Lazy Girl's Guide to a Great Brunch

Recently, some friends in town invited a few people over for brunch, and it was a great way to spend a Saturday morning.  I loved lazily showing up in comfy clothes, munching on delicious food, and spending time with friends yet still having lots of time left in the day for other things.  

It got me thinking that I should really do brunch with friends at home more- it’s a nice change of pace from typical boozy brunches out. Though I also love those, I get tired of the same places and the no-reservations wait.  Opening your home to friends is a great way to switch it up, and all you really need to do is put out a bagel spread to make people happy.  And that’s no effort, so it will make you happy too.

Below, my recipe for a no-fail, stress-free brunch:

The Must-Haves:
Bagels and Lox Spread: 
 

Run out in the morning to pick up bagels, and set out a few flavored cream cheeses, lox, tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers. (See this post for tips on arranging).

You can also add whitefish or tuna salad, though I usually skip those. 

Something Sweet:

Some people like sweet breakfast, and some like savory, so you should always provide options in both categories. I pick up muffins wherever I get my bagels, and ask a guest to bring fruit.  My mother-in-law always provides her “berry bowl,” a yummy and color-coordinated mix of raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries. 



Drinks:
Coffee, tea, water, and mimosas, of course. 

Not Necessary but Nice:
Something Hot:

I always do my go-to frittata, which I posted about last week.  But you could make scrambled or baked eggs (like my Shakshuka recipe). Baked French toast or cinnamon buns are nice too, but definitely not a lazy way out. 

Or hey, take it really easy and just heat up the bagels. You can slice them in half, put the halves back together, and put in the oven for a few minutes. They’ll steam inside and have that still-warm-from-the-bagel-shop taste.  The point is to enjoy your company, not spend hours getting ready. 

What are your tips for an easy but fun brunch?

The Best Breakfast Dish

Frittats are my favorite thing to serve for a group brunch.  I’m never satisfied with a weekend breakfast that doesn’t include eggs, but they’re not exactly easy to prepare for a group. I mean, what would Ina say if you stood there and made individual omelets?  A frittata makes things simple, allows for endless combinations of fillings, and is great at room temperature, so you can make it in advance.

I toss all my ingredients in a pie dish and just bake it, skipping the stovetop step- so this is a good recipe if you don’t own an oven-safe pan.  I like the nine inch white pie dish from Wilton, which is under $10.

My favorite frittata is the potato, bacon, and feta frittata from the Smitten Kitchen cookbook. I roast the potatoes the night before so I can assemble everything quickly in the morning. Sometimes, I also add fresh arugula.

 

Potato, Bacon, Feta Frittata, from Smitten Kitchen by Deb Perelman
Serves 6 as part of a brunch buffet, 4 if serving alone
 

5 large Yukon Gold potatoes

2/3 cup crumbled feta

8 large eggs

2 scallions, sliced

5 strips bacon , crumbled (I actually use the precooked kind that you can just microwave)

2 tbsp milk or cream

3 tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400.
 

Peel potatoes and slice very thinly on a mandolin. Arrange in a single layer (fine if a few overlap) on a baking sheet, and coat with olive oil, and a generous amount of salt and pepper.  Roast for 30 mins, until crispy around edges.  You can do this step the night before, or boil the slices for 7 minutes if you are pressed for time.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, cream, and a little more salt and pepper.

Spray a 9 inch pie dish evenly with nonstick spray, and arrange the potatoes in the bottom.  Top with the bacon, then feta, then scallions, and pour egg mixture over. 

Cover dish with foil, and bake for 20 minutes. Then, remove foil and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until puffed and set in center. Sometimes, I will also carefully broil it for just a minute or so to give it a nice golden look. Be careful- don't overdo that!

**If you want to make this (or any frittata) for a larger group, up to 12 as part of a brunch buffet, use 12 eggs and plan to bake it for 55 minutes at 375.  You’ll need a bigger pie dish- I use a 12" from Emile Henry.  

Shakshuka

Shakshuka. Fun to say.  Although if you tell people you’re making it for them, you might be met with some blank stares. 

 

Shakshuka is a Middle Eastern dish of eggs baked in a tomato sauce. It’s very easy to execute, fairly hands off, and makes a delicious, and slightly unusual, brunch dish.  I used a Food and Wine recipe that adds an Italian spin to the dish.

 

Shakshuka with Swiss Chard, adapted from Food and Wine

Serves 2, but doubles easily to serve 4

 

2 cups prepared tomato sauce (I always have homemade sauce in the freezer)

1 bunch Swiss chard

1 package baby bella or white button mushrooms

1/3 cup diced pieces of fresh mozzarella

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp chopped kalamata olives

2 tbsp Parmesan cheese

4 large eggs

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

 

Preheat oven to 350. 

 

Clean your mushrooms by rubbing them with a paper towel. Remove stems, and cut in quarters. 

 

Remove Swiss chard leaves from stalks, clean, and chop. Reserve stalks for another use, or mince to include in recipe (I left them out, I don’t love the stalks).

 

In a large, oven-safe skillet*, sauté mushrooms in olive oil until softened and browned, about 10 minutes. Add in Swiss chard and sauté till wilted.  Pour in your tomato sauce. 

 

Using a ladle, make four indentations in the piles of chard and sauce. Crack each of the four eggs into each indentation. 

 

Scatter mozzarella cubes and olives around eggs. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and top with Parmesan. Bake for 15 minutes, until whites are set and yolks are runny. Just a heads up, baked eggs, always look really underdone, no matter how long  you bake them for.  

 

Let stand five minutes, then serve with toast. 

 

 

*If you don’ t have an oven safe skillet, you can always spray a baking dish or pie plate with nonstick spray, then pour  your sautéed vegetables and sauce into it and continue with the recipe as directed.  That’s what I did here.

Arranging a Bagels and Lox Platter

 

New Year's Day is the perfect day for a lazy brunch with friends, to sit around in PJs and recap the events of the night before. It's also the perfect time for a bagel spread- what hungover hostess wants to spend the morning cooking? All you'll have to do New Year's Day is pick up the bagels and arrange the toppings on a platter- easy!

So today I figured I'd share my tips for making your bagel platter look a little nicer.

1. Arrange all your toppings neatly. Fold your smoked salmon slices in half and line them up. Line up your tomato, red onion, and lemon slices (if using) next to that. It's neater looking and easier to pick up.

 

2. I love using radicchio to make bowls to hold toppings. I saw this tip on an episode of Barefoot Contessa.  All you have to do is cut the core from a head of raddicchio, remove the two outler leaves, and fit them into each other to make a bowl. You can fill that with your cream cheese, whitefish, whatever.

 

3. Finally, I like to fill in any empty spaces with bunches of fresh parsley or dill. A little green alwasy makes everything look better.

 

Raddicchio Bowl

 

If you need to take up more room, you can put some bagels on the platter. Otherwise, just pile them in a big bowl lined with a napkin.

 

  

Simple and effective! What are your favorite presentation tricks?

The Perfect Omelette

I've often heard it said the test of a good chef is their ability to cook an omelette. It seems like the simplest thing, but so often, they're awful- burnt on the outside, or too thick, or runny and raw in the middle.

After lots of trying, and some tips from Cooking Light magazine, I've been able to make my perfect omelette. I like to use an larger nonstick pan, so that the egg spreads out and creates a thin, crepe-like omelette, that folds over a few times, rather than a thicker one that's simply folded in half.

Start with two eggs, beaten with a splash of cream or milk, plus some salt and pepper:

Gather your fillings. Here, I went a bit healthy on you- shredded cheddar, parsley, Tuscan kale, and yellow cherry tomatoes.

Spray your pan with nonstick spray (or use butter, whatever you like), turn the heat onto medium low, and pour in your beaten egg mixture.

Let the eggs set.  Be patient, and use low heat. Too high heat can toughen the protein in eggs, or burn them. As the eggs set, you can use a spatula to lift the edges and pour some of the runny egg underneath to help it set more.

When the eggs are mostly dry, place your fillings on top of the egg, in the center.

Using your spatula, carefully fold 1/3 of the omelette over, then fold over again, and then again.

Serve and enjoy! I like mine on a piece of toast: