Easter Menu for 8
Our Easter feast celebrates early spring flavors, from asparagus and rhubarb to lamb and mushrooms. Most of the recipes are quick, and we offer get-ahead tips, so the meal is a cinch to pull together the day of. The menu serves eight (with dessert leftovers).
Cucumber-Lime-Lavender Spritzer
This effervescent, nonalcoholic refresher perfectly balances floral, tangy, and sweet flavors. If you'd like to turn it into a tipple, try adding a splash of gin or vodka.
MAKE AHEAD TIP: Combine ingredients (minus club soda) in a pitcher up to a day ahead and chill; add fizz just before serving.
Sweet-and-Sour Mushroom Toasts with Tarragon
Be sure to get the skillet very hot before adding the mushrooms; otherwise, you won't get good browning (which is key to maximum flavor).
Asparagus with Avocado-Herb Dressing
If you can find white asparagus, try using half white and half green. The white variety will need to boil a couple of minutes longer than the green.
MAKE AHEAD TIP: Cook asparagus and blend the dressing the day before. Assemble and leave at room temp an hour before serving.
Roasted Spring Lamb with Fennel, Rhubarb, and Strawberries
"Frenched" racks of lamb are trimmed so that the bones are cleaned of fat and meat; if you can't find pre-frenched lamb racks, ask the butcher to french them for you.
Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake
Fresh thyme gives this rustic cake a faint herbaceous quality that complements the warmth of cardamom and ginger and the tang of rhubarb. Be patient when turning the cake out of the pan; it may take several minutes for it to fully release. The surprise ingredient (mayonnaise) is an old-school trick for creating a super-moist cake. A dollop of yogurt cuts through the cake's richness—but you can omit it if you like.
MAKE AHEAD TIP: Bake the cake in the morning, invert onto a plate or cake stand, and leave at room temperature, loosely covered, until ready to serve.
