Hosting Tips For a Brunch

The word is a mishmash, but “brunch” says exactly what it is: a combination of breakfast and lunch. It’s often served on Sunday mornings, when the opportunity to sleep in is best. You want your guests to keep this easy and relaxed feeling, so menus and home décor should stay simple and go with the flow of a typical Sunday morning mood.  

Bouquets For Brunch 
There aren’t many things more beautiful than flower arrangements sitting in the Sunday morning sun. This quick approach to home décor lets the flowers do all of the work while keeping things uncomplicated.

First, decide what flowers you would like as the official flower of your brunch. Blooms like roses, orchids and daisies are in season year-round, but you also may want to customize and use flowers that are in season, a favorite among your group or maybe even your own favorite bud.

Then, simply gather small bouquets of your flower and place any number of small bouquets or bud vases with a single stem (if you’re using sunflowers, for example) around your home on end tables and as centerpieces for the food display. Decorating with one type of flower or plant will help give your gathering a nice, holistic feel. Tie smart, stylish ribbons around the vases for added flair.

Good Morning Menu 
Invigorate and nourish your guests with the brunch basics: coffee, juice, muffins and an assortment of fresh fruit. For display, find a few sturdy boxes or containers of varying heights (within reach of your guests, of course!) and place them on your table. Drape them with tablecloths or colorful, cool fabrics and place plates of food on top.

For main courses, try this simple sausage scramble or the versatile Breakfast Bundt:

Simple Sausage Scramble 

INGREDIENTS 
6 oz. turkey or pork sausage (casings removed)
6 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) DEL MONTE^® Sliced New Potatoes, drained
2 Tbsp. sliced green onion

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cook sausage in large nonstick skillet until no longer pink; drain.
2. Beat together eggs, milk and pepper. Add to skillet with potatoes and onion.
3. Cook over medium heat, stirring until eggs are set. Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese, if desired.

Breakfast Bundt
Cook this versatile breakfast delight and eat for days! Not just for breakfast or brunch, it can also be paired with soup for lunch or dinner.

INGREDIENTS
2 tubes of refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1/2 pkg. of turkey sausage (cooked and crumbled)
1/2 pkg. turkey bacon (cooked and diced)
1 cup reduced fat cheddar cheese (grated)
1 1/2 cups of liquid egg product

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven 375°F.
2. Spray a bundt pan with cooking spray and set aside.
3. Start your first layer by placing the biscuits in the pan. Next, sprinkle the cooked sausage and bacon over the biscuits.
4. Pour the eggs over the meat and then sprinkle the cheese over the eggs.
5. Add the second layer of biscuits over the cheese.
6. Bake for 40 minutes. Cool and invert on to a plate to serve.

Tip: Any kind of breakfast meat can be used, such as chorizo, Italian sausage, spicy pork sausage, Canadian bacon, etc. Feel free to switch up the type of cheese as well, or substitute low fat biscuits.

Tip: It’s the breakfast that keeps on giving. Cut it into portions and freeze for later use or use a panini press to create the perfect complement to your favorite soup at lunch or dinner.

Another option is to start off the Sunday sweetly with this delicious Monkey Bread. It’s a funny name, but this snack food is so easy to make and fun to have your guests pull off bite-sized bits of gooey sweetness. You can substitute chocolate chips or strawberries for the blueberries in this recipe.

Blueberry Monkey Bread

INGREDIENTS 
1 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
4 cans (10 ounces each) refrigerated buttermilk biscuit dough
1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries
3/4 cup margarine

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350˚. Thoroughly grease a bundt cake or round cake pan. If you don’t have one of those, a 9” x 5 1/2” bread pan will work.
2. Mix sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Cut biscuits into bite-sized pieces, then cover each piece in the sugar mixture.
3. Arrange one layer of biscuit pieces in the bottom of the pan, then sprinkle about a quarter of the blueberries on top of it.
4. Repeat adding layers of biscuit pieces and blueberries until you reach the top of the pan.
5. In a saucepan, combine the rest of the sugar mixture with margarine. Heat until the sugar is dissolved and the margarine is melted. Pour over the biscuits in the pan.
6. Bake for 65 minutes or until done. Lift and turn out onto a cake plate. Top with icing, if desired.

Or, let your guests start the morning with their own easy recipe! Offer the option of a breakfast burrito bar. Simply offer a plate of warm corn or flour tortillas along with small dishes of all the burrito fixings: scrambled eggs, browned sausage, bacon, along with shredded cheese, salsa, onions, sour cream, green onions and diced ham, to name a few.