the baking pan to come half-way up the sides of the custard cups. NOTE: The most common mistake people make in baking a custard is not putting enough water in the hot-water bath. The water should come up to the level of the custard inside the cups. You must protect your custard from the heat. Carefully pour hot water into the baking pan to come halfway cup the sides of the custard cups.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until set around the edges but still loose in the center. The cooking time will depend largely on the size of the custard cup you are using, but begin checking at 20 minutes and check back regularly. When the center of the custard is just set, it will jiggle a little when shaken, that’s when you can remove it from the oven. Remove from oven and immediately remove cups from water bath; cool on wire rack until room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Makes 6 servings (depending on size of custard cups).

Recipe courtesy of What’s Cooking America.