Joyeuses Pâques ! Happy Easter!

My tips and curated recipes (plus a fab French playlist that is truly a vibe) for an easy Springtime Fête à la française. Also, a man takes off his pants—read Tip 3

Last year was my first official Pâques (Easter) in France, because in 2022, although I was newly married to my French husband, I had returned to New York in late March to apply for my French visa, pack up my entire life, break the leases on my apartment and car, say A+ (that’s short for à plus tard* or “see you later”) to friends, and sell or give away everything I wasn’t bringing to my new life in Paris.

Fun fact: like most New Yorkers, I had lived anonymously in my Brooklyn apartment building for years and only met my wonderful and intriguing neighbors when I posted art, rugs and cookware on our shared building marketplace app!

So just after my one-year anniversary in France, we celebrated Easter à la campagne (in the countryside) with friends and family and a 7-hour Gigot d’agneau à la cuillère (Spoon-tender braised lamb shoulder). As promised, it was so incredibly juicy and tender, you could absolutely eat it with a spoon.

Paris can be quite grey and misty during the winter months, so when the first tulips pop up and the sun peeks out, it is such a gift!

This year, Easter is sneaking up on us so fast and Monsieur B and I will be à deux (just the two of us). Our home outside of Paris is currently un vrai chantier (a real work site) since we’re renovating the upper floor. Also, we’ve both been quite busy with work. Bref (in short), when it comes to Pâques, we’re keeping it simple.

Whatever Spring rite you’re celebrating, I thought I’d share some easy, quick, chic ideas to infuse your festivities with lightness and un peu de style. Also, below I’ve gathered links to some of my favorite Pâques-perfect recipes from varying sources in case you’re looking for inspiration. I mean, we can’t be bothered to do all this, can we?

Here goes with the tips:

1. Steal this playlist.

First off, la musique sets the mood for any gathering, large or small. And if you’ve got cool French tunes playing—that no one in your circle has heard before—well, #winning (pronounced in French “ash-tag-wee-NEENG”). That’s why I made you this Spring playlist of the French morceaux (songs) I’m loving lately. If you like it, let me know in a comment and I’ll share more.

2. Make a low-effort and écolo (eco-friendly) Easter centerpiece.

Then plant it. #Yes ! (pronounced in French ash-tag-ee-YESS and I hear it all the time in Paris right now. It makes me smile.)

So. Just buy some inexpensive herb plants (table-sized or break them up), pop them in little pots or glasses (I wrapped some kitchen storage pots with leftover jute ribbon) and shove them together on your table with maybe some berries and candles. If you run your hands through the leaves right before your guests arrive, you’ll have the most beautiful fragrance for your Spring repas (meal). After the holiday, you can plant them on your windowsill or in pots in your garden and voilà ! You’ll have free herbs all summer long.

Setting a simple table with natural elements this year, but I am breaking out my beloved Perceval 94.7 steak knives

3. Set up un bar aux Kir royales (a Kir Royale bar)

Everyone who knows me knows that I like a self-serve bar option at a gathering—well, except for that time in New York when I produced an enormous wedding for an up-and-coming billionaire and we decided to create a subterranean lounge after-party with free bottle service. You know, couches, poufs, dark lighting, plus unattended bottles of vodka and mixers on ice. It was all going great until one man took off his pants (and his underpants!) before making a tour of the dance floor. Then if I recall correctly, the bride’s brother punched the DJ we’d flown in from Miami because the latter wouldn’t take requests. Heureusement (happily), my Easter drink recommendation is a tamer help-yourself offering.

A Kir Royale bar with peach and blackberry syrups adds color and style

I’m a huge fan of both the classic kir and kir royale, which are two versions of the same concept. The first pairs dry white wine (traditionally Bourgogne Aligoté) and any number of sweet, fruit-based syrups. The second option is nearly the same, but to make a kir royale, you start with a sparkling wine or Champagne for a bubbly result.

The traditional French syrup options include Crème de Cassis (black currant), Crème de Mûres (blackberry) and Crème de Pêches (peach). If you’re in France and you order un kir s’il vous plaît, they may ask you what kind of kir you want and by that they’ll mean which syrup. My favorite is “aux mûres,” with blackberry syrup.

In its still version, a kir is lovely and would work well as a welcome drink any time. In the sparkling variety, it gives festive mimosa vibes, but more chic and less “all-you-can-drink.”

You can make this with Champagne, bien sûr (of course) but I recommend asking your wine shop for an inexpensive Crémant d’Alsace or Crémant de Loire, which are two adorable sparkling wines from France. If you can’t find those, you can sub in a Prosecco or Cava, but don’t tell the French I said that!

4. Use these cheat code recipes.

Sometimes when I’m looking for holiday meal inspiration, I find it overwhelming to start from zero. So for French Easter ideas, I combed through some of my favorite recipes and collected a few links here. Let me know if you decide to try any of them or if you find this type of thing helpful.

As I’ve said before, last year Monsieur B and I hosted family and we made a marvelous slow-cooked lamb shoulder.

I just can’t say enough about this Gigot d’agneau. C’est tellement bon !

This Easter, we’re going to go simple but succulent, with a Roast Tarragon-Cognac Chicken from a French mom, a recipe that made it into the New York Times for good reason. I’ll buy the chicken from my favorite boucher (butcher). Fresh tarragon, or l’estragon in French, is not so easy to find, so I’ll need to get on that.

If you’re hosting an Easter brunch, nothing is better than a classic Quiche aux Gruyére et aux lardons (Quiche with Gruyere cheese and bacon or pancetta). Super-quick if you use store-bought pastry. Also, this one is from the French cooking site Marmiton, which all francophiles should get to know, because practicing recipes in French (and in grammes and millilitres) is almost as fun as trying to get a French driver’s license.

A tantalizing sheet-pan-roasted Salmon Nicoise Salad is also a perfect Easter dinner option.

The first asperges (asparagus) are appearing in the markets here in France, and I always see them as such a tender and tasty sign of Spring. This quick Roasted Asparagus with Garlic from Epicurious is a nice alternative to blanching and sautéeing (by the way, “sautéeing” isn’t a cooking word in French ha! Monsieur B always laughs if I say that).

And then, just nominating this mouth-watering Carrot Cake for your Spring dessert consideration. It’s not inherently French, but the legendary Dorie Greenspan who created the recipe, lives in Paris (among other places) and has been honored with the Mérite d’Agricole (the Order of Agricultural Merit) by the French Consulate for her work spreading the news about food culture in France. Bref, she’s legit. She’s got a Substack with “88,000 subscribers,” too.

Bon ben, my good eggs, I shall leave you to enjoy every moment of this beautiful weekend. We’ll have rain in Paris, but it’s sunny in my heart.

Joyeuses Pâques ! Joyeux Printemps !

Karen

*Bonus: to all my fellow French language lovers: A+ is pronounced “Ah pluus” but à plus tard is pronounced “ah pluu tar” (silent s, silent d). C’est un peu chiant, mais c’est comme ça ! (A little annoying, but it is what it is!)