Holidays & Occasions Grandma's Favorite Easter Recipes These recipes will bring plenty of nostalgia to the Easter menu this year. By Jenna Sims Jenna Sims Jenna is a Senior Digital Editor for Southern Living and joined the team in 2014. She writes, produces, and assigns content with a focus on email growth and commerce content. She covers a range of topics in the lifestyle space from holiday gift guides to new product launches to tips for cooking with your air fryer. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on January 31, 2024 Close Photo: Photography: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox Grandma knew that it just wasn't Easter without these classic Easter recipes. While a few new recipes are always welcome to the menu, there's just some traditional Easter recipes that Southerners will always make year after year. Can you imagine if there was no Pineapple Casserole or Deviled Eggs on the table?From classic main dishes to traditional sides to homemade desserts, these are the recipes that Southern grandmothers have always prepared for Easter Sunday. 01 of 24 Classic Deviled Eggs Photography: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox The filling for this no-frills deviled egg recipe is made with just the basics: mayonnaise, mustard, and sweet pickle relish. Get The Recipe 02 of 24 Lime Gelatin And Cottage Cheese Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Grandma knows it's not a holiday in the South without at least one congealed salad on the menu. This green gelatin even boasts a pretty spring color. Get The Recipe 03 of 24 Pineapple-Coconut Cake Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Karen Rankin, Prop Stylist: Christine Keeley It's easy to see why this cake recipe has remained popular over the years. It combines the flavors of pineapple and coconut finished off with a decadent cream cheese frosting. Get The Recipe 04 of 24 Pineapple-Glazed Ham Jen Causey Pineapple rings and maraschino cherries not only give ham plenty of flavor but transform it into a beautiful centerpiece for your Easter table. Get The Recipe 05 of 24 Pear Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Just trust Grandma on this one. This nostalgic salad is made with just a few ingredients but serves up plenty of flavor in every bite. Get The Recipe 06 of 24 Classic Baked Macaroni and Cheese Photographer: Fred Hardy II, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Props Stylist: Christina Brockman It's no secret that the best mac and cheese is homemade. For best results, make sure you grate your own cheese just like Grandma always did. Get The Recipe 07 of 24 Best Carrot Cake Photography: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox Worthy of being served on Easter Sunday, this is our best carrot cake recipe of all time. Get The Recipe 08 of 24 Hashbrown Casserole Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Whether your family's Easter meal takes place in the morning or evening, hashbrown casserole always belongs on the menu. Get The Recipe 09 of 24 Best-Ever Lemon Meringue Pie Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox This classic lemon pie with meringue can be served warm from the oven or can be chilled before serving. Get The Recipe 10 of 24 Herb-Crusted Roasted Leg of Lamb Greg Dupree; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall If you're intimidated by cooking the lamb for Easter dinner, the secret is to cook it low and slow. Get The Recipe 11 of 24 Chocolate Delight Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Styling: Christine Keely While we love coconut, carrot, and pineapple desserts, we're sure chocolate of some sort always made an appearance on Grandma's Easter menu. Get The Recipe 12 of 24 Oven-Roasted Asparagus Photo: Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Classic roasted asparagus will make sure everyone has a green veggie on their plate just like Grandma did. Get The Recipe 13 of 24 Pineapple Casserole Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall Though this casserole recipe is simple (it even uses canned pineapple), it's impressive enough to grace Easter tables across the South. Get The Recipe 14 of 24 Watergate Salad Alison Miksch; Food Stylist: Karen Rankin; Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle Some serve this retro salad as a side while some serve it as a dessert. No matter which you consider it, it'll deliver plenty of nostalgia in every bite. Get The Recipe 15 of 24 Bird's Nest Cookies Joy Howard Malted milk eggs are often used to create festive Easter desserts, and these 4-ingredient cookies don't require any baking, The kids will love them almost as much as their Easter gifts. Get The Recipe 16 of 24 Tee's Corn Pudding Emily Laurae/Southern Living In our opinion, corn belongs at every holiday gathering year-round and this classic corn pudding recipe is just the way to serve it. Get The Recipe 17 of 24 Parker House Rolls Photographer: Alison Miksch / Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn / Prop Stylist: Christina Brockman The Easter menu isn't complete without at least one bread, and these homemade yeast rolls will taste just like they did when Grandma made them. Get The Recipe 18 of 24 Classic Green Bean Casserole Rob Culpepper; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Assistant Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle Grandma knew that no holiday was complete without a classic green bean casserole. Get The Recipe 19 of 24 Caramel Cake Jennifer Davick Decadent caramel cake has long been a favorite Easter dessert cooked up in Southern kitchens. Get The Recipe 20 of 24 Skillet-Roasted Carrots Greg Dupree; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Christina Daley Just a few ingredients and a skillet help transform colorful carrots into a pretty yet delicious Easter side dish. Get The Recipe 21 of 24 Strawberry-Pretzel Jello Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Though this 'salad' doesn't have lettuce on the ingredient list, it still deserves a spot on the Easter table. Get The Recipe 22 of 24 Easter Bunny Cake This bunny-shaped cake is perhaps one of the most festive Easter desserts, in fact many Southerners don't celebrate the holiday without one. Plus, our version is made with a moist coconut cake. Get The Recipe 23 of 24 Picnic Egg Salad Greg DuPree; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Cat Steele A simple egg salad is the perfect appetizer to welcome hungry Easter guests. Get The Recipe 24 of 24 Resurrection Rolls Southern Living Not only do resurrection rolls serve as a delicious treat that's made with few ingredients, but they also offer a teaching about the true reason for Easter. Get The Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit