Celebrate Easter - Food the family will love!
Easter Lunch
Easter is a great time to gather together friends and family and enjoy the very best food and wines.
Make Sunday lunch special by following this classic menu plan – start with a fresh vegetable soup, then enjoy roast lamb and all the trimmings followed by a decadent chocolate tart. This crowd-pleasing menu serves a minimum of six people, so will be perfect if you're catering for guests or extended family.
Starter:
Spring Onion Soup
Kick off your meal with a stylish, classic springtime starter. Packed with nutritional value, this starter will be perfect for the whole family!
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 pounds spring onions (or yellow onions), trimmed and thinly sliced
2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 1/4 cups homemade or low-sodium store-bought chicken stock
2 cups water
8 pieces crisp flatbread, for serving
Preparing the soup:
Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent but not brown, about 15 minutes.
Stir in salt, stock, and water. Bring to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat, and let cool for 20 minutes. Working in batches, puree in a blender, starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, blending until soup is smooth.
Divide soup among 4 bowls, drizzle with oil, and serve with flatbread on the side.
That’s all the preparation needed for this delicious soup!
Main:
Roast Lamb with rosemary & garlic:
Make traditional spring lamb the centrepiece of your celebratory lunch. This simple and succulent roast leg is studded with rosemary and garlic for a real flavour boost. If you have time, stud the lamb a day in advance to allow the herbs to really permeate the meat.
Ingredients
1 large leg of lamb with bone in (about 2.5kg)
2 bulbs of garlic
a few sprigs of rosemary
100ml olive oil
1 tbsp flaky sea salt
3 onions, roughly chopped
5 carrots, sliced in half lengthways
500ml chicken stock - use gluten-free stock if required
2 tsp cornflour
Preparing the main course:
Make small incisions all over the lamb. Peel and halve 10 garlic cloves, then insert the garlic pieces into the incisions. Break off little pieces of rosemary and insert these into the remaining holes. Rub all over with a little of the oil and season with the sea salt.
Sit the lamb on a wire rack in a roasting tray and leave at room temperature for about 1 hour before roasting, so it will cook evenly.
Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. Put the onions and carrots into the bottom of the roasting tray (under the lamb on its rack) with the rest of the olive oil, remaining unpeeled garlic cloves and a few rosemary sprigs. Brown the lamb in the oven for 15 minutes, then turn the temperature down to 180°C, fan 160°C, gas 4. Roast for a further 11⁄2 hours, or depending on how you like your lamb cooked. The best way to tell if the meat is cooked is by inserting a roasting fork into the centre of the meat, and then lightly place the fork onto your upper lip or your inner wrist. It should be a little hotter than your own body temperature. For well-done, you will need to roast it for around 21⁄2 hours. Remove the lamb from the oven and leave to rest for 10-15 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the gravy. Spoon off the excess fat then place the roasting tray on the hob and colour the vegetables if they are not yet caramelised. Add the chicken stock, bring to a simmer, and season. Mix the cornflour with a little cold water, then whisk into the gravy and add any resting juices from the lamb. Simmer for a few minutes, pressing the vegetables into the stock to extract all of their flavour. Pass through a sieve into a pan and keep warm until you are ready to serve.
Just like that, your main course is ready to be served. Your guests will appreciate the effort of a home-cooked meal, and the compliments will be flooding in!
Dessert:
Chocolate Tart
End your lunch with a decadent sweet treat, bound to impress the guests. This comforting yet luxurious dessert will earn smiles from everyone!
Ingredients:
300 ml double cream
2 level tablespoons caster sugar
400 g quality dark chocolate, (70%)
90 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
100 ml milk
1 tart shell, baked blind
quality cocoa powder, for dusting
Preparation of the tart:
Place the double cream, sugar and a tiny pinch of sea salt in a pan and bring to the boil.
Break up the chocolate.
As soon as the mixture has boiled, remove from the heat and add the butter and chocolate. Stir until it has completely melted. Allow the mixture to cool slightly, stirring in the cold milk until smooth and shiny.
Sometimes this mixture looks like it has split. Allow to cool down a bit more and whisk in a little extra cold milk until smooth.
Scrape all the mixture into the cooked and cooled pastry shell with a spatula.
Shake the tart to even it out and allow to cool for around 1 to 2 hours until it is at room temperature. Dust with the cocoa powder.
Ultimately the pastry should be short and crisp and the filling should be smooth and cut like butter.
The presence of dessert on the menu makes us feel satisfied after a meal, and compensates for low blood sugar. The desire to improve your mood by ingesting sugar can also be a factor. Sweet snacks increase our production of the so-called hormone of happiness.