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    Grits and Pinecones » Holidays » Easter

    The Best Easter Side Dish Recipes for 2023

    March 30, 2021 by Sharon Rigsby, Updated February 16, 2023 Leave a Comment

    Pinterest pin showing 6 Easter side dishes.

    Check out 32 of my most popular Easter Side Dish Recipes and Menu Ideas for 2023. These menu ideas are the best of the best; they are irresistibly delicious, kid-friendly, and perfect for your Easter celebration. And don’t forget your Easter dinner menu wouldn’t be complete without a luscious, easy-to-make Easter dessert.

    Whether cooking for two or a crowd, choose from these easy, mostly make-ahead, top-rated spring vegetable dishes such as Sweet and Sour Green Beans, showstopping cheesy casseroles like my Broccoli Cheese Casserole, and lighter spring dishes such as my Ultimate Frozen Fruit Salad.

    Six pictures of Easter side dishes including potato salad and green beans.

    Like my popular Southern Potato Salad, these festive, traditional, and non-traditional Easter side dish recipes are perfect to pair with showstopping main dishes such as Baked Ham with Pineapple and Cherries, Double Smoked Ham, Roasted Rack of Lamb with Garlic and Herbs.

    This comprehensive spring collection of Easter Sunday favorites is full of unique menu ideas that include healthy, keto, gluten-free, low-carb, and vegetarian options.

    Special thanks to my sister, Chula, over at the Pudge Factor blog for letting me include some of her family’s favorites!

    Easy Southern Potato Salad

    Easter or summer picnics wouldn’t be the same without a tasty helping of potato salad. Like Grandma used to make, this easy-to-make, old-fashioned potato salad is creamy, tangy delicious, and loaded with crunchy dill pickles, spicy mustard, mayonnaise, and must-have hard-boiled eggs!

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    Southern Potato Salad in a bowl

    Green Bean Bundles Wrapped in Bacon

    Easy delicious Green Bean Bundles Wrapped in Bacon will lend an elegant touch to your holiday dinner table. These divine little packages of tender green beans, wrapped in smoky bacon with a touch of brown sugar, will be a favorite of your family and friends.

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    Green Bean Bundles with Bacon-9

    Copper Pennies (Marinated Carrots)

    Copper Pennies, also known as Marinated Carrots or Sweet and Sour Carrots, consists of carrot medallions marinated in a tangy tomato sauce. It’s the best carrot side dish ever and is perfect for Easter. You might say it’s “Copper Pennies from Heaven”!

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    A bowl of Copper Pennies on a tan napkin.

    Ultimate Broccoli Cheese Casserole

    When you see an Ultimate Broccoli Cheese Casserole recipe, you expect it to be something pretty spectacular. This delicious casserole loaded with cheesy goodness lives up to its name!

    Read More

    Ultimate Broccoli Cheese Casserole-6

    Classic Southern Deviled Eggs

    Classic Southern Deviled Eggs are devilishly delicious with mayonnaise, mustard, and dill pickles. And, they are a classic for a good reason; everyone loves them!

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    A Classic Southern Deviled Eggs on a serving fork.

    Southern Baked Pineapple Casserole

    A quintessential Easter side dish in the South, Southern Baked Pineapple Casserole is the epitome of a quick and easy recipe! You will be saying yes, please, to a serving of this popular pineapple cheese casserole full of sweet pineapple chunks and blanketed with a crisp, buttery Ritz cracker topping.

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    Southern Baked Pineapple Casserole in a white dish ready to serve.

    Southern Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

    Southern Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes, an Easter brunch or dinner tradition especially in the South, consists of sliced potatoes covered in a decadent and rich cheesy bechamel sauce and then baked until they are melt-in-your-mouth tender.

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    A spoonful of cheesy scalloped potatoes.

    Easy Grape Salad with Cream Cheese

    Easy, old-fashioned Grape Salad is full of plump, juicy grapes, buttery toasted pecans, and a tangy dressing made with cream cheese, sour cream, and sugar. Is it a salad or a dessert? You decide. Either way, it’s the perfect holiday treat.

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    Easy Grape Salad with Cream Cheese in a white bowl garnished with pecans and with hydrangeas in the background

    Baked Mushroom Casserole

    Baked Mushroom Casserole is a delicious and impressive mushroom side dish with a blend of shitake, cremini, and baby portabella mushrooms, baked with butter, parsley, and lemony goodness.

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    Baked Mushroom Casserole garnished with parsley in a white baking dish.

    Spinach Gratin – Pudge Factor

    Spinach Gratin is full of creamy, cheesy goodness. Frozen spinach is mixed with a classic Mornay sauce accented with caramelized onions. It’s topped with both Gruyère cheese and freshly grated Parmesan cheese to create an unforgettable dish. As a bonus, it can be made ahead of time and produces amazing leftovers.

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    Spinach Gratin in a white baking dish.

    Cauliflower Cheese Bake

    Cauliflower Cheese Bake is the perfect rich and creamy but low-carb side dish for your Easter dinner or any dinner when you want to treat your family or guests to something special! It’s a true crowd pleaser!

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    Cauliflower Cheese Bake in a white baking dish.

    Southern Cheesy Corn Pudding

    Southern Cheesy Corn Pudding is a beloved traditional holiday and pot-luck dinner side-dish in the South! If you like corn and you like cornbread, you will love this decadent and creamy corn casserole recipe.

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    Southern Cheesy Corn Pudding in a red and white casserole dish

    Make-Ahead Vegetable Tian – Pudge Factor

    Make-Ahead Vegetable Tian is as delicious to eat as it is beautiful to present. Imagine layered overlapping alternating potatoes, zucchini, and tomatoes sitting atop luscious caramelized onions topped with Gruyère cheese. The vegetable tian is the perfect side dish to serve for a special occasion or anytime for that matter. What’s even better is that the leftovers, if any, are just as amazing.

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    Vegetable Tian in a white baking dish with a loaf of French bread.

    Easy Parmesan Potatoes Au Gratin

    This recipe for Easy Parmesan Potatoes Au Gratin is irresistibly delicious and the perfect special occasion side dish. With thinly sliced, tender Russet potatoes nestled in a thick and decadent cream sauce and nutty parmesan cheese, this thoroughly indulgent side dish might edge out your entrée and become the star of the show!

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    Easy Parmesan Potatoes Au Gratin side dish ready to serve.

    Southern Sweet and Sour Green Beans

    Southern Sweet and Sour Green Beans with smokey bacon, crunchy water chestnuts, and sweet onions taste just like its name! It’s also definitely one delicious and easy green bean recipe, which deserves a place of honor in your repertoire of “go-to” recipes for green beans.

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    A white bowl with Southern Sweet and Sour Green Beans.

    Easy Baked Southern Candied Sweet Potato Casserole

    Easy Baked Southern Candied Sweet Potato Casserole features thinly sliced sweet potatoes, covered with brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves, and then topped with sweet, creamy butter and candied pecans. This easy classic Easter casserole recipe comes together quickly and is both decadent and delicious! 

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    Baked Southern Candied Sweet Potatoes

    Green Bean Pie with a Ritz Cracker Crust

    Move over traditional Green Bean Casserole, and make room for a new showstopping, side-dish for your Easter table, savory Green Bean Pie with a Ritz Cracker Crust. The best green bean casserole from scratch, Green Bean Pie with a Ritz Cracker Crust, is full of fresh, tender green beans and earthy mushrooms, enveloped in a creamy, decadent, cheesy sauce, and topped with the traditional French fried onions.

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    A slice of Green Bean Pie with Ritz Cracker Crust garnished with fresh mushrooms and green beans

    Easy Southern Corn Salad

    Easy Southern Corn Salad is a delicious staple in the South, especially in the spring and summer when fresh corn is readily available at the farmer’s markets. Easy Southern Corn Salad only takes minutes to make, and because it’s made without mayonnaise, it’s fresh, light, and healthy.

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    Corn Salad in a green pottery bowl with fresh corn cobs in the background

    Grown-Up Green Bean Casserole – Pudge Factor

    Are you tired of the mandatory cream of mushroom soup Green Bean Casserole? If so, you should try this Grown-up Green Bean Casserole. It’s easy to make and delicious! What’s even better is that this Grown-up Green Bean Casserole is a cinch to make, can be made ahead of time, and reheats beautifully.

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    Green Bean casserole in a white serving dish

    Potato Broccoli Salad

    Potato Broccoli Salad with Vinaigrette is a lighter, delicious, and healthy change from classic or traditional potato salad. The addition of broccoli and cherry tomatoes ramps up the nutrition value, and the use of a tasty vinaigrette instead of mayonnaise and eggs reduces the calorie count.

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    Cooked New Potatoes, broccoli and cherry tomatoes in a white serving bowl for Potato Broccoli Salad with Vinaigrette

    Southern Style Baked Mac and Cheese Casserole

    Macaroni and Cheese is synonymous with Southern entertaining. You would be hard-pressed to find any holiday or celebration involving food in the South without a macaroni and cheese casserole front and center on the table.

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    Southern Style Baked Mac and Cheese topped with Ritx cracker crumbs and parsley

    Southern Sweet Onion Casserole

    Just in time for Easter, this easy Southern Sweet Onion Casserole is the best side dish ever! Caramelized sweet onions, Vidalia if you can find them, are meltingly tender and paired with buttery, crunchy Ritz crackers, sour cream, and cheese; this decadent onion casserole melts in your mouth!

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    Easter side dish - Southern Sweet Onion Casserole Recipe

    Easy Make-Ahead Zucchini Gratin – Pudge Factor

    A gratin is a dish topped with a golden browned crust of breadcrumbs and melted cheese. In France, gratins are generally made with potatoes. This Easy Make-Ahead Zucchini Gratin is an amazing deviation, which will have you coming back for more!

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    Easy Make Ahead Zucchini Gratin in a glass serving dish

    Traditional Southern Cornbread Dressing

    In the South, cornbread dressing recipes have been passed down through generations, and there are almost as many variations as Easter eggs. But the one constant in most of the cornbread dressing recipes is butter! This recipe calls for, hold on to your hat, two whole sticks of butter! And butter is what makes this cornbread dressing so moist and flavorful! I know what you’re thinking, but Easter is only once a year, right?

    Read More

    Cornbread Dressing with Sausage and Pecans in a white baking dish.

    Easy Spicy Southern Corn Casserole

    Easy Spicy Southern Corn Casserole is a fiesta for the senses with luscious corn deliciousness, spicy chilies, jalapenos, bacon, and decadent cream cheese filling that brings it all together.

    Read More

    Thanksgiving side dish Easy Spicy Southern Corn Casserole

    Southern Green Beans and New Potatoes

    Southern Green Beans and New Potatoes is an old-fashioned side dish that has been around the proverbial block many times. This delicious tried, and true Southern-style recipe features fresh, crisp green beans and tender new potatoes cooked with a little bacon, garlic, and onion.

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    Southern Green Beans and New Potatoes ready to serve

    Easy Cheesy Potato And Onion Au Gratin – Pudge Factor

    Easy Cheesy Potato and Onion Au Gratin is deliciously creamy and a real show stopper. It’s a simple side dish that takes minutes to put together but is packed with cheesy goodness. What’s even better is that it can be made ahead of time, and leftovers, if any, are just as good the next day. Who could ask for more?

    Read More

    Easy Potatoes Au Gratin in a white baking dish.

    Southern White Acre Pea Succotash

    Southern White Acre Pea Succotash, with white acre peas and fresh summer corn, is healthy and full of garden-fresh delicious flavors and summery goodness.

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    Southern White Acre Pea Succotash fill of summery goodness

    Ultimate Make-Ahead Frozen Fruit Salad

    Ultimate Make-Ahead Frozen Fruit Salad is an easy, quick and delicious fruit salad. It’s full of pineapple, cherries, and pecans, and it would be perfect for serving for an Easter or Mother’s Day brunch, lunch or dinner, or anytime for that matter.

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    Make Ahead Frozen Fruit Salad on a beautiful antique plate.

    Roasted Carrots with Lemon Vinaigrette

    Roasted Carrots with Lemon Vinaigrette are delicious roasted, crisp-tender, sweet carrots topped with a yummy lemon and fresh herb vinaigrette. This elegant side dish would be a stunning and flavorful addition to your Easter dinner table.

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    Roasted Carrots with Lemon Vinaigrette-4

    Ultimate Blue Cheese Potatoes Au Gratin

    Are you looking for a delicious side dish for a special dinner or your Easter table? How about something just a little different from traditional mashed potatoes? Hold on to your chef’s hat because Blue Cheese Potatoes Au Gratin will rock your world.

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    Ultimate Blue Cheese Potatoes Au Gratin on the Thanksgiving trable

    Pommes Anna (A.K.A. Potatoes Anna) – Pudge Factor

    Pommes Anna, also known as Potatoes Anna, is a simple yet impressive side dish that will be a showstopper at your next dinner party. It’s buttery crispy on the golden brown outside and melt in your mouth tender on the inside.

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    Potatoes Anna on a plate

    Easy Southern Broccoli Salad

    This recipe for Easy Southern Broccoli Salad is jam-packed with fresh broccoli, dried cranberries, roasted pecans, cheddar cheese, and cherry tomatoes. It’s also really versatile, so you can tailor it to your family’s tastes by adding or substituting red onion, pineapple or apple chunks, or another type of nut or sunflower seeds. It’s bright, fresh, and the perfect Easter side dish.

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    Easy Southern Broccoli Salad in a bowl and ready to serve

    Frequently asked questions:

    What are traditional foods for Easter?

    In the South, ham and potato salad are probably the most traditional foods served for Easter brunch, lunch, or dinner.

    What is the most eaten food at Easter?

    A quick internet search says that lamb is the most eaten food at Easter. However, that varies by where you live. In the South, the most popular main dish is ham.

    What food is traditionally served on Good Friday?

    Fish or seafood is the most popular main dish choice on Good Friday.

    What are the most popular side dishes at Easter?

    Because it’s spring, side dishes that feature fresh spring vegetables such as asparagus, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower are especially popular.

    What Easter side dishes travel well?

    If you are making a side dish to bring to a family Easter lunch or dinner, choose something that can be made ahead and served cold or at room temperature. Good choices include Grape Salad with Cream Cheese, Southern Baked Pineapple Casserole, Southern Deviled Eggs, Southern Potato Salad, Southern Broccoli Salad, and Potato Broccoli Salad.

    Related recipes:

    I couldn’t let you leave without offering even more menu ideas for your Easter celebration. Check out these Easter roundups for even more recipes:

    • 50+ Easter Dessert Recipes and Treats for 2023
    • 40+ Easter Menu Ideas and Recipes for 2023

    For even more inspiration, here is a link to all of my Easter recipes.

    From my family to yours, I wish you sunshine, good times, and a very happy Easter!

    **If you make any of these recipes, please leave a comment and let me know how you liked them. 

    Thanks so much for visiting Grits and Pinecones!

    **This roundup post was originally published in April 2019.

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    Sharon Rigsby, blogger at GritsandPinecones.com

    Hello, I'm Sharon Rigsby, blogger, recipe developer, videographer, and photographer for Grits and Pinecones®. I have over 50 years of experience in the kitchen, and I like nothing better than developing and reimagining recipes for my family, friends, and you!

    More about me →

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