This is the friend, Rebecca, who baked that yummy caramel apple pie last fall. Now she's baking bread! My two kitchen fears (I'm a bit jealous). She also tells about an asparagus salad she made for Easter:

A friend invited us to her apartment for Easter. Easter is one of my favorite holidays (then again, I love just about any holiday that celebrates eating). I decided to make two recipes that are part of my family's Easter tradition. Asparagus and red peppers in mustard vinaigrette really tastes like spring--and this time of year, you can get delicious asparagus even at your local supermarket.  Steam the asparagus until it's barely tender--there should still be a
little crunch to it. Blanch it in cold water. Make a vinaigrette with 2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar, 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, and 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme.  Add some fresh tarragon if you're lucky enough to have some, and a splash of Tabasco if you like a little spice.  Whisk in 1/2 cup olive oil.  Arrange the asparagus on a platter, top with julienned roasted red peppers (I use jarred peppers--everyone says roasting peppers is easy, but I have a 10 month old baby and don't have the patience!), and drizzle with the vinaigrette.

My mother has made Easter braid for as long as I can remember, and although I crave it every Easter since I moved to New York, I've never been brave enough to make it myself.  The recipe itself is not hard, but it's easy to be intimidated by yeast (not to mention the kneading and the braiding).  It's a soft white dough made with milk, butter and eggs. For sweetness there's lemon peel, raisins, and a dash of mace.  It has to be kneaded for 10 minutes, and it rises once before it's braided and once after.  It baked beautifully, and I knew the glaze was delicious because I licked the spoon (it's a simple sugar glaze, with confectioner's sugar, water, and a little butter, and my mom always adds almond extract), but I was a little nervous until we actually ate the bread.  It was almost as good as my mom's, and I'll definitely be making it next year.