Last Sunday, for Mother’s Day, I hosted a brunch at my parents’ house. Actually, my first blog post was from our Mother’s Day brunch last year! I guess it was my little blog’s first birthday too. 🙂
This year’s theme was “Queen for a Day.” I decorated the table with colorful glitter, jewel rings and sparkly wands. Five moms were present (my mom, grandmother, two aunts and cousin) and they wore crowns for the day. It was a fun theme!
Now, onto the food. Last year, the menu consisted of both breakfast and lunch foods plus dessert. This year, I focused on mainly breakfast but didn’t forget about dessert.
My family members brought delicious additions for the brunch including fruit salsa, pecan rolls, fruit salad and pineapple upside-down cake. Here’s the menu, based on what I made:
Appetizers
Homemade Granola with Vanilla Yogurt (I’ve made this before – it’s so easy!)
Banana Nut Muffins (I replaced half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat and added chopped walnuts to the batter)
Entrees
Cheesy Crustless Quiche (I replaced the all-purpose flour with gluten-free flour)
Hashbrown Casserole with Bacon, Onion and Cheese
Spiced Bacon Twists (I made these last year, they are always a hit!)
Scrambled Eggs from the Oven
Simple French Toast (See recipe below. Thanks, Sara!)
Dessert
Heavenly Chocolate Mousse
The meal turned out really well. I was able to prepare the granola, muffins, quiche, hashbrown casserole and chocolate mousse ahead of time so I wasn’t stressed during the morning. All I had to do in the morning was cook the casserole, warm the quiche and make the bacon twists, scrambled eggs and French toast. Check out my great results!
Quiche. I’m not really a fan of quiche normally, but this quiche turned out great! It was a different texture than traditional quiche and was full of savory flavors. I will definitely be making this quiche again, it’s a go-to recipe and has a nice wow factor.
The hashbrown casserole also turned out exceptional, I really loved it. The flavors of the bacon, cheese and onion really blended well together and I enjoyed the bold flavors. Another go-to recipe for sure! It was just so tasty!
My friend Sara made a delicious French toast for her St. Patrick’s Day brunch and I knew I had to include it in this spread. It’s different from any other French toast I’ve had and when she said it was an easy recipe, I was even more excited to give it a whirl. Here’s the recipe:
French toast
1.5 c. brown sugar
1.5 stick butter
1.5 tsp. cinnamon
1 large loaf of bread, crust removed and sliced in half 6 eggs, beaten 2 c. milk (2%)
1/2 c. maple syrup
1. Melt brown sugar and butter on the stove. Mix with cinnamon and pour on the bottom of a 13″x9″ pan.
2. Layer bread in pan. Combine eggs and milk and pour over bread.
3. Bake at 350* for 45 minutes.
4. Pour maple syrup over French toast and serve.
The chocolate mousse was divine. If you have a sweet tooth, you’ll enjoy this treat. Even for a chocolate lover like me, it was too rich for more than a few bites. Delicious. I made this mousse the night before our brunch and let it sit overnight. It turned out creamy and decadent. Topping it with whipped cream, a raspberry and a mint leaf gave it a restaurant-quality presentation.
I hope you try some of these recipes for an upcoming brunch, or nice weekend breakfast. You won’t be disappointed.
Have a great week!