easter tea party

Courtney Takabayashi

April 10, 2025

food

This Easter, throw a whimsical tea party that’s fun for the whole family. Forget the candy and check out these stress-free recipes packed with fresh fruits and vegetables. Whether it’s a sweet treat, savory bite, or refreshing drink, there’s something for everyone.

SPARKLING HIBISCUS ICED TEA
Serve this thirst-quenching drink before, during, or after an afternoon of egg hunting. You can use any tea and sparkling water. We like hibiscus since it’s caffeine-free, goes perfectly with fresh strawberries, and tastes great.

You can find hibiscus tea at most supermarkets and big box retailers in Hawaii. It’s also available at specialty tea shops and online. If you’ve never tried hibiscus tea before and you’re wondering about the flavor, it’s tart and tangy. It also depends on how long you steep the tea and the brand you buy. To offset the tartness, we like to add honey, but you can add any sweetener.

For the sparkling water, we used strawberry-flavored water to complement the fresh strawberries, but you can use any flavor or even plain. It’s the carbonation that’s important.

Ingredients

4 cups water
4 hibiscus tea bags
4 Tbsp. honey
Ice
Sparkling water, to taste
Mint leaves, for garnish
3-4 fresh strawberries, chopped or sliced for garnish

Instructions
There are two ways to prepare your tea: the traditional way with boiling water and cold brew. I find that the cold brew method is more flavorful and less bitter, but it does take longer.

Traditional: In a pitcher, combine boiling water, tea bags, and honey. Let steep for 30 minutes to 1 hour, depending on how strong you like your tea. Remove tea bags. Chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Cold brew: In a pitcher, combine water and tea bags. Let steep in refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight. When adding honey, mix with equal parts hot water first so it dissolves easily in cold brew (since the honey won’t dissolve in cold liquid).

Add ice to a glass or cup. Fill with tea until it’s ¾ full. Fill the rest with sparkling water. Garnish with mint and strawberries. Serve and enjoy!

ICE CREAM CONE TEACUPS
What’s a tea party without teacups? While you can’t actually drink from these cups, you can fill them with treats! We decided on some hearty trail mix.

Ingredients

Ice cream cones
Icing
Cookies
Pretzel rounds or twists (not sticks)
Trail mix (or any treat to fill your cup)

Instructions
Gently cut off the bottom of an ice cream cone with a knife.

Cut the side off the pretzel so it resembles a teacup handle. Use icing to affix the pretzel to the teacup. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to set.

Once handle is firmly set, remove from refrigerator, add icing to the bottom of the cone, and place on top of a cookie. The firmer the cookie the better since it serves as the saucer. Let the icing set (you don’t have to wait as long as the handle since gravity will keep it in place).

Fill cup with trail mix. Pinkies up!

MINI VEGETABLE GARDEN
Eating vegetables is a delight when you have your very own garden to graze on. We’re using hummus, but you can also use any dip or spread. It just needs to be thick enough to support the vegetables. Using your family’s favorite veggies will make this dish “hare” today, gone tomorrow!

For the individual gardens, you can use small bowls or ramekins. We used mini loaf pans.

Ingredients

Hummus (or other dip or spread)
Vegetables (we used carrots, cauliflower, celery, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, and snap peas)

Instructions
Fill each garden with hummus and add vegetables.

Note: My child isn’t a fan of raw broccoli and cauliflower, so I steam them by adding them to a bowl with a little water and microwaving for a few minutes before serving.

STRAWBERRY LOVE LETTER SANDWICHES
These adorable sandwiches are sweet, simple, and satisfying! You can make them savory with ham and cheese or fill them with hazelnut spread or cookie butter. Whatever you choose, your recipient will know it came from the heart.

Ingredients

Two pieces of soft bread (we used whole-wheat Japanese bread)
Peanut butter
Jelly
Strawberries, sliced into a heart shape

Instructions
Cut the crusts off the bread. Cut the sides off the top of one piece so it looks like a house. Cut the second piece into a concave pentagon, which looks like the bottom of an envelope.