Sunday Brunch - for Two or a Holiday Crowd

Darren needed to go back to the office today so rather than a nice Sunday dinner, we decided to enjoy a brunch together as our big meal of the day.  I am a huge fan of breakfast for dinner and especially brunch so this was right up my alley.  I didn't make anything too complicated but it came together nicely so I thought I'd share.  Our menu and tips for throwing this together are below - enjoy!

Fall Brunch Menu:  This can be used if you have company for any upcoming holiday, you can set up a salad and toss in dressing right before.  Muffins can also be made ahead but one of the best parts is having them steaming hot to melt the butter...

• Herbed Scrambled Eggs with Parmesan
• Sockeye Salmon with Basil Pesto
• Coffee Cake Muffins
• Simple Greens with Pomegranate

Salmon - Add a large dollop of Pesto (ours was from Whole Foods but you can also make it fresh if you want) and a few sprinkles of sliced parmesan.  Preheat oven to 425; add 1 Tbsp butter to a glass or stone pan and put the pan in the oven as it comes to temperature.  Once oven (and pan) have pre-heated, lay salmon skin side-down.  Bake 12-16 minutes depending on thickness.  Flesh should flake to a fork when done and cheese will be crisp.

Eggs - Scramble eggs with cream or 1/2 & 1/2 (not an every day treat but certainly nice,) a pinch of salt and any herbs you want!  Today I didn't have fresh so I just used a pinch of dry tarragon.  Cook low & slow and remove from heat while still "wet."

Greens - We used frisee and a mixed green, added some fresh pomegranate seeds, a handful of toasted walnuts and tossed with a quick sprinkle of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a pinch of sea or kosher salt and a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime.

Muffins - this is from How to Cook Everything, the Sweet and Rich Muffins with the addition of the Coffee Cake topping.

• 6 Tbsp butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup milk, plus more as needed.

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.  For best results, grease a 12-compartment muffin tin (I used Pam for baking) and use muffin tins.
2. Use wooden spoon or standing mixer to cream together butter and sugar.
3. Mix together the salt, baking powder, and flour; beat the eggs with the milk.
4. Add about a third of the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture, then moisten with a little of the milk.  Repeat until all ingredients are used up.  The batter should be lumpy, not smooth, and thick but moist; add a little more milk or other liquid if necessary.
5. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins.  For large muffins fill to the top, filling any unused cups with a bit of water.  Bake 20-30 minutes (mine were very large and only took 22 minutes), or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Let rest for 5 minutes.

Coffee Cake muffins:  Mix together 1/2 cup packed brown sugar; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; 1 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts) such as walnuts, pecans or cashews; and 2 Tbsp melted butter.  (I also added a dash of ground clove.)  Stir half of this mixture into the batter and sprinkle the rest on top before baking.

My Sous-Chefs, creating a salad.

Comments

[Air Jordan Online]

Spoon the batter into the muffin tins. For large muffins fill to the top, filling any unused cups with a bit of water. Bake 20-30 minutes (mine were very large and only took 22 minutes), or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let rest for 5 minutes.