How to Create a Brunch Menu

If you’re planning a special holiday or Sunday brunch, use this brunch menu. It gives you a choice of egg dish, French toast, two kinds of pancakes, two kinds of waffles, hash browns or home fries, blueberry muffins or scones, and of course, perfectly crispy bacon. This listing also includes cocktails, both non-alcoholic and the more “festive” variety!

Eggs & Omelets

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Eggs are the ideal brunch food. Perfect scrambled eggs aren’t difficult to make. The key is whisking the eggs thoroughly and vigorously before cooking them. Whisking incorporates air, which produces fluffier scrambled eggs.
And if you can make scrambled eggs, you can make an omelet. A simple folded omelet can be filled with grated cheese, diced ham, onions, herbs, or anything else. A make-ahead egg concoction is a frittata. It’s an Italian-style flat omelet that’s baked in a skillet. A spinach, bacon & cheddar frittata is perfect for a special brunch.

Crispy Bacon

The perfect bacon should be cooked slowly over low heat, so that it doesn’t burn. The best way of accomplishing that is to cook it in the oven. It’s practically foolproof, giving you perfectly crispy bacon every time. It’s a breeze to clean up, too.

Pancakes

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Classic pancakes take very little time to prepare. You can mix up the batter in advance and hold it in the refrigerator for several hours. For a really special treat, try delicious buttermilk pancakes. They’re a little bit tangier than ordinary pancakes. If it’s easier, substitute sour cream for the buttermilk.

Waffles

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Nothing says “Sunday brunch” like a great waffle. If you want to go a little further, try making fluffy waffles. They are a bit more involved than the basic recipe, but the fluffier result is worth it. The recipe uses melted butter in addition to oil and the waffles are made lighter by incorporating stiffly beaten egg whites into the batter.

French Toast

French toast is traditionally made from day-old bread. It’s actually better made with stale bread than with fresh. The reason is stale bread will absorb more of the custard mixture than fresh bread will. If all you have is fresh bread, try toasting it very slightly beforehand.

Because thick French toast is made with extra thick bread, it’s important to make sure that the custard is fully absorbed into the bread, otherwise, you’ll just have dry bread at the center of the slices. Because of the extra thick bread, you finish the cooking in the oven to ensure that the custard is fully cooked.

Potatoes

When it comes to brunch, you might think of potatoes as a side dish, but the potatoes that really make a great brunch. This home fries recipe features red potatoes, onions, and red and green bell peppers.

Or try a simple hash browns recipe that is made from shredded potatoes cooked in hot butter and oil until crispy. They can be prepared on a griddle or a skillet.

Muffins & Scones

These deliciously buttery classic scones are light and flaky, and they’re delicious with a jam or marmalade. If you have a sweet tooth, you’ll love some easy blueberry muffins. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

Weekend Brunch Cocktails

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Holidays and special weekends don’t come around every day, so you don’t want to skimp when it’s time to mix up the cocktails. For a really festive brunch, check out these recipes for Mimosas and Bloody Marys. On the non-alcoholic side, try a Virgin Sunrise and a Virgin Mary.

Thought of as a combination of breakfast and lunch, these brunch menus are a most delicious way to entertain

People go crazy for brunch ! It seems that breakfast and brunches are enjoying a resurgence in popularity th ese days. Brunch foods are a welcome change for the host because they can be light and easy to prepare.

Brunch menus are open to just about any food. Although we always think of brunch as breakfast and lunch, you can also prepare brunch with no or limited breakfast foods.

Let your imagination and taste buds go wild and consider foods you may not ordinarily serve for breakfast such as seafood, steak and pasta. Keep everything fresh, seasonal and not overly filling.

Good brunch menus almost always start with Mimosas and Bloody Mary’s

Make sure to include fruit juices, mineral water, milk and tea. Pull out the expresso or cappuccino maker and offer specialty coffees as well.

Planning Ahead
This is especially important for a brunch party unless you like to rise at the crack of dawn to prepare the meal.

• Look for recipes that can be made in advance such as breakfast casseroles
• Up to 1 month ahead of time make muffins and quick breads. Wrap well and freeze
• About 2 weeks ahead, prepare but do not bake quiches and other custard tarts. Freeze well wrapped
• Salad dressings, dips and mayonnaise based sauces can be made 2-3 days ahead. Make salsas the day before
• Cook sausages and bacon up to one day ahead. Drain well and store in the fridge between parchment paper layers
• Cook plain pastas, toss with olive oil and store in Ziploc bags
• Prepare fruit salads first thing in the morning and allow the flavors to blend

Brunch is traditionally served between 11a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. and is normally presented buffet-style . Avoid too many dense, rich foods. Brunch should start your day–not put you back to sleep.

Brunch Menus

Fresh and Light Brunch Menu Serve this simple menu with coffee, tea and sparkling water

Cinnamon Rolls, Tea Cakes, Cookies as desired

Simple Brunch

Serve with fruit teas, juices, white wine spritzers and coffee

Fruit Danishes, Corn Muffins or Coffee Cake

Serve with mixed green salad, rolls, crackers

Melon wedges, orange slices, black grapes

Very Veggie Brunch Menu

It is unlikely that all of your guests will be vegetarian so compliment this all veggie brunch with an egg dish and Rum and Pineapple Glazed Ham or Easy Baked Citrus Chicken. Serve with coffee and sparkling cider.

Flatbreads, Pita Chips, Cheese Crackers

Eggs
Prepared any style served with Salsa

Plentiful Champagne Brunch

This is a big buffet menu, but is light, pleasing and very easy to prepare. Perfect for a bridal shower brunch. Serve champagne before and during the meal.

Fruit Danishes, Muffins or Coffee Cake, Croissants or Biscuits

Cinnamon Oranges
Sprinkle peeled orange slices with cinnamon and nutmeg

Grillades and Grits

Breakfast Meats of Your Choice

Ripe Tomato Slices with Lemon Juice and Fresh Basil

Vegetable and Cheese Platter with Breadsticks

Sweet and Easy
Also serve mineral water, champagne and coffee. Also consider:
Omelet Bar, Spinach Frittata

Luscious Louisiana Brunch
Shrimp and grits may seem like an odd pairing but is marvelous and very Southern. Try this well-seasoned version and I’m sure you will be a convert

Fresh Croissants – Butter – Jams Preserves – Apple Butter

Buttery Creole Shrimp and Cheese Grits

Sliced Tomatoes with Olive Oil and Fresh Basil
Assorted Crackers

All Occasions Brunch
This satisfying menu is good for any occasion. Serve with fruit teas, champagne and white wine or white wine spritzers

Olives and Relishes

Simple Green Salad with Cherry Tomatoes, Lemon and Olive Oil

Chocolate Walnut Biscotti

Sugar and Spice Brunch
Buttermilk Pancakes with Walnut Butter

Brunch Southern Style
An unusual combination of tastes, but the flavors will take you home. Add a pineapple and kiwi fruit salad for added sweetness

Oven Roasted Peanuts in the Shell

Barbecued Pork Tenderloin
Serve with soft breadsticks or rolls and thin radish and cucumber slices

Yogurt and Fresh Berries

Bacon and Eggs and Whole Wheat Toast and Butter

Flank Steak with Roasted Garlic and Rosemary

Light and Elegant Brunch
Start with cheese Danish and add a simple green salad. Serve with mineral water, champagne and coffee. Also consider; Southwestern Scrambled Eggs and Orange Grape Salad

Hurry Up Easter Brunch
One year my annual Easter Brunch almost didn’t happen because of a rushed scheduled. This is what I pulled out of the hat. I served with Mimosas, iced tea and coffee.

Croissants with Jams and Butter

Cheese and Ham Omelets

Pasta with Cheese to Serve with the Chicken
Toss cooked angel hair pasta with olive oil, lots of minced garlic, pinch of hot red pepper flakes, lots of softened butter and shredded Parmesan cheese. Keep in a low oven while other dishes are finishing and cheese is melted. I was amazed that this simple dish was the hit of the brunch!

Yogurt Parfaits with Granola and Fruit
Mix plain yogurt with a dash of vanilla or almond extract. Top with lemon curd, granola, cut fruit (such as any berry or peaches) and toasted almond slices.

Variations: Try flavored yogurt such as lemon, peach, vanilla or strawberry.

Use crumbled brown sugar, oatmeal or even chocolate chip cookies in place of the granola. Use a fruit jam or other types of nuts. Fruits are not at there best by Easter time, so I won’t tell anyone if you use canned fruit. The combinations are deliciously endless and easy!

Happy Easter Brunch Menu Because of a previous year’s near debacle (meaning not up to persnickety standards), I took the time to plan this Easter brunch. It turned out pretty great.

Papaya MImosas

Baked Egg Cups with Cheese , Scrambled Eggs or Made to Order Omelets
Top with a fresh tomato sauce and fresh basil

Salmon Cakes or Grilled Salmon Salad
Olives, Nuts, Pickled Onions, Hummus and Crackers

Thanksgiving or Christmas Brunch Menu
Mimosas – Juices – Coffee – Tea

Mother’s Day is SUNDAY! If your heart is hurting a little this Mother’s Day, for whatever reason, here’s a post Sara and I put together a few years ago about our own moms. It’s a bittersweet sort of holiday for so many people (myself included), so be kind to yourselves this weekend!

Speaking of being kind, while it would be awesome if your partner/kids automatically got you exactly what you wanted, I’ve learned that sometimes you need to drop some hints. I don’t know what you want exactly, but I wouldn’t say no to a nap, winning the Hamilton lottery, and someone else taking care of meal prep and cleanup!

Brunch is hands down my favorite meal and something about spring time and Mother’s Day makes me feel like it should be happening a lot. It’s also one of my go-to entertaining ideas when I host baby or wedding showers. Below you’ll find a Choose-your-own-adventure style brunch menu, where I list a manageable number brunch recipes in a few key categories (Egg main dishes, sweet mains, sides, and drinks) that I use when planning a brunch menu. For all you Moms out there, this would be fun to use for your own Mother’s Day celebrations- simply choose your favorites below, print out each recipe, and hand them over to your spouse and/or kids!

Egg Main Dishes

Since brunch menus often involve some indulgent foods, I always like having a good egg-based dish to anchor the meal and provide some protein. You can find more egg-dishes in our index, here!

Sweet Main Dishes

These types of main dishes provide the fun-factor. Something a little sweet that makes feel like you’re at a restaurant, and also makes it socially acceptable to eat dessert before noon. You can find our full index of pancakes, crepes, and waffles, right here!

Side Dishes

Once you have a great main dish or two, choose a side to round out the meal. Fresh fruit is another great side that you don’t need a recipe for!

Drinks

A fun fruity drink takes any meal up several notches and makes it feel special. I think of specialty drinks as side dishes of sorts. These four favorites give you choices of sweet or savory, bubbly or flat, and all of them could become your next favorite. Need more choices? Click here for our entire beverage index.

Hope that helps you create YOUR next amazing brunch!

3 comments

I do brunch for Easter instead of a traditional dinner. As we were eating this Easter I realized that every recipe was from your blog: biscuits and gravy, ham and cheese waffle bread with egg on top, regular waffles, and almond poppyseed bread, (plus fruit). Brunch is the best!

Thanks for sharing this. You’ve inspired me to put together a brunch for some friends a few days before Mother’s Day!

Get them to put the phones down and start talking.

Brunch is the perfect get-together for family and friends – especially when little ones are involved. It’s early enough so the youngest guests aren’t quite so cranky and tired, it’s filled with both, delicious savory and sweet options, and once done there’s still enough time in the day to tackle to-do lists or enjoy some me-time. We have a few tips on making this weekend-favorite even better.

Get The Conversation Flowing

The key to a successful get-together: good conversation. But how to do you get your guests -especially those that don’t know each other – to interact? Whether hosting new friends, your distant cousins, or a group of smartphone-obsessed teenagers, break the ice with fun conversation starters. Lately, we’ve been using the adorable table setting idea in the video below. It’s super easy to create and casual enough so brunch goers don’t feel pressure to perform. All you have to do is write cute questions like, “who’s the funniest person you know?” on a circular piece of paper. Then, using a craft knife, cut a small slit on each side of the paper and run a ribbon through the slits. Next, tie your conversation starter around a napkin and place it on each table setting. Once your group is seated, take turns going around and answering the questions.

Spend Less Time In The Kitchen

You want to hang out with your guests, not spend the afternoon in the kitchen. The easiest way to do this is to find a dish you can prep ahead and then bake on the morning. That’s the key to the crowd-pleasing brunch entrée in the video below. Get the Baked French Toast ready the night before, and make the raspberry sauce then, too. That way brunch is a breeze, albeit a delicious one. Keep the menu fruity and healthy by serving pineapple smoothies-as well as coffee, of course!

Here are nine amazing French recipes for brunch that are delicious no matter what time you eat them.

Chefs, like the rest of us, feel strongly about brunch. Whether you’re a huge fan like Marcus Samuelsson or commiserate with Hugh Acheson, here are nine amazing French recipes for brunch that are delicious no matter what time you eat them.

1. Green Eggs and Ham Crêpes
These savory crêpes feature creamy, herb-flecked scrambled eggs.

2. Omelet with Pressed Caviar and Sour Cream
Jacques Pépin’s decadent omelet is topped with thin strips of pressed caviar.

3. Ratatouille Toasts with Fried Eggs
This luscious ratatouille is perfect for brunch because it tastes even better when made the day before, making it quick and easy for a mid-morning meal.

4. Tuna Niçoise Burgers
Ready in just 30 minutes, these delicious seafood burgers feature all the flavors of a classic Niçoise salad.

5. Croques Meurice
These bite-size ham-and-cheese sandwiches are miniature versions of the French croque monsieur.

6. French Scrambled Eggs with Truffle Oil
A drizzle of umami-packed truffle oil adds luxurious flavor to this amazing egg dish.

7. Bacon, Cheddar and Onion Quiche
Alsatian pizza is the inspiration behind Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s incredible quiche.

8. Petits Pains au Chocolat
Purchasing puff pastry dough from your local French bakery will make quick work of these delicious breakfast treats.

9. Flaugnarde with Pears
Similar to the baked fruit dessert clafoutis, this terrific, not-too-sweet fruit pancake is delicious for brunch.

We love brunch. It’s our favorite meal.

But there are things that make or break a good brunch.

So lets lay some official groundwork for brunching like a badass .

Read on for some brunch menu ideas and everything else you need to know about our favorite meal of the week.

Ultimate List of Brunch Menu Ideas

Easy Brunch Ideas For A Group

Try These Breakfast Brunch Recipes:

Okay, your friends are over and everyone is ready to smash some good eats. You can’t call yourself the hostess with the mostess unless you feed these hungry hippos.

Try these brunch recipes from foodandwine .com:

Bacon, Tomato and Cheddar Cheese Bake with Eggs

This breakfast casserole topped with runny eggs develops one hell of a texture as it cooks slowly in a glass dish (which makes it easy to see when the bottom is perfectly browned).

Serve this up piping hot with a bloody mary on the side to tie the beverage right back to the tomato in the dish.

Oversize Breakfast Biscuits

Serve these moist bad boys with strawberry jam, or spiced pastrami and cheddar for a savory twist. If you are looking for a stacked/loaded bloody mary , these are great to put on a stick.

Tropical Mini Breakfast Muffins

Mango, banana and coconut give these muffins a sweet, tropical flavor, foodandwine .com says, while the garbanzo bean flour helps create a tender texture and also provides a little extra protein.

Whether you are brunchin ’ in the heartland or on the coasts, it’s all the same–with this dish you’re always in the tropics.

Vegetarian Brunch Enchiladas with Eggs and Sweet Potatoes

This one is vegetarian centric, sure, but make no mistake–the meat eaters of the clan will have their mouths watering, too. After all, only Ron Swanson can eat meat all the time. When you think about it, are eggs really vegetarian anyways?

Baked Eggs with Chorizo and Potatoes

You may notice a recurring theme here with potatoes, but you have to admit, nothing feeds a crowd like some carb loaded, delicious potatoes.

Feeding the masses is all about getting a lot out of what you have, and potatoes and eggs are high mileage. Add some toast and you’re ready to go.

Make Ahead Brunch Recipes

Don’t be that person who picks up chips at Walmart on the way to brunch but still acts like they made a contribution. Get real and make something delicious for the fam . Betty Crocker comes in clutch here with make ahead recipes that please.

Bacon, Egg and Tot Bake

Both bacon and eggs keep well when included in a bake. Add the tots and you have yourself a winning dish to prep for brunch. Throw this together the night before, leave it in the fridge and cook in the morning. There are no wrong answers.

Cinnamon Bun Waffles

It’s classic and simple. Waffles are a fine, respectable contribution to any brunch. With this option you could give everyone a taste of home, or at the very least some bomb ass breakfast food. Add some french toast and yum!

Overnight Egg Sausage Bake

Did sausage finally make it into our brunch menu ideas for spring? Why yes. Yes it did.

The last dish sent everyone home, but this one bought the crew a one-way ticket to nomm -ville.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pancake Bake

Yep. You read that right.

Your taste buds are already tingling and all you got were a few kind words and a picture. Amazing right?

This awesome hybrid make ahead meal will be the real crowd pleaser .

Taking Brunch To The Epic Level

Brunch menu ideas for spring can be whatever you want them to be. After all, brunch was created so you didn’t have to choose between breakfast and lunch. There are some general guidelines to follow though if you want your brunch to be the best thing since bloody mary mix.

• Be Sure to Include Eggs

Some people are a little more on the breakfast side of things when it comes to badass brunchin ’ and eggs are a breakfast staple. Fried, scrambled, in a casserole–doesn’t matter–just make sure you have them.

Brunch Drink Recipes:

The most important and possibly most under mentioned aspect of brunch are the beverages.

Some like to get down with mimosas and what have you, but make no mistake, Bloody Marys are by far the best option for brunch.

So go get yourself some Stu’s THIS IS BLOODY MARY right now. And serve the best ever bloody mary mix at your next brunch. Choose between Original, Smoked Jalapeno and Jamaican Jerk.

Got a big group? Try our Bloody Mary Pitcher Recipe for you and all of your friends.

Place Cards

I will level with you, this came right out of Martha Stewart’s playbook, but this is 100 percent the best way to take your brunch to the next level. You can’t lose. If your brunch is for a group of folks who are more on the swanky side and love the high class treatment–this is a hit. Conversely, a group of guys or gals who think it’s the dumbest thing on the planet will get a huge laugh out of it.

Personality Drink Pairing

Some planning and effort required, but so worth it. If you have a guest list of ten or less, this is a manageable undertaking.

The concept is simple, you make a beverage for each bruncher that best fits their personality. The suave, slender guy with great hair? An old fashioned. The fun loving, hilarious lady in your life? A sangria. It’s easy!

The best personality in the group gets paired with the bloody mary , right?

Nothing conjures up thoughts of easy, breezy relaxation more than a leisurely brunch with family and friends—except when you’re the host and you have no clue how to actually put together that much-anticipated brunch menu. Here are some brunch ideas to help you organize and host an easy, but impressive late-morning meal, including recipes to get your brunch menu started. Because fabulous doesn’t have to be stressful.

Plan a Brunch

Will food be plated or set out buffet-style? We suggest the latter—no need to make it harder on yourself! Gather up your serving and entertaining pieces and figure out what you’ll serve in each, and where you’ll arrange your spread. If you use something like this glazed stoneware, you can cook and serve in the same beautiful dish—less for you to clean when all’s said and done.

Set the table the night before. Plates, napkins, silverware, tablecloth, placemats, glassware—arrange it all ahead of time so you’re not left fussing with place settings when guests arrive.

Prep as much food ahead of time as possible. Chop onions, beat eggs, squeeze juice, grind coffee—whatever you can do ahead of time, do it! Store your prepped ingredients in airtight containers in the fridge until you’re ready to start cooking.

Add flowers. Pick them up from your grocery store or local florist and arrange them in a variety of jars or vases you have around the house for an easy and inexpensive decoration. Or get creative—prep bowls make adorable bud vases, for example.

Photo:@pamperedchefchambers

Create Your Brunch Menu

Brunch combines the absolute best flavors of breakfast and lunch. We recommend choosing an egg dish, something hearty or savory, something sweet, something fresh, and something for dessert. Coffee, tea, and a signature cocktail or mocktail complete the brunch spread.

Don’t turn yourself into a short-order cook the day of your brunch. That means no pancakes and no eggs made to order. See our brunch menu ideas below.

Simple Ideas for Pancakes and Eggs

Eggs and pancakes are centerpieces at breakfast, but don’t always work and can be hard to keep warm at the table. Whip up a delicious and easy Artichoke Zucchini Frittata with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce or a Dutch Baby with Homemade Whipped Cream. Your guests won’t miss the fact that you didn’t fry up eggs or make pancakes to order.

Make-Ahead Baked Oatmeal

No brunch is complete without something sweet. This simple Baked Oatmeal with mixed berries provides sweet, comforting flavor with a little crunch. It’s an easy recipe to make ahead of time and reheat in the oven or microwave. Plus, it adds some healthy whole grains to the menu.

Choose Fresh Fruit

This part of your menu requires minimal effort but adds a lot of bright, seasonal flavor to complement all of your baked dishes. Something like this Summer Fruit & Spinach Salad can be pulled together in just a few minutes and pairs sweet and savory flavors together nicely—a must-have for an ideal brunch recipe.

A Let the Guests Make Their Own Mimosas Recipe

There’s something about a fizzy mimosa (or faux-mosa!) that makes brunch feel extra special. Have fun by offering a DIY mimosa and faux-mosa bar. Set out a selection of juices and champagne or ginger ale, plus plenty of fresh fruit to garnish. Then let everyone enjoy!

No-Fuss Petit Fours

A sweet dessert is the perfect way to cap off a brunch, plus it allows everyone to finish their coffee (or have a second…or third cup!). Look for something easy, but pretty and highlights fresh flavors—like these Orange-Raspberry Petit Fours.

Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day. Meanwhile, morning meetings work well because they don’t interrupt the day, plus people are most alert first thing in the morning. Thus, it makes sense to combine the two, creating breakfast meetings. Here are seven options to choose from when planning your business meeting catering needs.

Continental Breakfast Ideas

Served buffet style, this is the most cost-effective menu option, and hotels or caterers may offer two or three levels of options in this category—offering event planners different choices. Items may include:

• One to three juices (e.g., apple, orange, tomato)
• Assorted baked breakfast bread (e.g., croissants, muffins, toasts)
• Coffee, decaffeinated coffee, and tea
• Seasonal fruit (usually an upgrade option)
• Assorted cereals and dried fruits (usually an upgrade)

When to choose this option: A continental breakfast is good for team meetings, training or customer events that may include staff to mid-level management.

Traditional Breakfast Buffets

If you take a close look at menu pricing, you will notice that catering services are guiding the event planner to this option for maximum value. Available usually as a standard or deluxe level option, they usually include the continental items as well as the following:

• Scrambled eggs
• Meat (e.g., bacon, sausage)
• Fried potatoes

When to choose this option: If the event planner isn’t under too tight of a budget constraint, this is usually a safe choice. Breakfast buffets are better options in the winter and/or when “healthy food” isn’t requested by the client.

Breakfast Stations

An excellent way to make any breakfast event memorable is to add a made-to-order breakfast station that incorporates fresh ingredients. Popular stations include:

• Omelet station
• Waffle station
• Pancake station

When to choose this option: Breakfast stations are added to continental or breakfast buffets. The cost will increase an event planner’s budget, but people enjoy freshly made items. Consider adding this to an event that includes mid-level and upper management attendees.

Plated Breakfasts

Plated meals offer a more formal touch to a breakfast business meeting or event. Most caterers will offer several different options that allow a planner to build anything from a fruit platter breakfast to traditional breakfast items or a signature local meal. Essentially, plated breakfasts are a presentation of the various continental or traditional breakfasts.

When to choose this option: A plated breakfast is usually easier to pull off in a more intimate setting, such as an executive breakfast meeting.

A La Cart Options

To be honest, it’s not recommended to build a breakfast menu a la carte because it isn’t cost-effective. Priced usually based on quantity rather than per person, a quick sampling of popular a la carte items to get your thinking started include:

• Soft drinks
• Bottled water
• Lemonade, iced tea
• Bottled water
• Flavored coffee
• Bagels with assorted cream cheeses

When to choose this option: It’s best to add a la carte items to one of the continental, buffet or plated approaches.

Healthy Options

With increased attention to health and wellness, many event planners are looking for hotels and caterers to offer more healthy items for their guests. It is occasionally challenging because it seems some of the larger hotel and/or convention center catering departments are still working to catch up. First, make sure the menu does not include anything fried. Then, it helps to request that they consider a custom menu, including some of the following:

• Granola cereals
• Whole grain bread
• Low-fat spreads

When to choose this option: Choose this option when wellness and health are important to guests.

Memorable Touches

Although most people don’t have the time to enjoy breakfast, they aren’t usually impressed by the typical hotel or catered event breakfast menus. To make your breakfast meeting more interesting, try one of these suggestions:

• Assorted fruit yogurts served in glassware
• Fresh granola bars made by the executive chef
• Freshly prepared omelet station

A final note: Request that the venue provides a second type of breakfast meat, such as turkey bacon or turkey sausage in addition to traditional pork items.

100 Attendee Healthy Breakfast Menu

Sometimes event planners need to put aside the standard breakfast menus and create a completely different experience for their clients. The following healthy breakfast buffet menu was designed for a 100 attendee breakfast meeting with an agenda that was focused on health and wellness.

Cost: Approximately 20% more than a traditional breakfast buffet, but this menu included a smoothie station which is not included in the base price of any breakfast buffet. Therefore, overall, this healthy breakfast buffet cost relatively the same as most packaged menus.

Less cooking = more time to savor a mimosa.

Imagine waking up each day to a full spread featuring your favorite brunch recipes—including mimosas. Okay, maybe that’s not entirely reasonable, but we say it’s a commendable goal, and we’re happy to do what we can to help make it happen (or, at least plan for your next available weekend morning).

Not only are all these plates perfect for family brunches, but most of them can be made quickly, or even ahead of time, so you aren’t spending your whole weekend morning in the kitchen. Because it’s not really a relaxing brunch if you have to get up early and spend hours in the kitchen to make it.

Whether you prefer sweet or savory options, this list has it all. There are, of course, plenty of dishes featuring eggs—including quiches, frittatas, and toasts. But we’ve also rounded up tons of pancake recipes and breakfast casserole recipes, many of which can even be prepared ahead of time. There are also breads, drinks, sweet treats (looking at you, donut holes), and even simple-but-elegant options like yogurt, or granola.

You can definitely make these recipes any day of the week, but they’d also be great to serve at your holiday feast, whether it’s Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, or Christmas morning. Of course, to complete your brunch—especially if it’s a special occasion—you should also serve a refreshing mimosa. Now that’s a brunch everyone will want to attend.

Photo: David Kiang

This four-ingredient miracle recipe delivers a gorgeous-looking dish with a surprisingly tiny amount of work. You simply line each cup of a muffin pan with a slice of ham, crack an egg into each and drizzle heavy cream on top. Salt, pepper and a sprig of thyme are the only seasonings needed, since the ham has so much flavor. After about 10 minutes in the oven, each person can enjoy his or her very own edible breakfast basket.

Photo: Stephanie Shih

Chia seeds are the trick for turning ho-hum yogurt into thick, rich pudding that tastes way richer than you might expect. This lovely recipe, from Steeped: Recipes Infused with Tea, has you combine the protein-rich seeds with plain yogurt, plus milk that you’ve spiked with matcha, aka green-tea powder. Stir everything together, refrigerate and that’s it—the tea gives the pudding a light grassy-sweet flavor. Layer it with pureed peach and raspberries and you’ve got a beautiful, delicious (and healthy!) treat.

Photo: Sarah Ashley Schiear

Banana pancakes are among the most economical breakfasts you can make—but they certainly don’t taste low-budget. That’s because when the cheap, grocery-store staples hit the griddle, they caramelize, turning into something otherworldly. To make these beauties, just prepare a usual pancake batter and stir in one mashed banana. Then, when you ladle the batter onto the pan, drop a couple of banana slices onto each cake. A drizzle of honey before flipping allows the fruit to brown as it cooks. And instead of syrup, try the maple-almond sauce that accompanies this recipe; just a little bit takes this dish to the next level.

Photo: ?? Ryan Szulc

Fruit salads can be boring, but not this one from the new cookbook Grain Power. It has three parts (fruit, crunch, dressing), so you get a variety of textures and color. You can use whatever fruit you’d like, from kiwis to strawberries to canned pineapple to berries. Cooked quinoa adds a fantastic nutty element, and the dressing is a simple combination of the juice from the pineapple can, and that of a lime.

Photo: Clare Barboza

If the idea of peach pie for breakfast speaks to you, you’ll love this morning spin from Megan Gordon’s book Whole-Grain Mornings. Its filling is sweet peaches covered with mounds of biscuit dough that’s been seasoned with fresh thyme. The best part: You don’t have to peel the peaches, and you can mix the dry ingredients for the biscuits the night before. In the morning, just combine the dry with the wet ingredients and slice the peaches; by the time you’ve finished your first cup of coffee, it’s ready to pull from the oven.

Photo: Ron Manville

You don’t have to worry about rolling out dough and dealing with cracks, breaks or a not-quite-right texture with this recipe. A mixture of shredded zucchini, eggs, chopped onions, baking mix (like Bisquick) and shredded Cheddar form the crust on their own.

Photo: Richard Gerhard Jung

Frying eggs to each person’s individual taste (sunny-side up, over easy, enough already!) can be maddening. The solution: Bake the eggs in ramekins. You can pull just-set ones out of the oven a minute early and let others cook a bit longer—without sweating over a frying pan.

Photo: Ditte Isager

Instead of greasing cupcake tins, dropping spoonfuls of dough into each cup and having to scrub each little one clean later, make this berry-topped focaccia. It tastes like a slightly sweet, less-crumbly alternative to a classic blueberry breakfast muffin.

Photo: Jeremy Liebman

If you assemble this casserole the night before, all you have to do is preheat the oven and pop it in to bake. It’s best with day-old challah or a similar egg bread, which does a fine job of soaking up the eggs, milk and cream.

Photo: Gentl & Hyers

Spiked with dried fruits, honey, citrus zest and nutty-tasting walnut oil, a rustic apple cake comes together in a flash. No need to make a separate crumb topping; this treat is wonderful with just a dollop of plain Greek yogurt.

Photo: Anna Williams

The quandary: Use bottled Bloody Mary mix, which is quick but not as good as homemade, or make your own but deal with a long list of ingredients. The solution: Cat Cora’s recipe, which mainly relies on basil-infused vodka (that you can make days ahead of time) for flavor.

I take brunch very, very seriously, so seriously that I don’t go out for it very often because, you see, few places do it right. The scones are chalky, the fruit cups are nothing but soggy raspberries and unloved green melon, the yogurt is too sweet; the baked eggs are either hard-cooked or have clear, unsettling whites and the toast, it never comes. Am I a brat with nothing but First World Problems? Indeed I am, but I make a mean brunch.

I’m going to hazard a guess that in a week and season filled with house guests and sleeping in, you’ll spend a least one of these mornings forgoing your usual coffee and granola bar on-the-go for something social and substantial. And thank goodness, right? Here are the cornerstores I like a gather a brunch menu around: Something fresh, like a fruit salad, even better if you throw in a rich yogurt to spoon over them; something rich and eggy; something sweet, like a coffee cake, muffin, bread pudding or baked french toast; something bready like a biscuit or scone; something boozy, like mimosas, bloody marys or both and something unholy, like bacon or sausage. Or both, because it’s not January 1st yet.

And this is my only rule: Everything must be made in advance. The only thing required of you the morning of your brunch is to roll out of bed and turn the oven on, which came in handy when, in another life, I devised this strategy for all of those New Years Day brunches when I woke up too, ahem, after-partied to do anything more. (Nowadays, I’m just lazy, and will take extra sleep any way I can devise it.)

Here’s how you can pull it off, too:

• Pancakes, traditional French toast and omelets are verboten. The only people who can whip out omelet after omelet without breaking a sweat and at the kind of breakneck speed you need to serve a dozen people at once are the short-order griddle guys at NYC bodegas. I leave it to them. Updated to add: Unless, of course, you’re making the world’s best waffles, which are assembled the day before and are ready when you wake up. Make them before your guests arrive and keep them warm in the oven. [Suggestion:Essential Raised Waffles]
• Scones and biscuits are a flash-freezers dream. Roll them out, shape them and arrange them unbaked on your baking sheet and stick the whole tray in the freezer overnight. Bake them directly from the freezer before you’ve rubbed the sand out of your eyes. They’re always best fresh from the oven, anyway. [ Suggestions:Dreamy Cream Scones, Jalapeño-Cheddar Scones, Meyer Lemon and Fresh Cranberry Scones, Chive Buttermilk Biscuits, Cream Biscuits and How to Flash Freeze]
• Fruit salads can be made the day before. In berry season, just grab a mix of whatever looks good and you’re done. In the winter, I make a winter fruit salad. [Suggestion:Winter Fruit Salad]
• Bacon and sausage is best made the day-of but this doesn’t mean you must toil over a stove while your friends recount the night before’s antics in the other room. Sausages can be roasted on a tray, rolling them around occasionally to ensure even crisping; bacon can be cooked in the oven on a cooling rack suspended over a baking sheet to catch the drippings. Each can be ready long before guests arrive, and kept warm until you serve them.
• Baked French toast and/or bread puddings can and should be assembled the night before; the more you soak them, the better they usually taste. [Suggestions:Boozy Baked French Toast, Raisin-Studded Apple Bread Pudding and Cinnamon Toast French Toast]
• Quickbreads, muffins and coffee cakes are a great way to round on the meal, and satisfy sweet tooths, and if you wish to make them a few days or a week in advance, they freeze really well. Take them out the night before and they’ll be defrosted when you need them. [Suggestions:Whole Wheat Apple Muffins, Raspberry-Topped Lemon Muffins, Sour Cream Bran Muffins, Jacked-Up Banana Bread, Date Spice Loaf, Big Crumb Coffee Cake, Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Coffee Cake, Grapefruit Yogurt Loaf or Cranberry Vanilla Coffee Cake]
• The base for Bloody Marys can be mixed and the orange juice for mimosas can be squeezed the night before. If it’s summer or if your apartment is always a-broilin’ thanks to New York City steam heat, so can iced coffee, and heck, it should be. [Suggestions:Bloody Mary, Cold-Brewed Iced Coffee]
• If I think potatoes are in order, I make latkes, not home fries. They reheat on a tray in the oven best of all (I think the oven gives them a bonus crispiness) and your guests get something that might otherwise be a rare treat. Latkes keep for weeks well-wrapped in the freezer, so you get a lot of lead time on them too. [Suggestion:Latkes]
• Finally, I always consider the centerpiece is the kind of deep, rich eggy dish that makes people forget you refused to fry an egg on their behalf. Until this weekend, this baked egg dish was my favorite, with the eggs baked in tomato sauce a distant second (I’d make the vegetable bases for each the day before, only cracking eggs as guests arrived). And hey, they’re still great. But for the sake of space, and because I am a terrible tease, you’ll have to tune in tomorrow to find out what trumps them both. [Suggestions:Baked Eggs with Spinach and Mushrooms, Eggs in Tomato Sauce]

(That is, besides a baby in a gigantic snowsuit, impatient for the blizzard to begin. But that went without saying, right?)