Easter

Salade niçoise is traditionally a composition of tender seasonal lettuces, green beans, baby potatoes, olives, and the best-quality tuna packed in olive oil. This version features tuna steaks grilled perfectly, then broken into chunks. You can substitute your favorite seasonal vegetables if you choose. This salad should not be chilled.

This lamb dish is saturated with the bold flavors of Provence—rosemary, thyme, garlic, olives, and capers. First the lamb is seared with broken sprigs of rosemary and thyme to infuse the meat with smoky, eucalyptus notes. Then it’s buried under plenty of garlic and herbs, roasted in the oven until medium-rare, and served with a sweet and creamy flageolet gratin, roasted radicchio, and black olive tapenade.

Pork loin is a lean, delicate cut of meat compared to, say, a big, fatty chop, and this recipe is all about maximizing its taste and preserving its moisture. Applying the mustard marinade twice and roasting slowly with butter and herbs will simultaneously infuse the meat with complex flavor and help protect its precious internal juices. It’s very important to use a roasting rack, which helps the air circulate, resulting in even cooking.

This dish proves my quirky theory that green and orange foods go together. Think about it: peas and carrots, oranges and asparagus, winter squash and arugula. Saffron, a beautiful rusty orange, pairs perfectly with spring’s green bounty. Saffron has been used as a flavoring and coloring agent (even as hair dye!) since ancient Egyptian times. The saffron thread is actually the stigma (part of the female reproductive organ) of the saffron crocus. Each one must be handpicked from the flower, which accounts for saffron’s outrageous price. Fortunately, a little goes a long way. Use it with a light hand, as too much saffron can easily overwhelm a dish. Buy whole threads, not powder, and store them in a cool, dark place. Buy only a little saffron at a time, so you’ll be able to use all of it while it’s still fresh.

Traditionally served at an Easter brunch or dinner, this pie is also a great brunch option on any day of the year. There’s no doubt that this pie is a full-size meal, with its combination of a creamy ricotta base and all the meat your heart desires. There are as many variations of this recipe as there are Italian families; the following is my favorite combination. Feel free to mix and match meats and cheeses according to your preferences.

I like to make this quiche in late spring, when asparagus is at its prime. When selecting asparagus, look for straight, firm, bright green stalks with deep green or purple tips. The fresher, the better, so purchase your asparagus as close as possible to the time you plan to make the quiche.

I’m a sucker for ham and brie sandwiches, thus the inspiration for this dish. This quiche is particularly rich and filling, combining the smoky flavor of ham with the creamy texture of brie. For best results, when selecting your cheese, look for a ripe brie that is less firm and somewhat mottled in appearance.

This pie is one of those treats you have to enjoy while the weather is warm because rhubarb is in season only from April to September. When selecting rhubarb, look for firm, glossy stalks. Be sure to cut off all of the leaves of a rhubarb stalk—they are toxic to humans. Wash the rhubarb stalk well and then peel the stringy skin to get to the core of this celerylike vegetable. Try this pie with the Cinnamon Sugar Crumb Topping (page 12) for a nice contrast to rhubarb’s naturally tart taste.

This savory Italian pastry is traditionally served on Easter Sunday, but it is delicious any time of year. If you want to drain the ricotta, place it in a sieve lined with cheesecloth for about an hour; discard the liquid before proceeding.

The addition of grated Parmesan cheese makes this savory piecrust even more rich.

This versatile cobbler can be baked in ramekins, for single servings, or prepared in a larger dish to feed a wide range of appetites.

Martha loves the combination of fluffy white frosting and fresh coconut curls that adorn this cake. You can also top the cake with more sweetened or unsweetened coconut, toasted or not. If you don’t have square cake pans, use 9-inch round ones; the baking time will be the same.

Marzipan comes in plastic-wrapped seven-ounce logs and is available in baking-supply shops and most supermarkets. If you find the marzipan too sticky to shape, dust the work surface with a bit of confectioners’ sugar. If you’re preparing the Carrot-Ginger Layer Cake, make slightly larger carrots.

Consider making decorative cupcakes instead of (or to go along with) traditional dyed eggs for Easter this year. The patterns are very simple to produce: Various pastel colors of royal icing are piped onto a cupcake, then quickly swirled or dragged with a toothpick. Modify the color scheme to make cupcakes for other holidays—red and green for Christmas, for example, or black and orange for Halloween.

Springerle molds, originally from Germany, are used to form the pure white, spice-laden Christmas cookies of the same name. Yet the wooden molds are also useful for shaping rolled fondant into cupcake toppers in dozens of finely detailed designs, including Easter bunnies. You’ll need to use a springerle mold with a design that is three inches or smaller. Look for the molds from specialty retailers online, or see Sources, page 342. Fondant mimics the color of traditional springerle cookies, but if you can’t find it, use marzipan instead; although it is not white, you can tint it a desired shade with gel-paste food color (see instructions on page 299).

John Barricelli, an excellent baker, television host, and a longtime friend of Martha’s, learned to make this Italian grain pie, known as pastiera, from his grandfather. The wheat berries are fitting for the Easter holiday, as they symbolize rebirth and renewal. The grains get soaked in water overnight before they are cooked in milk. Afterward, they are mixed with ricotta cheese and pastry cream to make an exceptionally delicious filling. John sells the pies—and many other wonderful baked goods—at SoNo Bakery in South Norwalk, Connecticut.

This vibrant tart heralds the arrival of spring. First-of-the-season rhubarb stalks are poached in spiced brandy, then spooned over a silken citrus-and-yogurt mousse. The cornmeal crust is baked in a springform pan for extra height. You can bake the crust one day, fill with mousse the next, then chill overnight before topping and serving. The rhubarb can also be poached a day ahead and chilled separately.

Serve with Bolognese Balls (page 6)

We created these balls in honor of Easter. We won’t lie to you—they are a serious undertaking, and are without a doubt the most complicated recipe in this book. But we promise that the end result is completely worth the effort. Braising the legs with the onion and thyme brings out their incredible flavor and tenderness. Butchering the rabbit can prove a bit tricky, so visit your local butcher shop at an off-hour when the butchers have some extra time on their hands to help you. Serve with Mushroom Gravy (page 63) and Mashed Potatoes (page 79).