If ever there is a holiday to be decadent, it has to be Easter. The occasion may be a religious one in origin, but now it also represents a time to indulge without guilt. And April’s Easter issue is passionate about embracing the decadent when it comes to food – from the sweet to the savoury, pure indulgence is encouraged for once.

Chef Dave Verheul gets the party started with his Hand Picked feature. The owner of Melbourne favourite Embla focuses on enhanced simplicity, with recipes for Embla’s beloved ricotta and tomato salad with anchovy dressing, as well as his modern take on Medieval favourite, the posset.

Those with a sweet tooth will find solace in what follows. MasterChef winner Diana Chan, inspired by a recent trip to Indonesia, produces a local take on ice cream: es putar coconut milk ice cream with pineapple, sago and lime is an indulgent fresh treat for those not so keen on its dairy-heavy cousin. Then The Great Australian Bake Off winner Claudia Anton enhances an old family recipe to deliver German fig cheesecake.

The Chef and the Butcher, Colin Fassnidge and Anthony Puharich, prove duck isn’t as intimidating as it may seem. The duo’s plum and cider pot roast duck is a no-fail dish, ideal for Easter entertaining. And Matt Preston proves that Easter eggs don’t have to be of the chocolate variety. Amid his egg-focused advice (which deciphers just what to do and not to do with the kitchen staple) is his recipe for a spicy golden egg curry.

Prefer to eat out at Easter? delicious. National restaurant critic Anthony Huckstep heads to Sydney’s northern beaches to check out the luxe waterside surroundings of Bert’s, the latest addition to the Merivale stable.

Back in the home kitchen, salad queen Hetty McKinnon shows just how to host an Easter shindig minus the meat. McKinnon partnered with fellow cook Jodi Moreno and textile authority Sophie Tatlow of Utopia Goods to serve a vegetarian feast, including such delights as baked cauliflower and olives with lemon tahini dressing and rosewater Eton mess with berries. Melissa Hemsley continues the vegetarian-friendly trend. A collection of breakfast recipes from her new book, Eat Happy (quinoa power porridge included), proves flavour and nutrition can be synonymous.

Shannon Bennett has turned his attention away from the kitchen – sort of. The celebrity chef is behind the ambitious revitalisation of the Burnham Beeches estate in Victoria’s Dandenong Ranges. On top of the existing gardens, greenhouses and cafe, Bennett plans new restaurants and a luxury hotel. delicious. highlights the produce of the district with recipes crafted by Bennett and the Burnham Beeches team – from smoky pork ribs with apple and leatherwood barbecue sauce to meringue roulade with lemon verbena cream.

Soup season is upon us, and to celebrate, Charlotte Binns-McDonald has created an array of nourishing bowls. There’s pea soup with parmesan and a just-boiled egg, and a baked sweet potato soup with blue cheese toast to tuck into. Or perhaps the slow-cooked chicken, fennel and rice will prove your new lunch favourite.

Also making the most of autumn, Carriageworks Farmers Market creative director Mike McEnearney takes us on a tour of the Sydney food favourite. Highlighting the stallholders’ best seasonal produce, the chef crafts a handful of simple, ingredient-focused dishes. Jamie Oliver similarly has autumnal produce on his mind. Orchard treats of apples, pears, plums and more have inspired his dessert selection, which ranges from apple treacle cake with calvados-butterscotch sauce to baked rice pudding with bay-roasted plums.

Samantha Coutts celebrates Easter tradition with her hot cross bun special. But this isn’t your average Easter feature, with Coutts putting her inspired twists on the sticky favourites. There’s honey cinnamon hot cross buns, a double choc bun pull-apart, a savoury cheese and bacon bun, and more. Carrying on the sweet theme, chocoholics will rejoice with Phoebe Wood’s decadent cocoa-laden feature. In a host of treats, choc-banana bundt with hot chocolate butterscotch and a luxurious double-chocolate mousse cake are particular stars.

We step outside the kitchen with delicious. editor Samantha Jones, as she takes a road trip along Scotland’s epic North Coast 500. A trek through the northernmost stretches of the Scottish mainland sees Jones navigate some of the country’s most dramatic scenery – and eat in fine Highland style.

delicious. editor-in-chief Kerrie McCallum recently found herself Berlin for the launch of Miele’s incredible new oven. With chef Shannon Bennett as guide, she takes a food-focused tour of the city once infamous for its dividing wall and now renowned for its eccentricity and adventurous nature.

Jo McKay explores within Australia’s borders, with a trip to Tasmania. While Hobart is renowned for its fare, McKay heads north, to explore that region’s treasures – the wine-rich Tamar Valley and the burgeoning food scene of Launceston.

And with Easter a favourite for the entertainer, there may be no better way to finish the issue than in the company of a certain Gordon Ramsay. The renowned chef dishes out his favourite ways to feast with friends, from music to guilty pleasures.

With the April issue of delicious. in hand you’ll have everything you need to indulge this Easter. Go on, treat yourself.