Seasonal Sundays (Week 17) Easter

Wait! Isn't it Saturday, not Sunday?! It is! I'm sharing this week's recipe collection a day early, just in case some of you might still welcome last-minute Easter ideas (plus lots of ideas for the week to come) and for any of us who have special plans tomorrow, Easter Sunday, that are all about life up close and personal in the real world and, um, "socially distanced" from email and all things digital.

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

Isn't it just lovely when Easter falls in the middle of April? Forget nixing daylight savings time. Let's just declare that from here on, Easter will always fall on the third Sunday in April, and while we're at it, that Thanksgiving will move from some random Thursday in November to the second weekend in October.

While we're at it, perhaps world peace?

Here's wishing everyone good weekends! As ever, thank you for inviting my recipes into your InBox and kitchen ...

About the Photo By Popular Request, a Little Insight into the Top Image: These are the works of art called pysanky, Ukrainian eggs. They're super-hard to create! You start by applying wax to the parts of the design that will stay white, then dip the egg into the lightest dye, say pale yellow. Then you apply wax to the areas that will remain pale yellow. Then you dip the egg into the next lightest color, let's say pale green. Then you apply wax to the areas that will remain pale green. And so on ... one layer of wax and color after another.

And just look at the intricacy of the designs! When I was a kid, I tried a few designs at the Ukrainian Pavillion during Folklorama in Winnipeg. Even simple designs force your brain to think inside out, upside down and back to forward. #DidNotCompute

---

---

PICK ONE

Pick One is for those of us overwhelmed by life's unending choices. If that resonates, then check out this one recipe and then call it a day. It's one that I think could make the most difference, the one I hope will become a regular in your kitchen, as it is in mine.

• THE RECIPE Ham & Beans How to make Ham & Beans with a leftover ham bone.
• WHY THIS, WHY NOW? The best thing about an Easter ham? The bone! And Ham & Beans a day or two later.

What's New?!

Wondering about a recipe from the last while? Check Recent Recipes from Kitchen Parade and Recent Vegetable Recipes from A Veggie Venture.

• THE RECIPE Sugar Cookie Bars Bake, frost and sprinkle all at once.
• ANOTHER TAKE No-Chill Cutout Sugar Cookies Just mix and roll, no need to wait.

Compliments!

• "My family loves this recipe from A Veggie Venture." ~ 'becca at An Earthling's Guide to Loving Lentils
• THE RECIPE Slow Cooker Vegetarian Lentil Sloppy Joes A little bit spicy, many rave reviews.
• ANOTHER TAKE Minnesota Sloppy Joes Sloppy joes made from scratch in the crockpot.

Our Easter Brunch Menu

We'll be just six and the weather promises to be cold and wet so all those visions of Easter baskets carried into green fields are ... not to be this year ... and still better than my childhood memories of winter coats, even snow, on Easter Sunday in northern Minnesota.

But we shan't starve ... since it's so long since we've gathered for brunch, it's easy to return to family favorites plus a few new recipes I've been working on.

What's on your menu? Is it fixed, yet? If not, maybe these recipes will spark your imagination ...

Easter Brunch 2022
PopPop's Famous Bacon
Easy Green Chile Egg Casserole
My Guacamole &
Best Quick Tomato Salsa (Red Salsa)
Mexican Fruit Salad
Microwave Asparagus
Savory Cornbread Muffins

Chocolate Waffles with Vanilla Ice Cream
Maple Syrup & Fresh Strawberry Sauce

• THE RECIPE Easy Green Chile Egg Casserole No bread! Just eggs, green chiles, bits of cheese and a surprising ingredient, cottage cheese.
• ANOTHER TAKE Easy Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole Just eggs, hash browns, salsa, cheese. Then adapt!

• THE RECIPE My Guacamole Restaurant-style guacamole, our house recipe.
• ANOTHER TAKE Homemade Guacamole with Tomatillos

• THE RECIPE Best Quick Tomato Salsa (Red Salsa) For chips, tacos, burritos, eggs & more
• ANOTHER TAKE Green Chile Sauce (Salsa Verde) New Mexico-style salsa verde

• THE RECIPE Mexican Fruit Salad A light and simple fruit salad with a surprising mix of spices and fruits.
• ANOTHER TAKE Eloisa's Jicama Salad Bright with orange.

• THE RECIPE How to Microwave Asparagus
• ANOTHER TAKE How to Cook Artichokes in the Microwave

• THE RECIPE Savory Cornbread Muffins Cornmeal muffins spiked with chili powder, a little jalapeño and red pepper.
• ANOTHER TAKE Cornmeal Muffins with Apple Studded, garnished with fresh apple.<

April 20: A Very Special Birthday & National Banana Day

This week, my sister Adanna celebrates one of those pesky "significant" milestone birthdays. I'll be singing from afar again this year but let me shout from the internet mountaintops that I couldn't ask for more in the "awesome sister" department.

I'm so proud of my sister.

She's whip smart. She's funny. She's good at everything she tackles. She slams the door on life's hard knocks. She sees a problem and instantly imagines Plan A, B, C, D, E, F, G ... Z solutions. She encourages and nudges with equal gentleness and conviction. In difficult moments, she always knows just the right thing to say, on the spot, in the moment. She shows up, she pitches in. She acts out of love, even when it's not always easy to accept. She makes great sacrifice to mother all of us she loves most. The years when things were hard with our dad (it's been almost a year now ...), we spent countless hours on the phone, in person, working through it all. She made me an "Auntie Al" two times over, some of my most treasured memories involve her two boys, now young men with their own Littles. Through her husband, she gifted me the "brother" we never had.

There's no one who knows me more, understands me better. I may be the "big" sister but I've always-always looked up to my sister, benefited from her wisdom, healed from her tender nursing.

I'm so grateful that you are my sister, my friend, my confidant, my champion, my sounding board, my seatmate on this tourbus called life.

I love you, 80KD. Thank you for all who you are ...

For everyone else reading, thank you for indulging my personal tribute.

But there's a food angle, there really is!

What do my sister's birthday and bananas have in common?

Adanna and her husband are recent converts to "nice cream" – that's the "ice cream" you make by throwing frozen bananas into a food processor. You don't love this stuff because it's dairy-free and sugar-free, although it is. You love it just because it's da** good!

So I'd thought I'd share three favorite banana recipes.

In honor of Adanna, the first two are family recipes, the Banana Nut Cake our mom made for "treats" for the staff at my dad's newspaper on Wednesdays when that week's paper was "put to bed," as they'd say and the Banana Cream Pie that was high on our dad's list of favorite pies.

And the third recipe is mine. I first made it back when both Adanna and I lived in Texas. We dubbed it "Crisis Banana Bread" because as I recall, several bad things came to a fore, among them burying her beloved cat in my yard there in north Dallas.

• THE RECIPE Banana Nut Cake with Caramel Frosting A special-occasion cake yet simple to make.
• ANOTHER TAKE Easy-Easy Chocolate Sheet Cake Dark, moist and chocolate-y, even two or three days after baking. Fun sprinkles?!

• THE RECIPE Banana Cream Pudding For pie, parfaits, pavlova and even (yummm) plain.
• ANOTHER TAKE Lemon Meringue Pie Sunny slivers of the lemony classic.

• THE RECIPE Cheery Cherry Banana Bread My first and favorite recipe for banana bread.
• ANOTHER TAKE Shhh Banana Bread Delicious, low-fat banana bread.

Lunch at the Kitchen Table

• THE RECIPE Cream of Celery Soup Way more than the sum of its parts.
• ANOTHER TAKE Laura's Healthy Carrot Soup Creamy without a drop of cream.

The Dinner Bell

Seven days a week, 52 weeks a year, the dinner bell rings. If we're gonna eat, somebody's gotta cook, some nights fuel, some nights a feast. Let's make it good, a welcome end to our days.

• THE RECIPE Moroccan Chicken A one-pot stew simmered with eggplant and tomato perfumed with Moroccan spices.
• ANOTHER TAKE Spiced Chicken Tagine with Roasted Cauliflower A one-pot supper with warm spices.

• THE RECIPE Perfect Thick Pork Chops Turn out juicy, perfectly cooked meat every time.
• ANOTHER TAKE Perfect Lamb Chops How to cook lamb chops perfectly each and every time.

• THE RECIPE Marinated Tofu Stir-Fry Just add frozen stir-fy vegetables for a quick supper.
• ANOTHER TAKE Ugly But Delicous Tofu

Good to Know

• NO TIME TO READ? How I Read 4X More This Year Than Last What I gave up, how I read so much, what I read.
• BOOK CLUB BOOK IDEAS My Reading Group's Book List since 1994!

Put an Egg on Top aka "How About Eggs for Dinner?"

Why should breakfast get all the eggs?! If eggs for dinner were a club, I'd be president, chief marketing officer, resident evangelist, public advocate and ... hey, wanna join my club? Start here!

• THE RECIPE Ham & Eggs with Leftover Ham A hearty breakfast for one or two or a crowd.
• ANOTHER TAKE Ham & Beans How to make Ham & Beans with a leftover ham bone.

Something New to You? A Challenge!

It's one thing to know what we like. It's another to get caught in a rut of repetition. Every so often, I may offer a challenge to try something that just might be new. The challenge is yours to accept – or y'know, not – but I hope to pique your palate!

• THE RECIPE Seven-Layer Strawberry Salad with Homemade Poppy Seed Dressing
• ANOTHER TAKE Classic Seven Layer Salad

Savoring Sweet Potatoes: A Challenge

So usually my "challenges" are, well, a challenge, an undertaking, an endeavor, a project. But here? For a few weeks, I hope you'll throw a few sweet potatoes onto your grocery list, knowing there'll be a simple recipe to tackle. Who's game?!

• THE RECIPE Vegetable Chili with Sweet Potatoes & Chipotle
• ANOTHER TAKE Chocolate Chili My long-time recipe, meaty and full of spices and a touch of chocolate.

Meal Prep

• THE RECIPE Easy-Easy Chocolate Sheet Cake Dark, moist and chocolate-y, even two or three days after baking. Fun sprinkles?!
• ANOTHER TAKE Chocolate Cinnamon Whipped Cream Cake Moist layers plus a fabulous whipped cream (chocolate, people!) frosting!

This Week's Soup

• THE RECIPE Scandinavian Split-Pea Soup Traditional on Tuesdays, without fail.
• ANOTHER TAKE Split-Pea Soup with Sausage & Kale A classic split pea soup recipe made extra-hearty.

Finnish Food

• THE RECIPE Simple Grilled Salmon How to grill salmon, simply, sumptuously.
• Roasted Salmon & Asparagus The original sheetpan supper.

Lookin' for Love

We're all proud of our best recipes that family and friends (and the Internet!) just love. But what about the recipes we love but are, ahem, so far under-appreciated? This recipe is just that, it could use a little extra love!

• THE RECIPE Plant Sale Soup Hearty, heart-warming hamburger soup.
  
• ANOTHER TAKE Hamburger Soup A hearty soup with chunks of meat and a cornucopia of bright-colored vegetables.

• THE RECIPE Simple Zucchini Ribbon Salad For extra tenderness, use small, young summer squash.
• ANOTHER TAKE Zucchini & Carrot Ribbons A quick sauté and pretty jumble.

Most Useful Recipes, Just One Per Year

When a blogger loves every single one of her published recipes, how in the world does she pick just one favorite? It's stunning, honestly, how each year one Kitchen Parade recipe stands out from all the others that year for sheer usefulness. So that's why I created this collection of best recipes, just one per year, Best-Ever “Most Useful” Recipes 2002 – Present, just one recipe per year from Kitchen Parade. Here's a sample.

• THE RECIPE Laura's Healthy Carrot Soup Creamy without a drop of cream.
• ANOTHER TAKE Paleo Carrot Soup Quiet-inducing, spoon-clinking good.

PS Who's noticed? I'm big on highlighting "usefulness". To mark A Veggie Venture's 15th anniversary in 2020, I took a hard look at the first 365 vegetable recipes from the first year to select just 15 which, all these many years and recipes later, remain ever so useful. You'll want to dig into this collection, 15 Favorite Vegetable Recipes, Still Useful After 15 Years.

Soups & Salads Especially for April

For seasonal cooks, switching seasons happens gradually, over the course of a few weeks. Here in the Midwest, it's still definitely "early spring" so the recipes cross between soups that warm us up on those chilly days and salads that call when it's easy to stretch an outdoor meal into evening. So what sounds good depends on the day, yes? That's why I spent a year gathering all of A Veggie Venture's best soup and salad recipes into easy-to-scan month-by-month collections.

Dig into Seasonal Soup & Salad Recipes for April, so many ideas!

Here's a sample!

• THE RECIPE Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing
• ANOTHER TAKE My Everyday Creamy Herb Salad Dressing Never the same twice.

Feeding a Sugar-Conscious Sweet Tooth

You too? We're cutting back on sweets without demonizing dessert, usually with smaller batches, smaller servings, shareable desserts or fruit desserts in addition to limiting frequency. But some times?

• THE RECIPE Old-Fashioned Black Walnut Chocolate Cake A true classic, moist and earthy, studded with black walnuts.
• ANOTHER TAKE Black Walnut Bread A loaf of quick bread, bright with lemon and smoky with black walnuts.

Trending

My Top 10 Recipes are predictable, hello Should Cooked Pork Be Pink? and (Sloooow) Baked Potatoes (How Long to Bake a Baked Potato). But every week, seasonal recipes catch the internet's attention and start to trend.

• THE RECIPE Refrigerator Pickled Beets No canning required!
• THEN JAZZ 'EM UP Pickled Beet Salad with Fresh Blueberries & Mint

• THE RECIPE World's Best Green Bean Casserole Yesterday's comfort food made fresh.
• IT'S LIFE-CHANGING Happy Thanksgiving from the Green Bean Casserole Lady: A Love Story
• ANOTHER TAKE Make-Ahead Fresh Green Bean Casserole America’s favorite casserole, fresh & convenient both.

Don't Be a Stranger ...

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com, dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, tuck a question into a plastic Easter egg, whatever.

---

Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. When you make my recipes, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below or better still, on the specific recipe's page.

---

© Copyright Kitchen Parade
2022