25 Vegetarian Easter Recipes That Your Entire Family Will Love

By Kelly Vaughan
February 20, 2020
Credit: Johnny Miller

From seasonal side salads to awe-inspiring appetizers, we've rounded up our best vegetarian recipes to make for Easter.

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Credit: Johnny Miller

Around the world, the springtime holiday of Easter is not only seen as a time of rebirth, but also a wonderful opportunity to gather with family and friends for brunch, lunch, or dinner. Whether you're hosting a small gathering or a larger bash, these vegetarian Easter recipes are sure to satisfy. Delicious dishes, like the Asparagus with Almonds, Goat Cheese, and Basil pictured here, will tempt even the carnivores in your family. The recipes highlight the season's best produce, including rhubarb, peas, asparagus, artichokes, and carrots.

Start the meal off with Snap Pea and Melted Leek Tartines, which are bite-sized, open-faced sandwiches. The zest and juice from Meyer lemons enhances the lovely fresh flavor of the vegetables and the sweet, creamy flavor of ricotta cheese. Another appetizer your entire crowd will love is our Stuffed Artichokes with Capers and Cornichons. The blossoming layers of fresh steamed artichokes are eye-catching on their own, but once your guests get a load of the salty, briny filling on the inside, they're sure to clean their plates.

When it comes to the main course, we have a couple of delicious options. Try our nutty and savory Mushroom-Gruyere Tart, or super indulgent and rich Spinach-Artichoke Cannelloni Crepes with Mustardy Cheese Sauce. Both are delicious entrées no matter the time of day, so serve them as part of your brunch spread or as a hearty dinner.

Of course, it wouldn't be an Easter celebration without dessert. We're making the most of rhubarb, which is at its peak this time of year, in two sweet recipes—a stunning Vanilla-Rhubarb Tart and a buttery, moist Rhubarb Crumb Cake. And nothing is more adorable or apt for the holiday than Martha's Easter Sugar Cookies. The pastel-tinted royal icing allows you to decorate individual cookies with polka dots, stripes, and solids (or whatever you heart desires!).

As soon as you present these vegetarian Easter recipes to your guests, they'll dig right in.

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Mushroom-Gruyere Tart

Credit: Jonathan Lovekin
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Whether you're hosting a brunch, lunch, or dinner, this rich, vegetarian tart is perfect for a crowd. Wild mushrooms are flavored with shallots, garlic, red pepper flakes, and plenty of parsley. The nutty crust will make your guests want to eat every last crumb.

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Crispy Grain Salad with Peas and Mint

Credit: Louise Hagger
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Enjoy a taste of spring with this bright green, nutritious salad. Protein-rich quinoa and millet are crisped in the oven, then tossed with four cups of tender greens like pea shoots, baby kale, and spinach, plus scallions, peas, and mint.

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Spinach-Artichoke Cannelloni Crepes with Mustardy Cheese Sauce

Credit: Lennart Weibull
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Hosting an Easter brunch? Crepes are the perfect dish to make for a crowd because you can whip up a big batch all at once. This luxurious version is sure to wow. Rich cheeses such as fontina or gouda are perfect here.

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Carrot Cake with White-Chocolate Frosting

Credit: Ngoc Minh Ngo
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It's not Easter without carrot cake! This absolutely stunning version is about as classic as it gets, with one extra sweet detail: a white chocolate and cream cheese frosting piped into a series of ruffles.

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Pea and Asparagus Salad

Credit: Armando Rafael
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This simple salad is the epitome of springtime. It makes use of two of the season's best vegetables—fresh asparagus and shelled English peas—which are tossed with fragrant mint, toasted almonds, olive oil, and rice wine vinegar.

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Snap Pea and Melted Leek Tartines

Credit: The Ingalls
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Start your Easter celebration off with these open-faced, vegetarian bites. Layered on top of thick slices of toasted rustic bread are lemon-infused ricotta, sautéed leeks, sugar snap peas, and mint leaves.

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Stuffed Artichokes with Capers and Cornichons

Credit: Lennart Weibull
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Enjoy artichokes at their peak in this briny, salty appetizer. Artichokes are steamed, then filled with a breadcrumb mixture made with garlic butter, capers, cornichons, and lemon juice. Their blooming appearance invites guests to dig right in.

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Roasted-Carrot-and-Beet Tart

Credit: Bryan Gardner
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This simple and colorful tart is perfect to serve as a vegetarian main course. The filling is made with a Hazelnut-Cilantro Chermoula, a North African sauce that's similar to pesto. It's topped with a bevy of bright roasted root vegetables.

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Carrot-and-Parsnip Souffle

Credit: Martyn Thompson
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Carrots come in two forms in this jaw-dropping soufflé. They're boiled then puréed with cooked parsnips and carrot juice for a slightly sweet, orange-hued mixture that makes this main something totally new.

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Spinach-and-Cheddar Slab Quiche

Credit: Julia Gartland
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Bright and sunny like Easter morning, this quiche is perfect to serve for brunch. We've streamlined the prep work; instead of making your own crust, use store-bought puff pastry and frozen spinach.

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Barley Risotto with Mushrooms and Dill

Credit: Sidney Bensimon
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In need of a main course to serve to vegetarian guests? This umami-filled, earthy risotto is the ultimate special occasion comfort food. Instead of onions or shallots, we're using leeks here, which are in season and softer in flavor. Chicken broth takes the place of water for even more savory flavor.

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Rhubarb Crumb Cake

Credit: Sidney Bensimon
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Make the most of rhubarb while it's in season with jams, cakes, and crumbles galore! This cake is buttery, rich, tart, and absolutely stunning to look at.

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Campanelle with Pistachio-Mint Pesto, Asparagus, and Cherry Tomatoes

Credit: Christopher Testani
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Every element of this pasta dish is an unexpected surprise in the absolute best way. We love the springtime look of bell-shaped campanelle with its petal-like edges, plus the fresh twist on traditional pesto here that is made with mint and pistachios.

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Vegan Stuffing with Mushrooms and Leeks

Credit: Bryan Gardner
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In need of a savory stuffing recipe with plenty of flavor? Here, we're using sourdough bread, which has even more flavor than a rustic or country white loaf, plus thyme, garlic, and red-pepper flakes to enhance the rich qualities of cremini mushrooms and leeks.

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Brown-Butter Sweet-Potato Gnocchi with Seeds

Credit: Paola + Murray
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A sweet and vivid twist on classic gnocchi, we're using sweet potatoes instead of russets for a main course that is sure to satisfy vegetarians and carnivores alike. Toss with pepitas, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and a sage-infused brown butter sauce for nutty flavor and texture.

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Martha's Easter Sugar Cookies

Credit: Marcus Nilsson
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Picture perfect and cute as a button, these frosted sugar cookies will make kids—and kids at heart—smile. They're a sweet treat that everyone will be able to enjoy at the end of the main meal.

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Cream of Asparagus Soup

Credit: Mike Krautter
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Bright green and super light, start Easter dinner off with this very special soup. Asparagus is blended with extra-virgin olive oil, shallots, garlic, Yukon gold potatoes, and heavy cream. Garnish with the remaining asparagus tips for a hint of the delicious flavor waiting in every bowl.

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Tender Carrots and Turnips with Mint Dressing

Credit: Yuki Sugiura
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Are there any two vegetables that say Easter more than baby carrots and baby turnips? For this recipe, they're boiled until just tender, then tossed with apricot marmalade, which helps to create a sweet glaze, plus rice vinegar, olive oil, and fresh mint leaves.

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Spring Ragout with Asparagus and Poached Eggs

Credit: The Ingalls
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Mighty green and oh so hearty, we love the comfort factor that a ragout (essentially, a stew) brings to the table. Here, chickpeas, a tomatillo mixture, asparagus, and spinach are added to a hot skillet, then are topped with poached eggs during the final few minutes until everything is heated through and super fragrant.

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Pea, Almond, and Ricotta Spread

Credit: Con Poulos
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For this bright springtime spread, almonds are pulsed in a food processor with fresh English peas, ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano, olive oil, and lemon until a creamy, consistency forms. Serve the dip alongside pita, crusty slices of bread, or spread on an open-faced sandwich.

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Vanilla-Rhubarb Tart

Credit: Con Poulos
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It's not Easter without a fabulous, seasonally-inspired dessert. We love using whole vanilla bean instead of vanilla extract because it adds even more rich flavor and sizable flecks throughout every bite of this tart. The crust is made from our favorite flaky pate brisee.

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Marinated Artichoke Hearts with Green Olives and Mozzarella

Credit: Con Poulos
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Tangy, salty, and so special, this vegetarian appetizer is a fabulous way to kick off your Easter celebration. Artichokes are at their peak during spring, so there's no better time to make this stunner of a starter for your family and friends.

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Ramp Farinata

Credit: Dana Gallagher
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A traditional unleavened pancake made from chickpea flour, the farinata originated in Genoa, Italy. Here, we're making use of ramps, which are at their peak for just a few weeks in spring; if you can't find them, use leeks or spring onions instead.

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Cauliflower Steaks with Romesco Sauce

Credit: Marcus Nilsson
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Make this restaurant-quality vegetarian entrée at home. A whole head of cauliflower is cut into thick slices and roasted until tender and golden, then plated on top of a bold red pepper, garlic, and almond-based Romesco sauce.

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