Easy-on-the-Budget Easter Dinner
The flavors and foods associated with Easter—ham, lamb, eggs, asparagus, strawberries—can make a hole in the food budget when times are tough. The solution is to look carefully for specials, stretch the use of pricey ingredients and look for a delicious new menu, like this one—easy on the cooks in the family, easy on the food budget.
Make It Special
Tables with Style
- Let a platter of Deviled Eggs be your centerpiece. Nestle them is colorful cabbage or kale leaves on a pretty platter and garnish them with herb sprig, radish or red onion slice. Take care with the with the “two hour” rule.
- Blooming garden annuals or herb plants in various shades of color placed in a basket surrounded with colorful tissue or moss will find a new home in deck or patio pots after Easter. That’s thinking ahead.
- Use a collection to decorate the table. Look around for what’s in your home. A couple of ceramic rabbits or birds with a small houseplant placed on a pretty mat or table runner can be all that’s needed.
Change the Food Game This Year
- Cut the cost of dinner out by cooking a good meal at home, even while having the pleasure of restaurant favorites like our Cheese-Garlic Biscuits!
- Gardening this year? Fresh greens from the garden or farmers’ market make Spinach Ambrosia and Garden Salad with Honey French Dressing easy and economical choices.
- When one of your guests asks what they can bring, ask for help with the salad, a side dish or dessert in this menu. Or ask them anyway!
- Our veggie side dishes rely on dressed-up frozen vegetables, always a good value and fresh tasting to boot.
- Add an extra hearty side dish, like these, when you have family or guests with big appetites:
- Use all fresh strawberries instead of strawberries and blueberries in the Triple-Berry Angel Shortcakes as they will likely be on special. Or use thawed frozen berries for fresh, if they are less costly.
- Make use of the hard-cooked eggs you color this year whether in this meal or another one. See our safe-use tips and recipes. Make Deviled Eggs!
- Or forgo coloring Easter eggs and hide reusable plastic eggs filled with a few “treasures” like candies, stickers, beads or notes with promises of an activity your kids like to do with you.
- Plan some fun baking instead of an activity out or coloring eggs. You can eat the results! Here are three ideas to get you started:
Preparation Guide (use this as a general guide, skip parts if you've help coming from others)
Earlier in the Day…or the Day Before
- Bake and cool angel food cake for Triple-Berry Angel Shortcakes as directed on package. Thaw whipped topping, if used, for Whipped Cream.
- Shred carrots for Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole, if you like; store in refrigerator.
- Chill pineapple and mandarin orange segments; clean (if needed) and crisp spinach for Spinach Ambrosia (if served).
- Make Honey French Dressing; clean (if needed) and crisp romaine for Garden Salad with Honey French Dressing (if served). Chop cucumber, tomato and red onion; store in separate containers in refrigerator.
About an Hour Before Dinner
- Make and bake Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole.
About ½ Hour Before Dinner
- Bake Cheese-Garlic Biscuits.
- Make Baby Peas with Bacon and Almonds.
- Mix pie filling and berries for Triple-Berry Angel Shortcakes; whip cream (if served). Store in refrigerator.
Just Before Dinner
Just Before Dessert
- Assemble Triple-Berry Angel Shortcakes.