Easter 2023: Recipes for Desserts, Sides & More

Everyone will ask you for the recipe.

Drench it in the spiced, sweet syrup.

If you’re starting to plan your Easter menu, we’ve got you covered with easy and classic Easter dinner recipes to get you started. If you’ve already got dinner (or brunch) worked out, then you just need a dessert or two for the Easter table — they’ll add to the decor just as much as dyed Easter eggs will. Easter desserts are some of the best. Seasonally, you get to combine the last citrus fruits of winter and the first fresh berries of spring.

Ham is one of my favorite things to serve as a main dish. I’ll either cook my ham in the slow-cooker or bake it in the oven. I love that it’s easy to make and provides the perfect savory foundation to build the rest of your dinner around. In my opinion, a large part of the pleasure of serving ham is enjoying the side dishes that play well with its rich flavor. Plus, leftover ham can be reinvented into several other meals throughout the week or frozen until further notice.

Whether you plan to serve roasted leg of lamb, pan-seared lamb chops, or grilled lamb chops for a special dinner, you’ll want to choose some sides. The beauty of serving lamb as the main is that you can serve it with a wide variety of sides and the meal will taste great. Hearty potatoes dishes pair just as well as bright snappy veggies like green beans.

In the past, I’ve reserved lamb for special occasions. While roasted leg of lamb is absolutely worthy of such, pan-seared lamb chops, lamb burgers, or lamb meatballs deserve to be everyday affairs. They are just as easy to cook as pork, chicken, or beef, but come with a rich and savory flavor that can’t be beat.While lamb is great on its own, it’s even better served with a sauce — be it creamy or herby.

If you’re buying a big bone-in ham for the holidays this year, consider this your friendly reminder that you’ll be left with a tasty ingredient after all the meat’s been picked off: The ham bone. So, whatever you do, don’t toss it in the compost bin or trash. Ham bones are packed with so much rich, smoky flavor. Don’t have time to put the ham bone to use right away? No problem, just freeze the bone, as you would any other meat bones and food scraps.

Meet your new favorite sweet.

If you’re a savory breakfast person like me, a Scotch egg is a perfect food. The U.K. dish consists of a boiled egg that’s been peeled, covered in breakfast sausage, then breaded and deep-fried. It’s the perfect high-protein breakfast or snack. The roots of this dish are murky. Scotch eggs seem to have been around since the 1700s, with some claiming it was an Indian export due to its similarities to a dish called nargisi kofta.

The beauty of making brunch the center of any celebration, such as Easter or Mother’s Day, are the sheer variety of options. From hearty brunch casseroles, stacks of pancakes and French toast, and cinnamon rolls, the best brunch spreads have a little bit of everything. But let’s not forget the appetizers!Bite-sized mini quiches, breakfast sliders, and sweet mini Dutch baby pancakes are great options, along with classic deviled eggs, creamy dips, and puff pastry tarts.

When it comes time to plan your Easter menu, a glazed ham or a big roast leg of lamb is the default. These dishes are classics for sure, but they’re far from the only options, especially if, like mine, your celebration will be on the small side this year. But what to make? Pork tenderloin or pork chops can be easily dressed up with a sauce or simple glaze.

One bad hard-boiled egg can ruin you for life. At least, that’s what I believed until I learned how to cook soft-boiled and hard-boiled eggs, and precisely how I wanted to eat them. The perfect hard-boiled egg has no green ring around the yolk and the innards are creamy and mellow (plus easy to peel!). And if you’re in the mood, you can stop short of the hard-boil and make a gooey soft-boiled egg instead.

Creamy, cheesy, and crowd pleasing dauphinoise potatoes are practically impossible to dislike. This classic French dish is simple yet indulgent, and pairs perfectly with showstopping mains like roasted beef tenderloin, glazed ham, or prime rib. With a few kitchen tools and a bit of prep work, you can easily make dauphinoise potatoes from scratch.Dauphinoise (DOE-PHEEN-NOWAAZ) potatoes is how the French say casserole of potatoes, heavy cream, and cheese.

Take your pick of mix-ins.

It doesn't get any fancier than this.

The most delicious leftover sandwich starts here.

It has the perfect sweet and crunchy glaze.

Sweet and tangy.

It turned me from a grape skeptic into a voracious grape eater. 

Seriously, you'll want to mop up every last drop.

The lemon-y herb-y dipping sauce is a guaranteed crowd pleaser.

You just need 5 ingredients and there's no baking required.

Just 3 ingredients!

It's an effortlessly airy vanilla cake layered with velvety custard and perfectly ripe strawberries.

Summer — the season of impromptu picnics, backyard get-togethers, and lazy dinners — demands hospitable and casual desserts that come together easily and feed everyone from large to small. This is one of my favorites: A one-bowl butter cake, baked in a pretty dish, and topped with tangy whipped cream and piles of summer fruit. Easy as one-two-three, and beautiful too.

The secret ingredient? Cooked carrots.

There’s a lot to love about a buttery, flaky crust filled with rich, eggy custard.

Exactly how you want to eat carrots with a steak dinner.

File under: Another trick we learned from Alton Brown.

Rich with tradition, symbolism, and treasured ingredients, Easter breads figure prominently in many cultures’ celebrations. From Germany to Greece, these yeast-risen breads are full of eggs, butter, sugar, fruits, nuts, and spices — any would be welcome in at your Easter brunch or Easter dinner.Grab your passport and travel around the world through the lens of Easter bread. From hot cross buns in Britain, to Greek Tsoureki, your eyes and stomach will thank you.

Bring together brioche bread and a sweet custard and you have a never-fail, crowd-pleasing dessert.

You can fill them with any combination of veggies, meat, and cheese.

The creamy, buttery sauce will upgrade everything from eggs Benedict to asparagus.

It's got pancetta, cheese, eggs, and unending delight for everyone.

Perfect for Easter and beyond!

Enjoy shoreek with a cup of milky tea or coffee.

And a total crowd-pleaser!

Thanks to a technique from Thanksgiving stuffing.

This is my go-to potluck dish.

Say hello to spring.

This is the sweet, sky-high cake that dessert dreams are made of.

All the preparations and cook times take mere minutes, and frenched lamb chops look gorgeous on the table.