European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 6, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                One of the most lavish easter gifts Ever devised this jewelled Rock Crystal egg designed by master Goldsmith Peter Paul Faberge was presented by Czar Nicholas ii to the czarina Alexandra Feodorova in 1896. The egg is topped with an Emerald push Button that causes the 12 miniatures inside to revolve. It is on display at the Virginia museum in Richmond. Continued from Page 13 rinse them thoroughly and Peel while they Are still wet. Store in the refrigerator until serving time up to 1 week. Serve either whole or Cut into quarters. Makes 6 marbled eggs. Chinese Tea eggs Brown marbled eggs 8 cups water 2 Tablespoons soy sauce 1 Tablespoon Salt 3 Tablespoons Rice vinegar 2 whole Star Anise or v2 Teaspoon whole Anise seeds one 3-Inch cinnamon stick 1/4 cup Black Tea leaves 6 hard boiled eggs see general instructions Combine All the ingredients except Tea leaves and eggs in a Large Saucepan Over medium heat. When the mixture comes to a boil stir in the Tea leaves. Simmer for 15 minutes then add the cracked hard boiled eggs and proceed As directed in the general instructions. Makes 6 Brown marbled eggs. The following combinations of ingredients will produce different colors of marbled eggs. Follow the general instructions using Dye Bath ingredients in the proportions indicated for whichever colors you desire. Yellow marbled eggs 8 cups water a cup turmeric 1 Tablespoon Salt 1 Tablespoon vinegar. Rose red marbled eggs 8 cups water 2 Large raw red beets peeled and chopped into i Inch cubes1 Tablespoon Salt 1 Tablespoon vinegar. Purple marbled eggs 8 cups water Viz raw red cabbage shredded or chopped1 Tablespoon vinegar. Gray Green marbled eggs 8 cups water Viz raw red cabbage shredded or chopped1 Tablespoon Salt. Blue Gray marbled eggs 8 cups water Viz raw red cabbage shredded or chopped. Natural dyes for easter eggs for a Beautiful and unusual looking Basket full of easter eggs consider colouring the shells of hard boiled eggs with natural dyes from your Kitchen cabinets. With Only 3 Basic ingredients a Black Tea turmeric and onion skins a plus a bit of imagination you can transform Plain White eggs into minor works of Art. The colors produced by using the following ingredients and techniques will Range from yellow to Orange to red to Brown a All Quot Earth tones Quot a with designs reminiscent of indonesian batiks italian Stone eggs and Butterfly wings. Earth tone easter eggs Start with Plain eggs that have been hard boiled and cooled not peeled. Make a Dye Bath for the color s you desire instructions follow. Put the hard boiled eggs into the hot Dye Bath and let them simmer uncovered for 15 to 30 minutes. Check the eggs after 15 minutes. If the color in t dark enough let them continue to simmer until they have reached the Shade of color you want. Eggs dyed without any ornamentation will be a solid color. But Beautiful modern designs can be made with very Little Effort. Before the eggs Are put into the Dye Bath you can do one or More of the following things to produce designs on the eggs a wrap waxed dental floss Cotton sewing thread or Cotton twine around the eggs. The areas wrapped with waxed dental floss will remain White those parts wrapped with Cotton thread or twine will be lighter in color than the rest of the coloured eggshell. A wrap onion skins partially or wholly around the eggs tying the onion skins on the eggs with string thread or dental floss this is usually a two person Job the areas covered by onion skins will have a marbled or Butterfly Wing look the color of the marbling depending upon the color of the onion skins and the particular Dye Bath. Onion skins can produce yellow Orange red rust or Brown designs. After the eggs come out of the Dye Bath set them on a wire Cooling rack with several paper towels underneath to catch any drips. Wait until the eggs have cooled completely before you remove the strings and onion skins. Rub a Small amount of vegetable Oil Over the entire surface of each eggshell to enhance the color and make the egg look polished. Blot any excess Oil with paper towels. If you plan to eat these eggs you should consume them within 48 hours. If you want to use them Only As decorative eggs arrange them in a Basket and display them up to 2 weeks. Brown eggs use the Dye Bath ingredients for chinese Tea eggs omitting the Anise and cinnamon. Combine All the ingredients except the Tea leaves and hard boiled eggs in a Large Saucepan Over medium heat. When the mixture comes to a boil stir in the Tea leaves simmer for 15 minutes then add the eggs that Are to be dyed. Simmer the eggs for 15 to 30 minutes. Yellow eggs use the Dye Bath ingredients for yellow marbled eggs. Combine All the ingredients in a Large Saucepan Over medium heat bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the eggs that Are to be dyed and simmer for an additional 15 to 30 minutes. Orange rust red eggs completely wrap the eggs in onion skins tied securely with string and simmer them for 15 to 30 minutes in a yellow or Brown Dye Bath or even in Plain boiling water to which a Tablespoon of Salt or vinegar has been added. It is the onion skins that color the eggs and the color will depend on the Type of onion skins used. Eggs wrapped Only partially in onion skins will have a marbled design where the onion skin touches the Shell and the remainder of the Shell will take on the color of the Dye Bath. Note instead of wrapping the eggs in onion skins you can make a Dye Bath from 8 cups of water 1 Tablespoon vinegar or Salt and As Many onion skins As you can find. The colors of eggs simmered in this kind of Dye Bath will depend on the Type and amount of onion skins used. Experiment with different types including the skins from red onions. The More onion skins in the Dye Bath the Darker the color produced. For deeper colors you can also simmer the onion skins for 1 hour before adding the eggs to be dyed. Onion skins produce a Range of colors from yellow to Orange to red to rust to Brown. Page 14 a a a the stars and stripes ire moveable feasts note the following recipes Are for a fancy Spring picnic. We think Ecial enough to consider for an offbeat nday Celebration april 15. Who says you a indoors and eat baked Ham or roast Aster weather permitting have a at a pretty Park. If the weather operate the following dishes will be just served at Home. And since All the is have been completed ahead of time have to spend another Holiday slaving Itchen stove. Happy easter by Rosemary Knower Baltimore Sun s for easter is an ancient customs amps file whenever i think of a picnic with a capital p a the perfect picnic of the mind a i think of Kenneth Grahame s picnic in the wind in the Willows. There is rat the savvy Denizen of the Riverbank taking the bedazzled mole on the very first Riverside picnic of the mole s quiet constricted Dull life. It is Early Spring mole has thrown caution and Spring cleaning to the winds and is discovering the wide world. He is discovering that everything tastes better beside the chuckling gurgling spangled swirling water of the River. This time of year when the Flowers Are just coming up the leaves Are just unfolding and the Bare Bones of Winter Are still discernible is a wonderful time to picnic. The insects of summer Are barely awake yet the weather is Cool enough to hike in and warm enough to Laze in the Sun. But the cold delicacies that will satisfy hunger in summer Are not right for a Spring picnic. What s needed is a Hearty earthy menu served hot and Savory from the embers or the thermos As the Case might be. Years of girl scout cooking Over open fires convinced me that it is a time consuming and unrewarding business a slow and dubious and dependent on the weather. There Are few things less romantic than a half raw Chicken or potato Savouring More of smoke than seasoning. So the menu presented Here is designed to be mostly precooked and warmed on site. That Way the Cook can enjoy the Day along with everyone else. Its easy to pack the car with one of those Little 14-Inch charcoal grills and enough charcoal for a brisk fire. All you have to Settle is the grand debate to pack for Sybaris in splendor or to pack for utilitarian feeding in my experience All families Are divided on this vital Issue. The puritans favor no nonsense food to be eaten out of hand with a minimum of trappings. They will not enjoy the menu below because they will regard it As unnecessarily troublesome and lavish. At most they want a hot dog. Many Are satisfied with even less. If Manet had painted Dej Euner sur therbe luncheon on the grass of these people it would have looked like Grant Wood s american gothic with a Peanut butter Sandwich substituted for the Pitchfork. The hedonists on the other hand love the contrast of a Tablecloth and napkins spread in the Woods the delicate juxtaposition of nature with fancy comestibles is irresistible to them and they love nothing better than the idea of caviar consumed in the wilderness preferably with a Little iced Dorn Perignon. The menu below serves four in a lavish style worthy of the Romance of Spring. You might like to Divide the menu amongst congenial friends so that one brings hours d oeuvres one the soup one the sandwiches and one dessert. Then spend the Day in a Lovely Park reminding yourself that the world really is Quot so Beautiful so various so  devised caviar eggs 6 Large fresh eggs 1 to 2 Teaspoons Dijon Mustard 1 to 2 Tablespoons Mayonnaise with no sugar Content 1 Teaspoon Dill Weed 1 Teaspoon coarsely ground Pepper dash Tabasco Viz Teaspoon Salt 3v2-ounce Jar of Black Lump fish caviar Viz cup very finely minced red onion 1 Lemon Cut into wedges prick the ends of the eggs with a pin so the shells won t crack and lower them gently into boiling salted water. Boil for 10 minutes. Plunge them into cold water and Peel them. Cut them in half the Long Way and put the Yolks into a mixer bowl. Crumble the Yolk into Fine bits. Add the Mustard Mayonnaise Dill Pepper Tabasco and Salt and beat until the Yolk mixture is smooth. Aim for a texture like that of mashed potatoes. Stuff the Whites with the Yolk mixture and put a Little depression in each with your thumb. Put the 12 egg halves into an egg Carton lined with plastic wrap cover them with More plastic wrap. Put the chopped onion and the Cut Lemons into zip close bags usually these can also be stored in the head room in the egg Carton. Put a rubber band around the Carton so it will stay shut and refrigerate it until you re ready to pack the picnic. When you re ready for the hours do oeuvres let each person top his egg with caviar and continued on Page 16 ,1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 15