Photo courtesy of Lin Sue Cooney.

When I was a child, I could always count on my mom to put a chocolate bunny in my Easter basket. I couldn’t wait to bite off an ear to see if it was solid or hollow inside. The poor guy never lasted very long. He was devoured before breakfast with a mug of hot cocoa. Even back then I was addicted to chocolate! Though he was made of a rather bland milk chocolate, I thought it was a fancy treat.

Now that I’ve developed a taste for dark chocolate, those drug store bunnies just don’t cut it anymore. So I’ve learned to make my own.

All you need is a bag of candy melts that you can buy at Michaels. For a dollar more, I recommend the gourmet brand name Guittard, available at ABC Cake Decorating at 28th Street and Indian School in Phoenix. They come in dark chocolate, white chocolate, strawberry, lemon or mint (which smells and tastes just like a Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie).

Fill a squeeze bottle with chocolate pieces and zap in a microwave 30 seconds at first, and then 10 seconds at time until the chocolate melts. Be sure to stir each time with a chopstick so it melts evenly. Then put the lid on the bottle and gently squeeze the chocolate into plastic bunny molds you can buy at Michaels, ABC or online. There are literally dozens to choose from, so you can have a cute bunny, an elegant one, big, medium or tiny.

Use a toothpick to gently push the chocolate to the edges of the impression. Lay completely flat in the freezer for five minutes, then invert onto a soft, clean dishtowel, tapping the edge of the mold lightly. The chocolate bunnies will drop right out. You can even find molds that hold a lollipop stick if you want a bunny sucker.

Make him extra fabulous by tying a thin ribbon around his neck. Then just wrap that darling bunny in a cellophane bag, tuck him into an Easter basket, and watch your kids hippity hop around the house with excitement.

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