How many times have you thought about going out for brunch, but were put off by today‘s rather high prices for what you consider a small amount of food? How many times have you thought that toast with a bit of avocado and an egg for 10 euros is overpriced and that you could make a better meal yourself? Of course, that never really happened, you just stopped at a bakery and spent your 2 euros on a small burek. Don‘t worry, you‘re not the only one, lately we often hear complaints about high prices in restaurants and cafes and, while we still believe in the quality of prepared brunch dishes and from time to time like to treat ourselves to a poached egg combined with smoked salmon or creamy hollandaise sauce, much more often we prepare brunch at home. Mostly just for ourselves, and when we‘re in a particularly good mood, we gather a group of dear friends around the table on the weekend, pull out our prettiest bowls and plates, and serve all the wonders that a proper brunch must contain in them.
AND WHAT EXACTLY DOES BRUNCH MEAN?
Brunch is something between breakfast and lunch, a meal that we most often enjoy in the late morning and early afternoon hours. This often means the period from 11 to 14 hours, and sometimes even longer. We could also call brunch a late breakfast or an early lunch.
And what does it include? There is no universal rule, but here brunch most often includes sweet granola or bowls with oatmeal and fruit, toasts and sandwiches, and the most popular are sunny side up eggs, omelets, and poached eggs combined with hollandaise sauce, smoked salmon or ham. The brunch menu sometimes also includes waffles, pancakes, savory pies, savory and sweet pastries, salads, cheese or fruit platters.
In addition to food, brunch often includes a refreshing, even alcoholic drink. The most popular are mimosas, a combination of sparkling wine and orange juice, but also light cocktails like Hugo, made with wine, mineral water, and elderflower syrup, then rose lemonade, and even mojito. Of course, it‘s not forbidden to order coffee (if you didn‘t have time to drink it with breakfast), tea, freshly squeezed orange juice, a smoothie, or good lemonade.
HOW TO MAKE BRUNCH AT HOME?
Now that we‘ve defined the term brunch and what it includes, it‘s time to prepare a real little feast yourself. Below, we bring you a few recipes that will come in handy, as well as tips that you can easily apply when preparing breakfast or a light lunch on busy days.
TO START WITH, EGGS!
Eggs are the absolute stars of almost every brunch. We love them prepared in different ways, especially served on toast with good ham and sauce.
Besides poached, you can always make eggs fried in your preferred fat or boil them to your liking. If you‘re making brunch for a larger group of people with different tastes when it comes to eggs, definitely consider putting them in a pot and cooking several at once. Just watch the cooking time and simply make them to each guest‘s liking without too much effort.
IS THERE BRUNCH WITHOUT AVOCADO TOAST?
Avocado toast is not toast with guacamole or thinly sliced avocado. The definition of avocado toast is crispy bread and mashed avocado to which you then add seasonings as desired. The most basic are salt and pepper, and a good option can also be chili flakes, various sauces and dressings like sriracha or balsamic vinegar, but also fresh vegetables, even bacon. It‘s not unusual for avocado toast in a restaurant to be served with halved cherry tomatoes, feta cheese, ham, the aforementioned eggs, and salmon.
Therefore, there is no universal recipe for avocado toast, all you need to do is mash the avocado with a fork, spread it on toasted bread, and then listen to yourself and top it with your desired additions. For example, we like it with spring onions and finely chopped sweet tomatoes.
Besides the classic way, a simple addition to brunch will be crispy baked bread served with thinly sliced avocado drizzled with a little lemon juice and seasoned as desired. It will look impressive and taste great.
What we would definitely like to add is that avocado is quite fatty, so you won‘t need to add butter, sour cream, or olive oil.
HOW TO MAKE THAT SILKY YELLOW SAUCE?
The sauce most often served with eggs for brunch is called hollandaise, best known as one of the ingredients in eggs Benedict, and is made from egg yolks, butter, lemon juice, and pepper.
To make it, first prepare 120 grams of butter, 3 large egg yolks, one tablespoon of fresh lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and a little pepper. First, melt the butter in a saucepan, let it foam, but do not let it turn brown. Then prepare a pot of water, and place another bowl on top in which you will cook the sauce over steam. The top bowl must not touch the water. Put the beaten egg yolks and lemon juice in it and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, add the melted butter and continue to stir until you get a sauce. Make sure not to cook the eggs and that lumps do not form. Also, be careful that the sauce does not get too hot and separate. Remove the sauce from the heat, season with salt and pepper and serve immediately with eggs.
Our advice is that, before you start preparing, just in case, watch a video recipe as well. The whole thing will be much clearer. Therefore, below we leave you Jamie Oliver‘s video.
IF YOU HAVE MORE TIME, MAKE A SAVORY PIE
Savory pies are ideal for larger groups, practical to prepare, and even just one will satisfy a larger number of people, especially if they are fans of classic quiche or a simpler savory galette pie. In addition, you can also make mini upside-down pies from puff pastry, which take about 10 minutes to prepare and can be excellent finger food, and you can adapt them to your or your guests‘ tastes.
WHAT ELSE DO I NEED?
When you‘re already browsing the market stalls, buying the best bread and pastries, looking for farm eggs and checking supermarket shelves, stock up on smoked salmon, which is always a good addition to egg dishes, then good ham (our recommendation is a visit to Salumeria Mangia where they offer really good Italian ham) and prosciutto, and you can always spice up the whole thing with good burrata. You can serve it on a fresh salad, with some sweet cherry tomatoes, a little fleur de sel and olive oil.
Don‘t forget the baked bread, which, if the toaster takes too much time, you can make in the oven. Slice old bread, drizzle with olive oil, arrange on baking paper and bake for 5-10 minutes at 200 degrees, depending on how crispy you want it. When it‘s done, rub it with a clove of garlic and put it in a serving bowl.
You can also add baked peaches or apricots, grapes that go great with prosciutto and cheese, and you can always add them to a platter for classic lovers who are satisfied with a selection of domestic cold cuts and cheeses for a good brunch.
WHAT ABOUT THOSE WHO LOVE SWEET BRUNCH?
Don‘t worry, we haven‘t forgotten those who always prefer sweet bites. When it comes to brunch, a good option will be sweet French toast that you can serve with maple syrup or honey, add fruit, and you can even include chocolate in the combination.
Make sweet French toast with milk bread. A good choice will be Japanese shokupan, which you can buy at the Zagreb artisan bakery Korica, and when it is well soaked in a mixture of eggs and milk or sweet cream, fry it in oil (or mix oil and butter) so that it gets a nice aroma and fills the whole kitchen with its scent.
Besides French toast, a good option will be American or classic pancakes, as well as sweet bread. Get creative and make it with zucchini or carrots, add chocolate chunks or your favorite fruit as desired. Sponge cakes are always a hit, especially if they stay moist after you slice and serve them.
For a lavish sweet part of the table, also consider a good seasonal galette, muffins, puff pastry baskets, and similar treats.
Granola, oatmeal, and similar dishes can also be part of your brunch. You can easily make granola yourself, and from oatmeal you can make porridge or, even better, overnight oats with nut butters, coconut, or chocolate, which you will then just put on the table and let guests choose the combination and flavor they like best.
HOW TO SET THE TABLE FOR A GOOD BRUNCH?
And finally, to make your table look as attractive as possible, it‘s worth paying attention to how you set it, especially if you‘re hosting a larger group of gourmets who are hard to impress. Arrange the food you‘ve prepared in bowls and dishes of various sizes, add a few shallow and deep plates for fresh fruit, and bowls with different spreads and dips like hummus and tzatziki, various pâtés and jams for the sweet part of the table can also be a good idea.
Make sure the bread you serve is of good quality, and if you want the table to look really rich, add some croissants, a cinnamon roll, or whatever you find in your favorite bakery. Besides bread, focaccia is more than a good option.
If you‘re serving boiled eggs, peel them and leave them whole, and just halve a few so they look more effective on the plate. Finish poached eggs just before serving, and the same goes for fried eggs.
Don‘t forget a large jug of water and drinks of your choice, tea and coffee. Finally, round everything off with a vase filled with flowers and enjoy the good company, ambiance, and food. And don‘t forget, in some parts of the world, brunch can last until 4 pm, so don‘t let time limit you. It‘s the weekend, time for maximum relaxation, enjoyment, and - brunch!
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