Greek Easter celebrations

[PavlovtheCat]

My friend has invited us over to celebrate Easter in the traditional greek way on Easter Sunday. She is doing slow roast lamb, and there will a few people there.

I would like to do something/take something traditionally greek to celebrate it in the right style. I don't want to ask her as I want it to be a nice surprise, show that some effort has been made, and the invite is appreciated.

Any ideas? (DH said just take a bottle of ouzo but not exactly imaginative! )

bump

bumping, surely there must be some greek people here, or of greek heritage?!

Oh dear, it is now too late for this advice to be of any use, but - for next time - you can bear this in mind.

Tsoureki: this is a sweet Greek bread which is traditionally eaten at Easter time. From experience it is rather hard to find in England so if you brought it it would certainly go down well! The alternative used by my family when my husband's Greek relatives are not arriving with bags of food is to by a loaf of brioche which has a similar flavour and is identical to look at. Try to find one which is, or looks, platted, as this is most similar to tsoureki. It is not just eaten on the day and families continue to enjoy it throughout the Easter period, so if you feel you want to contribute as a thank-you for the invitation now that the event is over, take her a loaf of brioche to have with your tea or coffee. You can explain that you chose it for its similarity to tsoureki (pronounced 'zoo-reck-ee')! Together with a card or a bunch of dafodills, this type of offering seems very spring-like, even though Easter is over.

Eggs: I'm sure you will have seen the coloured eggs produced by your Greek friend if you went there on the day. Next time you could consider colouring your own eggs by immersing them in food colouring and allowing them to steep. Once dry the coloured effect is achieved and children and adults enjoy playing a game to see who's egg is the last to crack when pitted against an opponent. A basket of coloured eggs to use for this game or as decoration (some people even peel and eat them too!) would make a pretty and appropriate gift.

I hope you enjoyed your Greek Easter experience! Kalo Pasxa!