Easter Bread Recipes

Photo: Oxmoor House

Celebrate spring and rebirth with classic and traditional bread recipes from around the globe along with a few recipes that are perfect for the breakfast spread on Easter morning.

Start Slideshow

Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.

1 of 40

Braided Lemon Bread

Photo: Aaron Kirk; Prop Styling: Christina Daley; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Braided Lemon Bread Recipe

The perfect recipe for spring. This slightly sweet, lemony, and tender braided bread lands somewhere between brioche and challah. Serve the impressive poppy seed-studded loaf with dinner, use it to for sandwiches, or make an unconventional French toast.

2 of 40

Blood Orange Poppy Seed Bread

PHOTO BY GINA DISIMONE

Blood Orange Poppy Seed Bread Recipe
Make the most of citrus season

3 of 40

Classic Banana Bread

Photo: Lee Harrelson; Styling: Jan Gautro, Laura Zapalowski

Classic Banana Bread Recipe

This healthier take on banana bread uses yogurt instead of butter, but it's just as moist and indulgent as classic recipes. This banana bread recipe isn't just easy. It's also highly customizable and can adapt to a number of flavors and substitute ingredients. Banana bread should form a crack down the center as it bakes--a sign the baking soda is doing its job. Serve toasted with a smear of cream cheese, Greek yogurt, or peanut and top with mixed nuts, if desired. You can even customize your bread with a crunchy streusal topping that the kids will love.

4 of 40

This Whole-Wheat Braided Egg Bread Is Perfect for Easter

Photo: Jamie Vespa

This Whole-Wheat Braided Egg Bread Is Perfect for Easter Recipe

Our beautiful Easter centerpiece bread offers a healthier take on the classic egg- and butter-enriched bread. It’s made completely with white whole-wheat flour and less added sugar (in this case, honey) than many traditional recipes. Our techniques and ingredient choices leave you with a soft, fluffy, lightly sweet bread that’ll garner raves: The soaking step at the beginning allows the dense flour to hydrate more fully, resulting in a more tender bread, and the vital wheat gluten—which you’ll find near the yeast and flour in well-stocked supermarkets—aids in tenderness as well. The colored eggs are decorative, though you could eat them if you’d like (they’ll be overcooked). If they discolor from baking, simply twist to remove them, and replace with more vibrant eggs. The finished bread is gloriously large and serves a crowd. If you have leftovers, try slicing and toasting for breakfast—or using for French toast or bread pudding.

5 of 40

Tuscan Pignoli-Orange Zucchini Bread

Tuscan Pignoli-Zucchini-Orange Bread image

Photo: Daniel Agee; Food Styling: Deb Wise; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis

Tuscan Pignoli-Orange Zucchini Bread Recipe

Got a boatload of zucchini? A loaf of so-simple quick bread is a delightful, kid-friendly way to put it to use. With bright citrusy notes, toasty pine nuts, and a delightful texture delivered by the blend of semolina and almond flours, this Italian-inspired uptake on your typical zucchini bread is sure to impress.

6 of 40

Raspberry Braid Loaf

Meredith Food Studios

Raspberry Braid Loaf Recipe

This impressive braided loaf is a show-stopping addition to any springtime table. For more incredible bread recipes, check out Zoë Francois and Jeff Hertzberg’s Holiday and Celebration Bread in Five Minutes a Day.

7 of 40

Cranberry Pull-Apart Bread with Orange-cream Cheese Icing

Greg DuPree

Cranberry Pull-Apart Bread with Orange-cream Cheese Icing Recipe

The entire family will love the sticky-fingered fun of tearing apart these sweet layers filled with tangy cranberries and bright orange zest. The recipe makes two loaves of bread; give one as a gift, and take the other to brunch.

8 of 40

Easy Everything Dinner Rolls

Photo: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Lydia Pursell; Food Styling: Tami Hardeman

Easy Everything Dinner Rolls Recipe

To make your own everything bagel seasoning mix for this recipe, combine 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, 1 tablespoon poppy seeds, 1 tablespoon dried minced onion, 2 teaspoons dried minced garlic, and 1 teaspoon coarse salt in a small bowl.

9 of 40

Hot Cross Buns

Photo: Randy Mayor; Styling: Cindy Barr

Hot Cross Buns Recipe
With less heft and more flavor and fluff, these delicate Hot Cross Buns deserve attention all year long. A hint of warm spices balances a sweet glaze to finish off these Easter rolls.

10 of 40

Banana-Oatmeal Bread

Photo: David Malosh; Styling: Gerri Williams for James Reps

Banana-Oatmeal Bread Recipe

11 of 40

Sweet Portuguese Rolls

Greg Dupree

Sweet Portuguese Rolls Recipe

12 of 40

Sesame-Cashew Zucchini Bread

Photo: Daniel Agee; Food Styling: Deb Wise; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis

Sesame-Cashew Zucchini Bread Recipe

Got a boatload of zucchini? A loaf of so-simple quick bread is a delightful, kid-friendly way to put it to use. Incredibly rich in toasty flavor, this nutty twist on classic zucchini bread was a fast favorite in the test kitchen. If you don’t have cashew butter on hand, feel free to use peanut butter or almond butter for the creamy glaze instead—either would be equally delicious.

13 of 40

Powdered Sugar Donut Monkey Bread

Photo: Gina DeSimone; Prop Styling: Kashara Johnson; Food Styling: Deb Wise

Powdered Sugar Donut Monkey Bread Recipe

Featuring mini powdered sugar donuts, this whimsical twist on monkey bread is the perfect sweet centerpiece for a casual brunch get-together.

14 of 40

Rosemary Focaccia with Stewed Grapes and Olives

Photographer: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Lauren Smith Ford; Food Styling: Tina Bell Stamos

Rosemary Focaccia with Stewed Grapes and Olives Recipe

15 of 40

Miso Banana Bread with Yuzu Glaze

Photography: Jennifer Causey; Prop Styling: Heather Chadduck Hillegas; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer.

Miso Banana Bread with Yuzu Glaze Recipe

16 of 40

Grapefruit-Pistachio Cinnamon Rolls

Sara Tane

Grapefruit-Pistachio Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

These gooey and gorgeous homemade cinnamon rolls are a vibrant uptake on those classic canned orange rolls Mom would break out for special occasion breakfasts. Never made sweet rolls from scratch before? Trust us, the dough is far easier to make and work with than you might think. And with a soft pink colored grapefruit-cream cheese glaze and a decadent filling featuring pistachios, dark brown sugar, fresh ginger, cardamon, and cinnamon, these morning glories are sure to steal the show at any brunch gathering. If you want to prep them ahead, simply follow the recipe through step 6 the night before and pop your rolls into the fridge; just be sure to bring them to room temperature the following day before baking and glazing.

17 of 40

Parker House Rolls

Photo: Antonis Achilles; Food Styling: Tina Bell Stamos and Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Sarah Elizabeth Cleveland

Parker House Rolls Recipe

Buttery, yeasty heaven you can enjoy at brunch, dinner, or whenever.

18 of 40

Cream Cheese Pastries

Photo: Alison Miksch; Styling: Caroline M. Cunningham

Cream Cheese Pastries Recipe
These gorgeous homemade pastries look like they just arrived from a bakery.

19 of 40

Homemade Dinner Rolls

Photo: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall and Kady Wohlfarth; Prop Styling: Kay Clarke

Homemade Dinner Rolls Recipe

Soft, tender, pillowy, and buttery. What's not to love? Once you go homemade, it's hard to go back to store-bought dinner rolls.

20 of 40

Herbed Biscuits

Jennifer Causey

Herbed Biscuits Recipe

Two key techniques make these whole-grain biscuits light and fluffy: smashing the butter into the flour mixture with your fingers, and folding the dough to create layers.

21 of 40

Crumpets

Photo: Aaron Kirk; Prop Styling: Kashara Johnson; Food Styling: Pam Lolley

Crumpets Recipe

Skip the crumpets that you can find in the refrigerated section at the grocery store, because these are way better. If you don't have English muffin rings, you can use a cleaned can of tuna, as long as the top and bottom are removed. Serve these super simple treats with butter, assorted jams, a drizzle of honey, and of course, hot tea.

22 of 40

Strawberry Kuchen

Victor Protasio

Strawberry Kuchen Recipe

The Southern dessert canon is loaded with sweet treats that represent cultural influences that have swept through our region, specifically in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Texas. As a result, we’ve been spoiled by a number of treats including kuchen, a German word meaning “cake.” In her book, Cake: A Slice of History, food historian Alysa Levene explains that German immigrants were fond of social occasions that called for coffee and cake. “The German style of kaffe und kuchen was part of Irma Rombauer’s family heritage and explains the heavy presence of German cakes in The Joy of Cooking,” she writes. While some types of kuchen are more bread-like and made with a yeasted dough, our version has a tender, fluffy crumb and a dimpled top covered with strawberries and almonds.

23 of 40

Monkey Bread Babka with Nutella Glaze

All Photos Courtesy Tuck Room Tavern

Monkey Bread Babka with Nutella Glaze Recipe
Straight from Sherry Yard's kitchen at LA's Tuck Room Tavern

24 of 40

Boysenberry Danishes

Photo: Annabelle Breakey; Styling: Robyn Valarik

Boysenberry Danishes Recipe

Even if you're a baking newbie, you can turn these out with ease, thanks to frozen puff pastry. To keep them from sticking, remove the pastries from the pan right after baking.

25 of 40

Greek Easter Bread (Lambropsomo)

Rachel Weill

Greek Easter Bread (Lambropsomo) Recipe
In this symbolic, traditional Greek Easter recipe, dyed hard-cooked eggs are placed on the bread in the shape of a cross.

26 of 40

Kulich

Kulich Recipe
After being iced, the bread is topped with raisins to form the letters XB, meaning "Christ has risen."

27 of 40

Peanut Butter and Jelly Babka

Photo by Sage McAvoy

Peanut Butter and Jelly Babka Recipe

Because frying doughnuts is just too much

28 of 40

Maple-Pecan Sticky Buns

Photo: Jennifer Davick; Styling: Lydia Degaris Pursell

Maple-Pecan Sticky Buns Recipe
Enjoy Maple-Pecan Sticky Buns without skimping on size. Our secret is a low-fat roll mix that creates extra indulgent--and easy--sticky buns. Mornings just got brighter!

29 of 40

Danish Cinnamon Buns

Photo by Jacqui Small, an imprint of the Quarto Group

Danish Cinnamon Buns Recipe
From Ladies of London star Caroline Fleming's cookbook

30 of 40

Sausage-Stuffed Honey Buns

Photo: Iain Bagwell; Food Styling: Tami Hardeman; Prop Styling: Elizabeth Demos

Sausage-Stuffed Honey Buns Recipe

These sweet and savory rolls are inspired by the Howard family's love of sausage biscuits with muscadine preserves.

31 of 40

Best-Ever Sticky Buns

Greg DuPree

Best-Ever Sticky Buns Recipe

These ooey-gooey, pecan-topped cinnamon rolls live up to their name. Paige and her mother prepare the dough on Christmas Eve and bake the sticky buns first thing in the morning. Bonus: Everyone enjoys waking up to the sweet smell of cinnamon and brown sugar on Christmas Day.

Account

40 Amazing Easter Bread Recipes

1 of 40

Braided Lemon Bread

1 of 40

2 of 40

Blood Orange Poppy Seed Bread

2 of 40

3 of 40

Classic Banana Bread

3 of 40

4 of 40

This Whole-Wheat Braided Egg Bread Is Perfect for Easter

4 of 40

5 of 40

Tuscan Pignoli-Orange Zucchini Bread

5 of 40

6 of 40

Raspberry Braid Loaf

6 of 40

7 of 40

Cranberry Pull-Apart Bread with Orange-cream Cheese Icing

7 of 40

8 of 40

Easy Everything Dinner Rolls

8 of 40

9 of 40

Hot Cross Buns

9 of 40

10 of 40

Banana-Oatmeal Bread

10 of 40

11 of 40

Sweet Portuguese Rolls

11 of 40

12 of 40

Sesame-Cashew Zucchini Bread

12 of 40

13 of 40

Powdered Sugar Donut Monkey Bread

13 of 40

14 of 40

Rosemary Focaccia with Stewed Grapes and Olives

14 of 40

15 of 40

Miso Banana Bread with Yuzu Glaze

15 of 40

16 of 40

Grapefruit-Pistachio Cinnamon Rolls

16 of 40

17 of 40

Parker House Rolls

17 of 40

18 of 40

Cream Cheese Pastries

18 of 40

19 of 40

Homemade Dinner Rolls

19 of 40

20 of 40

Herbed Biscuits

20 of 40

21 of 40

Crumpets

21 of 40

22 of 40

Strawberry Kuchen

22 of 40

23 of 40

Monkey Bread Babka with Nutella Glaze

23 of 40

24 of 40

Boysenberry Danishes

24 of 40

25 of 40

Greek Easter Bread (Lambropsomo)

25 of 40

26 of 40

Kulich

26 of 40