Easter recipes for vegetarians, pescatarians & carnivores

If you’re looking for recipe inspiration for Easter with the family, choose from lamb rump with mint salsa verde, salmon en croûte recipe or vegetarian alternatives for each.

Easter Sunday lunch doesn’t tend to get the same amount of attention as Christmas lunch does, but if you’ll be sitting down with family for it, why not cook to impress? Here you’ll find Easter recipe ideas with lamb and salmon, both of which can easily be turned into a vegetarian feast instead.

Pesto salmon en croûte recipe with creamed spinach

Salmon en croûte is a slightly lighter Easter dish that looks equally as impressive as the lamb — plus it’s perfect for pescatarians or anyone who doesn’t eat red meat.

Vegetarian alternative: Sauté a vegetable medley of your choosing, and then drizzle with both pesto and creme fraiche before wrapping in pastry as instructed below.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 3 white potatoes
• vegetable oil, for drizzling
• 2 x skin-on salmon fillets (around 110g each)
• 150g puff pastry
• 45g classic basil pesto
• 1 tsp nigella seeds
• 2 garlic cloves
• 15g butter
• 20g flour
• 150ml milk, plus a little more for brushing the pastry
• 120g baby leaf spinach

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C, fan 200°C, gas 7. Cut the potatoes (skins on) into bite-sized cubes and put on a baking tray. Add a generous drizzle of vegetable oil and a pinch of salt and pepper, then give it a good mix. Put the tray in the oven and cook for 20 mins or until starting to crisp.
2. Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) with a drizzle of vegetable oil over a medium heat. Once hot, add the salmon fillets to the pan, skin-side down, with a pinch of salt and pepper and cook for 2 mins on each side, until sealed but not cooked through. Carefully peel the skin off the salmon and discard it, then cut the salmon fillets in half.
3. Unroll the puff pastry and cut it into four squares. Place two salmon pieces side-by-side onto each pastry square and spoon most of the pesto over the salmon (save some pesto for later). Brush a little milk around the edges of the salmon-topped pastry square.
4. Top each salmon-topped pastry square with another pastry square and seal the open ends together by pressing the edges down with a fork to create a parcel, then add them to a baking tray and brush all over with milk. Sprinkle the parcels with the nigella seeds and put the tray in the oven for 20-25 mins or until golden and cooked through.
5. While the salmon’s cooking, peel and finely chop (or grate) the garlic. Once the potatoes are starting to crisp, remove from the oven and add the garlic. Give it another good mix then return to the oven for 4-5 mins or until the potatoes are golden and crispy.
6. To make the white sauce, melt butter in a saucepan over a medium-low heat. Once melted, add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon for 1 min or until a sandy paste forms. Add the milk gradually and whisk for 2-3 mins or until a smooth, thick sauce remains.
7. Wash the spinach, then chop roughly. Add it and the remaining pesto to the white sauce and cook for 1-2 mins more or until the spinach has wilted. Season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
8. Serve the salmon en croûte with the creamed spinach and crispy potatoes.

Lamb rump recipe for Easter with roasted crushed potatoes and mint salsa verde

The classic roast lamb and roast potato Sunday lunch gets a twist in this Easter recipe, with the addition of homemade salsa verde. This zingy condiment with a minty herb base adds brightness and a balanced flavour to your British lamb rump.

Vegetarian alternative: Swap the lamb for a Quorn Vegetarian Roast. No seasoning needed, simply follow the instructions and pop it in the oven before you start anything else, then follow the same method for the potatoes and salsa verde.

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 325g British lamb rump
• 400g waxy potatoes
• 300g cherry tomatoes
• vegetable oil, for drizzling
• 1 garlic clove
• 10g parsley
• 10g mint
• ½ tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1½ tbsp capers
• 1tsp Dijon mustard
• 15ml red wine vinegar
• 50ml olive oil
• 120g asparagus spears

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. Put the kettle on to boil and cut the potatoes in half.
2. Pour the boiling water in a saucepan, then add the potatoes. Add a pinch of salt and cook over a high heat for 15 mins (or until they are tender enough that a fork slides in and out). Once cooked, drain and return to the saucepan.
3. While the potatoes are cooking cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Then pat the lamb rump dry with kitchen towel and season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) with a drizzle of vegetable oil over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the lamb rump and cook for 4-5 mins, turning frequently, or until browned all over. Transfer to a baking tray and set the pan aside for later.
4. Push the lamb rump to one side of the tray and add the drained potatoes and cherry tomatoes. Drizzle the potatoes in vegetable oil, along with any remaining oil from the pan, and season with a generous pinch of salt. Crush the potatoes lightly with a fork and put the tray back in the oven for 20-25 mins or until the lamb is pink and blushing on the inside and the potatoes are starting to crisp.
5. While they’re roasting, make the mint salsa verde. Peel and roughly chop the garlic. Roughly chop the parsley, including the stalks, then strip the mint leaves from their stems and roughly chop. Add the garlic, parsley and mint to a food processor, along with the chilli flakes, capers, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, olive oil and a pinch of salt, and blitz until smooth.
6. When the lamb is done, transfer it to a plate, cover with foil and set aside to rest. Increase oven heat to 220°C, fan 200°C, gas 7 and return the potatoes to the oven for a further 10 mins or until golden and crisp. While the potatoes are crisping up, put the kettle on again to boil.
7. Once the kettle’s boiled, add the asparagus to a saucepan and cover with the water and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil over a high heat and cook for 4 mins or until tender. Once tender, drain.
8. Slice the rested lamb or Quorn Roast and serve it with the mint salsa verde drizzled on top with the potatoes and asparagus.

Recipes by Jordan Moore, head chef at recipe box service Gousto, then given a vegetarian alternative.