Top 30 Traditional Easter Dinner Ideas

Try These Tasty Entree, Side, and Dessert Recipes for Your Easter Menu

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Updated 04/07/20

Easter Dinner Table — Westend61/ Getty Images

Easter is filled with tradition and the dinner table is no exception. From hot cross buns to the choice between lamb or ham, even gooey fudge brownies, there are many great dishes to cook for your family this Easter.

Entrees, side dishes, desserts, and more, let's explore delicious recipes that will help you create a traditional Easter dinner menu. These ideas celebrate the best foods of spring, include traditional foods from around the world, and many are also ideal for Passover.

01 of 30

Hot Cross Buns

Debby Lewis-Harrison / Getty Images

Delicious hot cross buns are a signature food of Easter. Spiced with nutmeg, flavored with currants and apricots, then topped with a lemon icing, this sweet bread is at it's best when it's homemade.
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Stuffed Leg of Lamb

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A favorite for many Easter dinner tables, stuffed leg of lamb is surprisingly easy to prepare. A flavorful recipe, with parsley, garlic, pancetta or bacon, and red wine, this spring lamb roast can easily please any family.
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Honey Butter Ham

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A delicious honey butter ham is an excellent Easter main. This recipe is simple, adds Dijon mustard for extra flavor, and is cooked in the oven. Of course, you can also opt for a slow cooker ham, too.
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Smoked Pork Butt With Potatoes and Cabbage

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An entrée that's a little less traditional, but still, a popular choice for Easter is smoked pork butt. When you add cabbage and potatoes, you have a one-pot main dish that is hearty enough for the hungriest family.

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Irish Lamb Stew

The Spruce Eats

A traditional Irish lamb stew is also a fabulous Easter entrée to consider. The simple recipe is filled with vegetables, herbs, and spices to make a flavorful spring stew. It's a nice option if you want lamb, but aren't in the mood for a roast.
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Persian Roast Chicken

GMVozd / Getty Images

Poultry is not out of the question for Easter or Passover and this Persian roast chicken recipe is perfect for the spring holidays. Flavored with saffron, cinnamon, and cumin contrasting the tang of lemons and clementines, it's a fascinating dish that may become a new favorite.
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Old-Fashioned Raisin Sauce

The Spruce Eats / Diana Rattray

An old-fashioned raisin sauce is an ideal complement to ham, beef, pork, and lamb entrées. It takes just 15 minutes to make and can easily be adjusted to suit your family's taste.
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Easter Pie

The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

This is no ordinary pie! The Easter pie recipe loads the buttery crust with savory Italian ingredients, including prosciutto, salami, sausage, and mozzarella cheese. It's fabulous for brunch and is definitely going to show off your culinary prowess.

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Parker House Rolls

The Spruce Eats

Homemade dinner rolls are better than any you can buy at the store. Bakers who want to try a new recipe will enjoy these Parker house rolls. They're light and airy and have a wonderful flavor that's sure to complement any other dishes on your table.
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Traditional Italian Easter Bread

hslergr1 / Pixabay

Set a loaf of braided bread on the table and you'll impress anyone. This Italian-American Easter bread recipe is great for beginning bakers because it's a slow-rising dough that's easy to work with. Serve it with butter or turn it into a sweet-savory dessert bread with lemon icing.
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Slovak Easter Paska Bread

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

Another bread option for the Easter table is a traditional recipe from Eastern Europe. Paska, or Slovak Easter bread, is simple, delightful, and an opportunity to get creative. You can either bake the dough into rounds with stunning braids or form chick-shaped dinner rolls.
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Potatoes Grand Mere

The Spruce Eats

Scalloped potatoes are a favorite side dish and the potatoes grand mere recipe will work perfectly alongside any entrée. Rich and satisfying, the potatoes in this dish are adorned with a creamy sauce of mustard, garlic, and Parmesan that is sure to please.

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Potato Kugel

The Spruce Eats

For another traditional potato bake, try a tasty kugel recipe. All you need are grated potatoes, onions, and eggs, along with a little seasoning. In about an hour, a golden brown side dish is ready for the table.
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Roasted Asparagus

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Asparagus is one of the first vegetables of spring, which is why roasted asparagus is such a popular side for Easter dinner. Drizzling olive oil over the spears, sprinkling them with sea salt and a hint of lemon ramps up the flavor, creating a side your family will love.
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Purple Cabbage Salad

The Spruce Eats / Miri Rotkovitz

A favorite Passover recipe, it's hard to beat the fresh taste of a purple cabbage salad. This colorful side includes mandarin oranges, cranberries, carrots, and pine nuts and it looks spectacular.
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Bistro Salad With Warm Goat Cheese Croutes

Philippe Desnerck / Getty Images

Bring the taste of a French bistro to your Easter table with a bistro salad featuring warm goat cheese. You can bake goat cheese croutes or cook them on the stovetop. They're then laid over a bed of fresh lettuce and herbs with a light oil, vinegar, and mustard dressing. This recipe works well for a brunch as well.

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Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Beets

The Spruce Eats / Miri Rokovitz

A simple and flavorful side dish, whip up this roasted sweet potato and beet recipe for Easter dinner. It also requires just a drizzle of olive oil and some light seasoning, allowing the taste of the vegetables to really shine.
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Braised Carrots and Sugar Snap Peas

The Spruce Eats / Laurel Randolph

Need a really fast side of veggies? In just 10 minutes you can pull off a tasty dish of braised carrots and sugar snap peas. Seasoned with parsley and a touch of garlic, it may just become a new staple around your house.
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Asparagus Ricotta Spring Pasta

The Spruce Eats / Molly Watson

A pasta dish that celebrates spring in its brightest flavors, this asparagus ricotta spring pasta is an ideal accompaniment to any entrée. The flavor is fresh and clean and it comes together in no time at all.
20 of 30

Passover Pancakes

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For anyone planning an Easter or Pesach breakfast or brunch, Passover pancakes are a terrific choice. Made with matzo cake meal and tapioca starch, they are a chewy delight and excellent with maple syrup, jam, or fruit toppings.

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Blueberry Cream Cheese Danish

The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

Add puff pastry dough, blueberries, and cream cheese to your grocery list and bake up some blueberry cream cheese danishes for Easter brunch. They're sweet and delicious and rather easy to make at home.
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Chocolate Fudge Brownies

The Spruce Eats

The classic chocolate fudge brownie is rich, creamy, and perfectly indulgent. It's one of the most popular desserts for Easter and this is a recipe that won't let you down.
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Easter Rice Krispie Treats

Kellogg's

Rice Krispie treats are a favorite among kids and adults alike. The basic recipe can be transformed into an adorable, miniature Easter basket with a few Jelly Beans, chocolate eggs, and a little coconut.
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Egg Custard Bread Pudding

The Spruce Eats / Diana Rattray

Use this recipe for dessert or add it to your brunch menu. Either way, it's hard to beat a classic egg custard bread pudding. You can even top it with your sauce of choice: vanilla or butterscotch or a tempting brown sugar pecan sauce.

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Bunny Butt Cake

The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

Easy to make and absolutely adorable, this bunny butt cake will please all ages, especially those who love coconut. A coconut-flavored batter is baked and assembled, then covered in frosting and shredded coconut. Crushed Oreos become the dirt, green-tinted coconut is the grass, and pink jelly beans are the pads on the bunny's feet. It may just be too cute to eat.
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Simnel Cake

The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

Bakers who want to go all out for Easter need to try a simnel cake. Traditionally served to celebrate the end of Lent, this is the ultimate dessert for a feast. You can decorate it as ornately as you like to create a stunning showpiece.
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Lemon Meringue Pie

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Take advantage of the spring lemon crop with a traditional lemon meringue pie. The bright flavor of the creamy, airy filling has long been a favorite for Easter dinner. Though it can look intimidating, it's rather simple and definitely worth your effort.
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Sundowner

The Spruce Eats / S&C Design Studios

The sundowner is a refreshing beverage the entire family can enjoy. The recipe replicates the taste of sparkling wine, but without the alcohol. Its mix of white grape juice and sparkling water is easy to mix by the pitcher, and the mint garnish dresses it up wonderfully.

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Ginger Lemonade

The Spruce Eats / S&C Design Studios

Bright, invigorating, and perfect for spring, ginger lemonade is ideal for Easter dinner. It's as easy as any other lemonade recipe, though the sweetener is a ginger-flavored syrup.
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Easter Bunny Cocktail

Justin Lewis / UpperCut Images / Getty Images

We indulge in all sorts of treats for Easter and drinks are not an exception. For the adults, mix up a fun and sweet Easter bunny cocktail to share. This chocolate vodka cocktail is simple and you'll love the hint of cherry brandy.