Easter Menu

April 01 2009 by Kristin at The Kitchen Sink in Menu, Recipe » 21 comments

If I had to reduce Easter to only one image, it would be a tiny pair of mary janes, as white as milk and made of patent leather. More than the colored eggs and baskets brimming with candy, I looked forward every year to being able to wear those pristinely white shoes. They squeaked a bit with each step and they scuffed at the slightest sneeze, but I loved them. They were usually worn over a pair of opaque white tights and they were the perfect complement to a pastel-colored, full-skirted dress. Some years, I would round out the ensemble with a bonnet (oh, yes I did) or a pocket book, but really, it was all about the shoes.

[My grandparents, me and my Easter shoes.]

Beyond the shoes, I don’t recall us having a steady Easter tradition. Sometimes we were at my grandparents’ house in northern Minnesota, other times we were at my parents’ house. A few years, we were in California visiting my aunt. Unlike Thanksgiving and Christmas, when our meal follows a well-wrought script year in and year out, we didn’t have a standard Easter dinner. When my sister and I were older, my family began eating Easter brunch with close family friends. That family’s tradition was to cook a big Italian meal, as they did most Sundays. Their Easter version was served midday and usually included a hearty centerpiece, like chicken cacciatore, along with some brunch items, like a broad frittata.

So I guess I’m adopting the Jensens’ tradition a little bit with today’s Easter menu. We’ve got the brunchy component covered with a hearty strata, studded with chunks of multigrain bread, tomato and feta. For a savory centerpiece, I’m suggesting a sage-and-fennel crusted pork tenderloin, which you can do on the grill or in the oven. To those, I would add a big bowl of steaming, salt roasted potatoes and a simply dressed leafy green salad. With dessert, I like the nod to the rabbit (as in the Easter Bunny) with a homey carrot cake piled high with billows of cream cheese frosting.

I’ve outgrown the white patent leather mary janes (and I no longer spin around in circles, letting my skirt flare up revealing my tights; a shame), but I think I could get used to new traditions with a menu like this.

Easter Menu

Tomato-Feta Strata
•
Fennel-and-Sage Crusted Pork Tenderloin
•
Salt Roasted Fingerling Potatoes
•
Mixed Greens, Simply Dressed
•
Carrot Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

21 comments so far. »
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Christina says on April 01 2009 at 8:05 pm:

Kristin, you’re adorable! Who knew you’d grow up into such a fantastic food blogger?
Allison says on April 01 2009 at 8:13 pm:

Funny how I remember having a similar pair of patent leathers and yet having the biggest melt down EVER, every single time Mom tried to wedge those pups on me…. And that photo alone is proof— I got the looks .
Caroline says on April 01 2009 at 8:53 pm:

Love the photo… thanks for sharing!
And, love your menu idea. I haven’t even considered Easter yet…. and now I don’t have to
Fenke says on April 01 2009 at 11:18 pm:

me too – i also had white patent ballerinas, that i would wear on easter. i loved them! together with white tights…
suzy says on April 02 2009 at 2:45 am:

love the carrot cake!
here in poland we have easter sunday breakfast…featuring bread and cold salads, cheese and meat platters and of course hard boiled eggs. and then cakes! oh the cakes! lemon pound cake and ‘mazurek’ which is shortbread flaky pastry filled with sticky chocolate, toffee or orange filling and almonds, hazelnuts, raisins and so on…mmm…and this year easter sunday is also my birthday, so i’m guessing yummy chocolate cake for second breakfast:)
sue bette says on April 02 2009 at 2:53 am:

I’m working on an Easter menu right now and I’m in your boat, no super strict traditions – it’s kind of fun!
The potatoes (and everything else) looks delicious!
Treehouse Chef says on April 02 2009 at 6:02 am:

Love the photo! I like the menu very much. I am in the process of putting together my own.
Jen Schall @ My Kitchen Addiction says on April 02 2009 at 6:20 am:

Looks like a great Easter menu. My family tends to always have spiral ham. I usually get to handle the desserts… still trying to figure out what I want to make. I typically make a sampling of candies/cookies plus a cake.
ingrid says on April 02 2009 at 8:03 am:

Okay, so where do you in exactly in Chicago? I’d be more than happy to bring something so long as I can have some of those potatoes (YUM) & pork tenderloin.
~ingrid
Tabitha (From Single to Married) says on April 02 2009 at 8:26 am:

Great menu for Easter. Gets me thinking about what I should plan for this year. Hmm…. will have to look through your recipes and see what sounds good!
Half Assed Kitchen says on April 02 2009 at 9:55 am:

I just found your blog. It is beautiful.
Kara says on April 02 2009 at 10:22 am:

Your single-layer carrot cake (with that gorgeous billowy frosting!) was already on my menu! Easter can’t get here fast enough… I’ve been waiting to make that ever since you first posted it! And, I might just twirl around like a little girl after eating it! (adorable picture, btw!)
jilly says on April 02 2009 at 1:44 pm:

i’ve been an avid reader of your blog for quite a while, and i must say i find both your prose and photographs truly amazing. i love the menu series you’ve started, and you somehow seem to know exactly what i need whenever i check my reader for your updates. such as today – in my quest for a spring pot-luck dessert, your carrot cake looks perfect.

thank you for all the inspiring posts!
diane says on April 02 2009 at 6:49 pm:

I absolutely remember that photo opp..you have always been so adorable. Now that we might be at Gma & Gpa for Easter I have the best menu ever! Thanks and wish you a great holiday. Love,MOM
Kimba says on April 03 2009 at 11:28 am:

Wow, Kristin – what a great blog – incredible photos – the ones you take yourself and the archive. What a cutie. I am inspired to make an Easter feast through this blog – with eggs and cakes. Do you do ham? We do a Filipino ham that’s marinated in pineapple juice for a day, then baked and cooled and covered with a brown sugar/clove/mustard glaze.
Chocolate and Toast says on April 03 2009 at 8:36 pm:

Okay, so for just a few seconds when I started to read this post I really thought you were talking in the present tense . . . about wearing white patent leather mary janes . . . as an adult. Phew. Close one. Glad to know it was nostalgia. Good stuff! And the food . . . oh, my. Love it, love it all!
tara says on April 04 2009 at 10:59 am:

Oh, how lovely those shoes are! I do believe I had a similar pair, with eyelet-lace style cutouts around the edge. And I do believe my mother made me wear knee socks with them.

Your menu looks fantastic, a lovely balance of the familiar with the modern – and wholly delicious.
Blingo says on April 04 2009 at 1:14 pm:

This Easter menu got me thinking about my own. Thanks for the inspiration. I think I’ll make a roast pork (something without fennel, sorry!), a blue cheese potato gratin, and key lime pie. I’ll ask other family members to contribute a vegetable and salad. It should be a good family dinner.
Melissa says on April 07 2009 at 3:48 pm:

I’ve made that pork and those potatoes. Good stuff. And I have never forgotten your strata either. I still need to try it.

You’re adorable! I had an Easter bonnet too. My sister and I had matching dresses and bonnets actually. Haha. Good times.
Marisa says on April 14 2009 at 6:50 am:

Cute picture! I made the carrot cake for Easter and it was delicious. I couldn’t get it out of the pan though without having it fall apart. Oh well, I just left it in there and the yummy frosting made up for its looks. Thanks!
Kristin at The Kitchen Sink says on April 14 2009 at 7:57 am:

Marisa: Oh no! Did you butter/flour the pan and line with (buttered-and-floured) parchment? Mine came right out.