This year was unusual for us.
We celebrated a lovely Easter Sunday dinner on . . . Saturday night! I was originally planning on having a Sunday dinner, but then my sister-in-law pointed out that people would have to leave so early, or couldn’t be there at all due to the travel time needed to be back home for work on Monday morning. I thought this solution was genius. It accommodated some of our guests and worked out so well. I think I might do this every year! Last year I complained about Easter Monday not being a true holiday so I’ll just go at it from the other end and celebrate our Easter dinner on Saturday!
An added benefit for us hosts was that this left Sunday to be truly a day to relax, take a walk in the park, and enjoy leisure time. It was a gift!
The dinner I made, I must say, turned out really, really well. After a workout in the gym on Saturday, I got started on prepping all the vegetables, enlisting my husband to help. As long as I didn’t balk at listening to the baseball game, he was willing to be an able sous chef.
Vegetables that cooked with the elephant beans.
There were 10 of us. We started with an asparagus soup topped with crème fraiche and snipped chives – a recipe from the HayDay Country Market cookbook. This soup was delicious, however I must confess that when I was pureeing it, I had my doubts, as it smelled just awful – like Del Monte canned asparagus – eew! I was near gagging and then thinking, how could I possibly serve this? And by that time, it was too late to throw it out and make something new. Fortunately, the smell didn’t last and the soup tasted delicious – whew!
Our main course was a delicious 10 lb. organic, free range, no nitrate ham from Herondale Farms in upstate New York and it was amazing!! Just look at this beauty. My glaze was a homemade mustard, honey, rum and cloves number, no sticky pineapple and awful cherries for me! This type of ham almost looks like a fresh ham, because there are no dyes to make it pink, but it is smoked. It is so different and so good!!
Here’s the full dinner plate: the ham, chrzan (our Polish red beets and horseradish dish), Greek elephant beans baked in a tomato sauce that were so creamy and good (I’ll have to make that again and measure, so I can give you the recipe) and sauteed spinach with garlic. It was certainly colorful!
We ended the meal with this totally yummy sour cream topped cheesecake – an Amanda Hesser recipe that was in the New York Times years ago, with fresh figs and raspberries on the side.
A totally satisfying, delicious dinner! But what always happens at these big dinner parties is that I’m rushing and take crappy pictures or forget to take them at all! With all the excitement and all the people, it’s just not foremost in my mind, so I apologize for that.
As I said before, our big bonus was a totally enjoyable, lazy Sunday with a walk down to Central Park drinking in the sunshine and sights.
Aren’t they just so cute?
Gardening in gorgeous weather
My favorite Thanksgiving stuffing
Polenta
Meatloaf
Spinach salad with dates & almonds
Oh, Mary, what a beautiful feast! The dinner plate looks to die for. About “chrzan” (horseradish) – it was on our Easter (breakfast) table as well and we did eat it white cooked sausage! 🙂 ela
Thank you Ela!! We also had the tiny bit of leftover chrzan with our cooked white sausage for breakfast in the morning! Zach’s girlfriend, Agata, brought us some from Greenpoint, Brooklyn and it was delicious!!! Hope you had a great Easter!
Great meal. I love that picture of the vegetables.
Thanks Rosemary. All the veggies were just lying out there, air drying and I thought it looked so pretty too!
Sounds like you had a perfect weekend! Great meal and then a leisurely Sunday!
Coffee and Crumpets recently posted…Apple and Rhubarb Galette
It really was perfect! Hope yours was great too!!
With our adult children all moving away to other states, we are learning to change what we “usually” do on holidays.
This year for Easter we took a drive and breathed in the fresh air and saw all kinds of new sites. We enjoyed a wonderful picnic instead of our usual formal Easter meal.
Glad we are in this together. So happy you shared how your usual holiday was changed up a bit, but just as lovely. Your meal looked wonderful and you tickled my fancy with the words “fresh figs”. oh la la….my favorite.
Happy Easter, Happy Spring. Thanks for sharing how good life can be, even when we make little adjustments.
Daleen recently posted…may I borrow your handkercheif?
How nice!! :)))) Thanks for sharing Daleen!!
Happy Easter. Thanks for sharing a great post. I look forward to reading more of your blog posts. I love your photos. Emma xx
Thanks Emma!! So glad you stopped by!
What an impressing feast! Whoever joined your Easter dinner are the lucky people. I can tell how good the ham tastes. Love the plate setting, too!
Holly | Beyond Kimchee recently posted…Coconut Cream Pie
Thanks Holly!! The ham was amazing!!
What a lovely dinner, how nice to do on Saturday and have all day Sunday to relax and do whatever you want. That ham looks amazing, do they ship?
apuginthekitchen recently posted…Happy Easter
It really was great, Suzanne!! Herondale does ship – here’s their site: http://herondalefarm.com/
I just checked it out and they do sell a boneless ham online but you should call them and I’m sure they’d accommodate you!
what a yummy dinner! i’ve noticed that any time i’ve made asparagus soup i’ve had that temporary smell issue, but then things mellow out and it tastes good after all.
Jordan recently posted…I’ll take my bread on the rocks, please.
I was freaking out when that happened Jordan!
I’m glad to hear I wasn’t alone!
Lovely dinner. I’ll have to try that cheesecake.
Jovina Coughlin recently posted…Cooking Shellfish
The cheese cake is a real winner, Jovina! I don’t make any other now.
That was an incredible dinner! And, your photos are beautiful. I have not heard of elephant beans but I think they may be the huge beans in the deli section that are shaped a little like a lima bean?
Yes! Those are elephant beans – and they’re super creamy – you want to just sink right into them!
What a feast!!! And I love the idea of having Easter dinner on Saturday and then having a day to relax. Sounds heavenly!!!
PS I’m making note of that brand of ham for next year. Thanks!!!
Liz recently posted…Green as Spring Veal Stew #FrenchFridayswithDorie
Thanks Liz!! It was a feast! Here’s where to get the ham – http://herondalefarm.com/
What a spectacularly festive meal! Wow and that ham just looks so succulent!
afracooking recently posted…Easter Braided Bread
Thanks Afra!! It was delish!!
What a lovely Easter ‘Sunday’. That’s a beautiful menu. I love the sound of your no-nitrate ham. I tried to buy one at Christmas-time but left ordering it until too late and all were sold out. They are definitely so much better than those others. Central Park looks gorgeous in Spring xx
You definitely can’t wait on ordering these things these days Charlie! Hope you had a nice Easter!!
Looks like you had a lovely Easter! I miss those giant ham hocks so much — yours has me drooooling!
Francesca recently posted…Cannelinni, Spinach + Sausage Soup
:))) Thanks Francesca!
An excellent pairing with the ham would be a Southern Rhone red from Vacqueyras. Xavier is an excellent producer and should be relatively easy to find.
Ringo recently posted…The Dock – Fine Dining in Newport Beach, CA
Wonderful!! Thank you!!
Wow what a delicious looking meal. Everything looks so flavorful. That asparagus soup is so smooth! Just lovely.
Thanks Amanda!! It was yummy!
That ham is a beauty! I love the idea of celebrating Easter on Saturday. Whenever there’s a 3 day holiday with Monday being the designated holiday (like Memorial Day), we always prefer celebrating on Sunday rather than Monday — so we have time just to relax on the holiday itself. Fun post — thanks.
Totally – I think we’re going to keep this one a tradition!! Hope you had a nice Easter, John!