As Laura and I have been discussing Easter this year, we’ve both realized that we don’t really have many “dedicated” Easter recipes. Over the years, we’ve each done a variety of Easter meals. Unlike Thanksgiving or even Christmas, not a lot of recipes really come to mind as being the quintessential Easter foods.
So do YOU have any special Easter traditions that you’d like to share with us? If you have a food that just captures all the flavors of Easter, will you share it? You can email it to us at mysisterskitchen@gmail.com and we’ll share about it right here!
We do plan to write about what foods we plan to indulge in this year. We’ll probably share a menu or two in the next week and a half. We might even have to discuss Easter candy! Stay tuned.
Oh, wow, Easter. Is that here already?
Thanks for the reminder. We usually like to have lamb. I gotta get that ordered quick. I have some Easter (Resurrection) cookies that my son might be old enough for this year. I’ll have to dig out that recipe. If I find it, I’ll post it on one of my blogs. I’m not sure wich one would be most appropriate, the mom or food blog. Hmmm.
Our church has an early service (not quite sunrise, but very early)and then a brunch. After that an Easter egg hunt for the kids and then a service when our new members join the church and many are baptized.
For the brunch I have made a braid filled with the same almond filling used in Laura’s Banket. You could use Barb’s Coolrise dough but sometimes I use a dough used for Hawaiian Sweetbread. I don’t have that recipe with me in the RV. Whichever dough is used, roll it out to about 24 inches long and a foot wide. Put the almond paste down the center third of the dough leaving an inch at each end uncovered with almond mix. With a sharp knife, cut the dough towards the paste about every inch. (Leave some dough so the almond doesn’t leak out during baking.) Then fold the ends over the almond paste and begin alternating each inch wide strand over the almond paste. At some point, you will have to start braiding from the other end and meet in the middle and tuck the last piece under. Bake as you would for Barb’s Cinnamon rolls and brush with butter after baking. A nice drizzle of icing looks lovely and tastes great.
Love, Joan
Hmmm… I make diffferent items each Easter. This year I am thinking of having my husband cook a pork roast and shrimp skewers on the grill. Pasta salad with grape tomatoes, feta cheese, garlic, green onions, and a greek vinagrette will accompany the meat, along with broccoli slaw and a fruit salad (just cut up fresh fruit in a little orange juice). For dessert I am thinking of a mud pie (chocolate, marshmallows, pecans) and maybe something lemon-y. I’m trying to keep it simple because we are going on a short trip to Memphis the day after Easter. (I don’t want messy kitchen to clean while I am packing the night before our trip)
Jennifer
Hey, JourneytoMom, would you be willing to share the recipe for your Resurrection cookies? I don’t have anything like that in my files.
I’m also wondering if you’d be willing to share the how-to’s of cooking a leg of lamb. I don’t think I’ve ever cooked lamb, except in little bitty chunks in Irish lamb stew.
Thanks
Barb
Yeah, sure!
Sorry for the delay. Right after making my comment here, we dashed off for the weekend. I’ll dig out the Resurrection recipe and post it on my blog. Here’s a simple crockpot Leg of Lamb (from southernfood.about.com):
*Leg of Lamb
*salt & pepper
*butter
*garlic, optional
Place leg in crockpot. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Add a small dab of butter. Garlic can be inserted into the meat (garlic flavor will permeate the meat, so don’t be too heavy handed). Cook for 8-10 hours on LOW.
When finished, drain the liquid into another container, cover and freeze for about half an hour until the fat has solidified. Lift off the fat and use to make gravy.
I have another one with roasted potatoes, which I’ll post on my blog.
I grew up without Easter traditions but have been making my own for the last 10 yrs, since we moved to the Midwest. We invite a number of people from our church to have a sit-down meal with us. I think our smallest group was about 13 and our largest was 21 so far. I always look forward to this b/c Easter is now my favorite holiday since becoming a Christian.
There are somethings that are always the same — I always make both ham and lamb, often two kinds of potatoes — both sweet and mashed white or Yukon gold, asparagus, orange-glazed carrots, salad with baby greens. For dessert there is always a fruity, non-chocolate (sometimes with cherries)option and a chocolate laden offering. Sometimes I even make *three* desserts or have fruit salad as a less sweet option. Often Easter is the ‘unveiling’ of a new spectacular chocolate creation for me and will be again this year — I’ve been thinking about making this dessert for about 4 yrs and I think I’ve finally got the courage to try it!
I like to serve fresh vegetables that I associate with the newness of spring and desserts that emphasize the celebratory nature of the event.
I forgot to mention that I posted the Resurrection Cookies on the food blog, NOT the journeytomom blog. Sorry ’bout that.
Melissa
http://wholelife.wordpress.com
Thanks, Journeytomom, for posting about cooking lamb and for posting those resurrection cookies. I will link to your site in a separate post.
Fruittart, I hear you on the fresh veggies and fresh fruit. Easter dinner seems to involve a lot of both at our house. I can’t wait to see this year’s spectacular dessert! I also share your feelings about celebrating Easter.
Jennifer, we’re heading to Memphis this year FOR Easter. I’ve never been there before and we’re very excited!
bk