Organic Easter this Spring

Spring has begun! Fresh, premium ingredients are desired by consumers when shopping for a numerous range of products.   Quality items have become more readily available and often, even surprisingly affordable. The fun can begin.  Transition during the change of seasons, especially into Spring (yes- it is here), brings with it a reminder of the variety of bountiful seasonal produce. Spring marks an opportunity to easily embrace “the healthy” found in aisles and at markets, but there are more routes to truly embody fresh, natural and premium product scouring.  Easter is the perfect holiday to depict the select food, craft, and household products easy to adapt to during the awakening Spring.

photo credit: etsy

Pastels, perennials, and pie illustrate Easter. Organic products and food are more frequently becoming the top choice in many categories, yet not all switches to the natural version are attainable whether due to cost or demand. The eco-friendly and healthier options are actually more accessible than the preconceived notion surrounding the steadfast trend.  

Dying Easter eggs is a tradition, instead of the chemical laden box dyes use the following suggestions for natural produce egg dye decorating that turn eggs amazing colors!

Photo credit: serious eats

Beet Juice (boiled eggs can go right into a jar of fresh beets for a couple hours).

Gently warm fresh berries on a stove top or double boiler then crush berries in a strainer over a dish to extract the juice.  Add ¼ cup of water and 2 tablespoons of white vinegar to each extracted juice.

Raspberry juice.  Intense pink!

Blueberries/blackberries: same as above, but blue!

Spinach (truly, works) : boil fresh spinach leaves then extract juice as above.  

Carrots: boil carrots in as little water as possible and use the marigold colored water for dye, add vinegar as above.

Easter flowers/plants are customary to bring to households hosting the holiday gathering.  This year, select perennials from a local farm stand or take it a step further and give the gift of an herb garden starter.  Supply handwritten instructions for organic garden care if in possession of a green thumb or direct to Organic Gardening for herb sustaining tips.  Basil and mint are exceptional gifts.

Easter Pie, not of the dessert variety but a savory Italian Easter Pie filled with meats and cheeses is typically made on Good Friday and served on Easter Sunday.  For more on Easter pies visit the 2013 Easter post be sure to make the pie at home with the freshest, quality ingredients sourced from Italian specialty stores.  Actual dessert? Simple, fresh, premium berries or homemade berry pie with a scoop of gelato harmoniously blend with the natural options used to celebrate this Easter and Spring.

Italian meat selections used for traditional Easter Pie.

Enjoy a fresh approach. Happy Easter and Welcome, Spring! How will you incorporate organic in Easter this Spring?

Easter Sunday

Vatican City photo courtesy of ds-lands.com

The holiday of new beginnings could not be more appropriately timed with the two words, "Habemus Papam", delivered from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Easter is a holiday to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and to spread universal joy for our salvation. The world's Catholic community is filled with hope and a renewed ambition for faith through the installation of Pope Francis. Easter Sunday should be celebrated with extra special attention through traditional Italian food served given all of the recent events in Vatican City.

While certainly it is not a requirement to be Catholic or Italian to feast on the decadent Italian Easter Pie, known as Pizzagaina, a pie filled to the maximum with various Italian meats and cheeses served on Easter Sunday is meant to be enjoyed by all. The Easter Pie is a perfect community dish, for its massive size and for its palatable components. There are multiple versions of the Italian Easter Pie, even sweet variations, mostly handed down within families (particularly from Nonna- grandmother in Italian), with a recipe to their meat and cheese liking. For a lovely and authentic rendition follow the Pizzagaina recipe here on Always Order Dessert, which also provides suggestions for adapting the recipe to taste preference and accessibility. 
Easter has been represented with candy, eggs, and bunnies in the modern versions of celebration, but can be wrangled back to traditional with another nod to Italy by serving gelato. Spring, new growth, and a fresh attitude towards an Easter Sunday menu align with serving a simple scoop of gelato to guests. For the theme and thrill that children have come to experience in connection to holidays, gelato in the form of an Easter egg shaped cake can be served to adhere to those visions. Spend Easter Sunday with an expanded guest list and traditional Italian menu components and dive into sharing the community celebration that is well deserved this year.

A Pino Gelato Easter Cake