The Easter menu that Karen Burns-Booth of Lavender & Lovage has created has a distinctive “Gallic” flair. Leg of lamb slow roasted in red wine with a mustard and garlic crust and lots of fresh herbs served with seasonal vegetables. The dessert is simplicity itself with little Pots au Chocolats decorated with freshly whipped cream and mini chocolate eggs and chocolate bunnies though there’s plenty of scope to choose your own decorations.
Creating an Easter Menu with a French flavour… Karen says:
I roasted the vegetables and the lamb in separate trays until they were nearly cooked and then I sat the lamb on top of the veggies for the last half an hour of cooking, so I could use the lamb juices and make some gravy. The little chocolate pots can be made the day before if time is tight and then you can add the cream and decorate them just before serving…..the whole meal is so easy to cook, making sure you have time to help hunt for Easter eggs in the garden, or have a relaxing Sunday...
French Flavour Easter Menu
Easter in France
Eggs are not delivered in France by Easter Bunnies as they are in other countries but by bells with wings – les cloches Volant! Except in the region of Alsace where they do have bunnies – they also have an extra day’s holiday at Easter thanks to their German heritage (see Public holidays for more information). The rest of France waits for the flying winged bells to do their rounds.
The history of this legend goes back many centuries when the Catholic Authorities required that churches not ring their bells between Easter and the preceding Thursday. A story grew that the bells had flown to Rome – they would take the misery and grief of those mourning the crucifixion of Jesus. Children were told the bells would see the Pope who would bless them. The bells then collect chocolate eggs and other goodies for Easter, return to their churches and bell towers and drop the goodies from the sky on Easter Sunday morning on the way. Even today, Church bells don’t ring in France from Good Friday to Easter Sunday morning, when they peel out in joyful tones to announce the resurrection of Christ.
Over the page for the menus...