10 Traditional Easter Foods That Aren’t Eggs
March 21, 2017
Easter is almost here and my Pinterest feed is filled with eggs of all colors, shapes, and sizes. I’ve seen it all, including hard boiled, colored, chocolate, and plastic eggs. As much as I love eggs, I’ve been looking for traditional Easter foods of a different variety. Here are a few of my finds:
Pashka (Russian)
Pashka is a traditional Easter food that is enjoyed in Russia. This dessert is typically shaped like a pyramid and made from cheese. It is decorated with XB, which stands for Christ is Risen.
Tsoureki (Greece)
Tsoureki is a sweet yeast bread that is similar to brioche, and it’s decorated with brightly-colored red eggs. You’ll want to try it for the hint of cherry essence that gives it a unique flavor.
Hot Cross Buns (UK)
It wouldn’t be Easter in my home without hot cross buns. These buns are studded with dried fruits or citrons and topped with a frosting cross. They’ve been an Easter staple in England for hundreds of years.
Roast Lamb
The roast lamb dinner that many people associate with Easter goes back to the very first Passover celebration, when Jewish people roasted the sacrificial lamb and ate it along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
Simmel Cake (UK and Ireland)
Simmel Cake is a light, sweet cake that has two layers of almond paste or marzipan, and is eaten during the Easter season in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Magiritsa Soup (Greece)
Magiritsa soup is made from lamb offal and is usually eaten to break the fast in the Greek Orthodox church. This soup is a signature Easter food in Greece.
Ham (United States)
In the Untied States, many families eat ham for Easter dinner. This tradition began in the early days of this country, when meat was slaughtered in the fall and preserved by curing, since there was no reliable refrigeration. The curing process was usually finished in time to enjoy ham for Easter.
Bialy Barszcz (Poland)
This traditional white borscht soup is made from foods that families bring to Church on Easter morning to be blessed, including sausage, eggs, and butter. Unlike the traditional red borscht, there are no beets in Bialy Barszcz.
Mammi (Finland)
Mammi is a Finnish dessert that takes several days to prepare. It is made from molasses, water, rye malt, and rye flower. This traditional traditional dessert is served with cream.
No matter what foods you enjoy on Easter, why not add something new to the menu this year?
Are there traditional Easter dishes I’ve overlooked? Send me your favorites.
