DIXFIELD — It took an assembly line of 12 Dixfield Congregational Church members to create 500 half- and quarter-pound chocolate-covered eggs for delivery this Easter. 

No wonder.

Made from a secret recipe known only to church member and Girl Scout leader Diane Ray, the eggs have six different flavored centers that are hand-molded, hand-dipped in chocolate, decorated and individually boxed for sale.

The assembly line crew has plenty of practice.

“This is our sixth year of doing this fundraiser,” member Darlene Berry said. “The proceeds go toward a general church fund and some proceeds go to Girl Scout Troop 329.”

The egg-making process begins with mixing the secret ingredients for the centers — peanut butter, coconut, buttercream, chocolate, chocolate nut and raspberry. The following week the mixtures are molded as close as possible to egg shapes.

After they firm up, the bottom of each egg is dipped in chocolate — dark for the raspberry and milk for the others — and left to harden. The next day the other half of the egg is dipped in chocolate, and sugar leaves and flowers are added to the tops by Girl Scouts Elizabeth Raleb and Caylee Childs.

When the eggs are completely hardened, each is put in a lavender box filled with ribbon grass and tied with a bow.

The attempt to make quarter-pound eggs this year didn’t go as well as expected, Berry said.

“This year we tried to do some one-quarter-pound eggs, putting two instead of one big half-pound egg (per box),” Berry said. “We must apologize to some people that ordered those as they were more difficult to do and we did not make enough; therefore, they got a big one instead.”

Of the 500 made this year, 260 have been pre-sold by members. The rest will be sold at Marden’s in Rumford from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, April 8 and 9, for $6 each.

Berry offered a tip to those who prefer not to eat such a large amount of chocolate at once: “Many people slice them up and freeze them to be eaten a little at a time.”

Eggs can be ordered by calling the church at 562-4582 or 597-2955.

mhutchinson@sunmediagroup.net

Twelve members of the Dixfield Congregational Church work Thursday to finish making 500 chocolate-covered Easter eggs to raise money for the church and Girl Scout Troop 329. 

Members of the Dixfield Congregational Church hold handmade Easter eggs they created for a fundraiser. From left are Prudence Schofield, Terry Record, Lora Cotton and Darlene Berry.

Darlene Berry, a member of the Dixfield Congregational Church, holds a handmade half-pound Easter egg Thursday that will be put in a box filled with ribbon grass and sold this weekend at Marden’s in Rumford.