5 Make-Ahead Appetizers to Simplify Your Easter

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Easter should be about spending time with family and loved ones, not spending all of your time in the kitchen. Keep your holiday simple with these appetizers that can be prepared ahead of time. Try classics like our Lemon-Garlic Marinated Shrimp or fun dishes like our Strawberry & Brie Bites that will impress everyone around the table

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Lemon-Garlic Marinated Shrimp

Lemon-Garlic Marinated Shrimp

Marinating precooked shrimp in garlic- and lemon-infused oil is a simple yet elegant appetizer. Source: EatingWell Magazine, December 2006

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Strawberry & Brie Bites

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Strawberries, Brie cheese, fresh basil and balsamic vinegar come together in this addictive one-bite appetizer recipe. Source: EatingWell Magazine, May/June 2015

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Nutty Pimiento Cheese Balls

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These bite-size pimiento cheese balls from Jamie and Bobby Deen are a huge hit with kids (of all ages). They're the perfect appetizer to bring to a summer picnic. Jamie and Bobby share a passion for great home-cooked food with a Southern flair with their celebrity-chef mom, Paula Deen. These brothers are following in their mom's footsteps with their own TV shows, books and website. Our favorite part of what they're up to: healthy makeovers of some of Paula's recipes! Recipe adapted from The Deen Bros. Get Fired Up, by Jamie & Bobby Deen and Melissa Clark (Ballantine Books, 2011). Source: EatingWell Magazine, May/June 2011

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Strawberry Bruschetta

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Astoundingly good for minimal effort, this makes an indulgent weekend breakfast or anyday dessert. A judicious smear of mascarpone (half the fat of butter) is part of the luxury, but even lighter low-fat cream cheese will work as well. The real secret is warming the berries just enough to make the flavor bloom and transform their juices into a rosy syrup. Source: EatingWell Magazine, June/July 2005

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Pickled Asparagus

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In this unique asparagus recipe, we swap out the cucumbers typically used for pickling and opt for asparagus spears instead, which remain tender-crisp even after soaking up the sweet-tangy pickling liquid. Serve these pickled asparagus spears as part of an appetizer spread, chop them up to use as a salad topper or munch on them as a zingy, refreshing snack. Source: EatingWell.com, January 2020

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