With Easter on the horizon, you might be wondering what to serve at your dinner table this year. The Easter dinner table should be festive and fun, but it also needs to satisfy everyone with the right balance of colors, tastes, and textures. Here are eight easy Easter dinner ideas that will have your family coming back for seconds!
1) Classic German Easter Meal Ideas
If you’re looking to host your family, or just have friends over, it’s important to have a menu in mind. As with any party, planning is key to cooking an awesome meal. Whether you’re making brats and sauerkraut (the German classic), or enjoying roast chicken and mashed potatoes, here are some tips on how to make your Easter meal easy-peasy German style!
Add Provençal flavors to your Easter dinner: The natural sweetness of roasted spring vegetables combines perfectly with salty French feta cheese and tangy Kalamata olives.
Use Lemony Spinach Pesto: A bright green pesto that tastes like summer can also be used as an alternative dip for spring rolls, crostini, sandwich spreads—or simply spread on warm crusty bread as an appetizer.
Create Cabbage Rolls Using Sausage from Your Local Butcher Shop: Not only do sausage rolls taste amazing; they’re also easy to make! For extra flavor add apple cider vinegar while cooking cabbage leaves wrapped around sausage meat. Serve with tomato sauce made of diced fresh tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper—so simple but oh so good!
Make a Cheese Board that Everyone Will Love: A cheese board can be as easy as two cubes of cheese and some honeycomb (or Marmite or jam if you’re daring). Add olives, nuts, pickles and grilled bread if you feel like it. The presentation is key here—make sure that all your ingredients are colorful and varied.
2) An American Easter
There’s nothing more traditional than an American Easter dinner. Boiled eggs, ham and potatoes are certainly easy to prepare and there are lots of variations on these classic dishes. Once you master these three, though, you can really get creative.
Maybe try creating your own spin on deviled eggs, using some different cheese in your potato salad or—for real decadence—spending hours trimming and marinating your ham. The best thing about making such classic American dishes is that they fit right into any other meal plan; there’s no need to make special arrangements around their availability or preparation times when they work so well with everything else you eat.
For instance, you could have some of your boiled eggs and potatoes as a light breakfast before church, then serve up slices of ham for lunch (or dinner!) later in the day.
3) Easter Brunch Ideas for a Group
Don’t have time to cook a full dinner but want to keep everyone happy? Consider hosting an Easter brunch instead. Whether you’re hosting friends, family or both, these brunch ideas are sure to please. When it comes to your menu, pick and choose from any of these holiday-inspired eats or use them as inspiration for creating your own custom spread. There’s something for everyone.
Mix up scrambled eggs with baby spinach, feta cheese and Greek yogurt for your veggie-loving guests. Bacon lovers can top pancakes with slices of crisp bacon and glaze them with pure maple syrup—no added sugar required!
Those who prefer a lighter bite will love devouring springy frittata muffins stuffed with baby asparagus and shredded carrots. End your meal on a sweet note by serving berries drizzled in lemon juice or delicate puff pastry strudels stuffed with whipped cream (in lieu of sugary frosting). Your guests will thank you.
4) A Vegan Easter Dinner
The menu begins with plant-based favorites, including Lemon Garlic Broccoli, and Leek Fettuccine Alfredo. Next, move onto garden-fresh favorites like Spicy Eggplant Salad, and Deceptively Sweet Corn Bread. To top it all off, indulge in some decadent chocolate cupcakes with luscious vanilla buttercream frosting. The whole family will be excited about trying new dishes—and you may just discover that going Vegan isn’t half bad!
5) A Lighter Take on Easter Dinner
If you’re planning on cooking dinner at home, skip your family’s traditional ham dinner and try something lighter. With some careful ingredient selection, you can still enjoy all of your favorite Easter dinner flavors without loading up on calories.
One of our favorite ways to do it is with salmon cakes and roasted asparagus. Salmon provides healthy fats and is naturally rich in protein, so it won’t leave you feeling hungry after dinner. Roasted asparagus adds crisp texture to your meal (and extra fiber!), plus tons of vitamins and nutrients. For dessert, try fresh strawberries topped with whipped cream!
6) Delightful Desserts
For those who want to include something sweet after Easter dinner, try making something like decadent flourless chocolate cake or warm sugar cookies. Cookies and other baked goods taste amazing when they’re made with love, so set aside time to make your favorite treat(s) from scratch.
There are a few ways you can save time by doing some of these items ahead of time. For example, double-check that your oven is clean and preheat it before baking—then you only have to worry about whipping up dessert!
You could also bake breads in advance (and even freeze them), then simply slice as needed and toast in the oven. These delicious options will surely impress guests while keeping cooking stress to a minimum!
You may like: 7 Top Ninja Cookbooks You Will Need In Your Kitchen Best Large Capacity Air Fryer: Top largest capacity options for fried foods
