Easter is fast approaching and many of us will be making plans to meet up with family and friends over the first Bank Holiday weekend of the year. The weather forecast is looking good, and it really does feel as if winter is behind us and spring is here to stay.
If you are hosting at any time over the Easter weekend it can be difficult to know what to prepare. So here are some of our favourite Easter culinary traditions that may be of some help and inspiration!
It is traditional to eat fish on Good Friday and there are some wonderful fish recipes around. You could prepare a fish pie in advance, serve baked or steamed fish with an array of fresh spring vegetables, or do your own version of traditional fish and chips.
If it is warm enough for al fresco eating then barbecued fish with salads can be delicious alternative.
And don’t forget the other Good Friday tradition of Hot Cross Buns!
Roast lamb has become the traditional meat for lunch on Easter Day. Thought to originate from the Jewish Passover, it is now the Easter equivalent of Christmas turkey for many people.
Don’t forget to include a vegetarian alternative as well. You could either serve a nut roast and share all the vegetables and trimmings from the lamb or prepare a completely separate vegetarian dish such as a vegetarian tart or a pasta bake.
If there are children involved then of course no Easter Sunday would be complete without Easter eggs! Perhaps even organise an Easter Egg hunt and you may well find that the adults are also very keen to join in!
For either Easter Sunday or Monday, many families have adopted the tradition of simnel cake. This rich sweet cake has been eaten since medieval times, and is traditionally topped with eleven marzipan balls to represent the twelve apostles of Christ minus Judas.
Is your kitchen good for entertaining?
But if you are doing a lot of hosting over the Easter weekend, you may well notice that your kitchen is not really completely up to the task. Poor kitchen design can make everyday cooking – let alone entertaining – much more difficult.
An ideal kitchen is designed around the way you use the kitchen and which appliances, work surfaces and storage areas need to be located together to ensure that everything you need for any particular task is within easy reach.
In our last article – A Kitchen is the Heart of the Home – we also explored the growing trend for open plan living. This can be the perfect solution for those that like to entertain a lot. Your guests with have plenty of space either to sit comfortably or mingle easily in the same area that food is being prepared: which also means that the chef does not miss out on the latest news and gossip!
It is often when we stretch our current kitchen to the limits that we realise that it is time for a change. Well the good news is that Stone and Chrome are now offering kitchen design, supply and installation services to complement our successful bathroom business.
So if your Easter entertaining proves not to be as easy as you’d hoped – because your kitchen simply can’t cope – then why not pay us a visit at Stone and Chrome? Our Camberley kitchen and bathroom showroom features many stunning examples of our work and is an ideal environment to inspire you and help to bring your kitchen dreams to life.
Just think how wonderful it would be next Easter to be entertaining family and friends in your brand new Stone and Chrome kitchen: that would be your guarantee of Easy Easter Entertaining!