Top 5 Traditional Meals For Easter From Around The World

Author: Malcolm Bill
Easter is just around the corner again. Our children's focus is chocolate and eggs, but for those of us older and wiser (and more careful of our cavities) thoughts usually turn to hearty meals with our family.

This Easter, in an attempt to involve your kids in something a little different from the traditional Easter Egg Hunt, why not fire up the oven, get out your kitchen appliances and whiz up something special from another culture to share with your loved ones?


Many of the best traditional treats also make fantastic gifts for family and friends.

There are many great baking traditions around the Easter holiday. These days known as a Christian festival celebrating the rebirth of Christ, some of the best known Easter foods come from countries with a long history of Christian faith such as Greece, Portugal and the United Kingdom.

However, the origins of the Easter festival and the foods we eat to celebrate it go further backmuch further than that. Most of the symbolism around our favourite Easter foods comes from the connection between new life and re-birth –- the egg, an ancient symbol of fertility; the rabbit, renowned for its fertility.

Whether you want to mark the symbolism of the occasion or just enjoy some fine baking, why don't you try one of these?:
Simnel Cake (England) –- To mark the end of the 40 days of Lent, a time of fasting and repentance leading up to the Easter festival, girls in service in the late 17th century would bring a simnel cake home to their mothers. This delicious fruit cake, enriched with marzipan, is decorated with eleven marzipan balls to symbol the 12 apostles (minus the betrayer Judas).

Hot Cross Buns (England) — "One a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns…" These days, hot cross buns cost a bit more than a penny, but they are as popular as ever with their delicious combination of fruit and spices. Making them yourself is so easy, and the home-made versions are far better than anything you'll see in your local supermarket three months before Easter.

Koulourakia Lambriatika/Greek Easter Cookies (Greece) –- Traditionally made with either blanched almonds or sesame seeds, these tasty little cookies are another recipe very simple but fun to prepare, with the kids enjoying the twisting of the dough into the different twists or braids.

Tarte de Pascoa/Portuguese Easter Pie (Portugal) –- The Portugese version of cheese and spinach pie, this sumptuous but simple to prepare Easter savoury pie will make a fantastic addition to your Easter table. Layers of spinach, feta and hard-boiled eggs are enclosed in phyllo pastry.

Paasbroo/Sweet Easter Bread (Portugal) — Like many of the foods we've featured, this bread was first made long before the arrival of Christianity; it was part of the celebration of the end of winter and the return of new life. This delightful Scandanavian Easter treat has a delicious home-made almond paste through the middle, and is studded with plump golden raisins or currants. Your kids will love drizzling the icing decoratively across the top after you take it from the oven.

So this Easter, enjoy getting into the kitchen with your children, firing up your ovens and baking up a storm. Your whole family will love the culinary round-the-world journey you take, and together you can create new Easter traditions and gifts for yourself and your loved ones.
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