Baby Shower Brunch Menu

Lemon tartlette with a graham cracker crust.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say brunch is my favorite meal. It's an excuse to eat a huge breakfast (which would probably take my favorite meal award if not for the brunch option); it can include sweet and savory items; there's often a way to sneak in a dessert on top of other sweet breakfast breads; and usually, there's an adult beverage to be had. Seriously, what's not to love about brunch?

Happily, I had the best excuse ever to throw a brunch: a baby shower!

Pennants and pom-poms and gifts, oh my!

Our new baby nephew will be here before we know it, and I can barely contain my excitement. Last weekend, I hosted a baby shower for my lovely sister-in-law, and didn't fool anyone. I heard from many of the attendees, "I saw that on Pinterest!"

I've been found out! Pinterest is a great party-planning tool. As soon as I'd offered to host the shower, I began pinning party ideas. The tissue paper flowers, party favors, recipes... I found my inspiration with pins. In putting together the brunch menu, it helped me with my lengthy list of brunch requirements.

The menu had to:
• Feed 12 people a nice, well-rounded brunch
• Have something for everyone
• Offer foods that were easy to pick up or bite-size, and also kid-friendly
• Make everything from scratch, and as organic/local/sustainable as possible
• Prep most of the food the day before
• Include some of the mom-to-be's favorites, like cinnamon rolls and cucumbers

After consulting my co-hostess (and my sister, and my mom, and pretty much anyone who would listen), I put together this menu:

Breakfast Strata with Sausage, baked in a muffin tin for individual servings
Vegetarian Frittatas with Zucchini and Basil, adapted from this recipe
Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing, adapted from this recipe
Cucumber Tartines, adapted from this recipe
Lemon Tartlettes, adapted into mini tarts with graham crusts from this recipe
Rainbow Fruit Kabobs
Punch (half and half mix of pomegranate Italian soda and orange juice)
Mimosas
Cupcakes (from a local bakery)

The strata, cinnamon rolls, tartlettes, and fruit kabobs were all prepped and in the fridge by Friday night. Saturday morning, all I had to do was prepare the fritatta, and then set the oven to 350 to shuffle things in and out. This made for a fairly stress-free morning. Of course, when planning a party it's always wise to delegate a few things (I'll admit to being a control freak; but was so thankful to have a wonderful co-hostess and mother-in-law who swooped in and saved me, despite my best planning efforts!).

All the ingredients I used were organic, and the zucchini and basil for the fritattas, and the cucumber for the sandwiches, came from our gardens. The lemon tartlettes were the most surprising addition; the recipe could not have been simpler, and the end result (bite-size morsels topped with fresh whipped cream) was delectable. Sweet, but not overly so. The cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting were a big hit; cool-rise dough is a great trick for offering a fresh baked good at brunch.

Do you have any favorite brunch recipes or tips to share? Please do!

Wordless Wednesday: The Morning Routine

Here's what our morning routine looks like most days of the week. Fin and I are up first, and after the two of us go outside to check on the gardens and play, we settle in for a homemade breakfast.

Many folks skip this part of the morning all together, but in our home, we believe in it wholeheartedly.

It's simple, reliable, healthy, warm, and delicious. And even if I'm feeling rushed, I'm better off because we share breakfast together as a family. This meal is nourishing and enjoyable; but best of all, it gives us a moment in the mornings to sit at our table and quietly, ritually, enjoy.

Strawberries from a place decidedly not our garden.

Everything finishes at the same time.

Stovetop espresso and boiling water for americanos. We brew Lola Savannah's Caramella coffee, which I buy in half-pound increments each week at Central Market. It is by far the best coffee we've ever had at home.

Cooked oatmeal in an enameled blue cast iron pot. It gets a lot of love.

Oatmeal topped with flax seed, cinnamon, and brown sugar... In the early morning light.

a proper breakfast

One morning in January, when I had the day off and Ryan didn't, and I couldn't fall back asleep and the kitchen was begging to be dirtied and I just couldn't keep my hands off a new recipe, I made scones. 

And we haven't been quite the same since. You see, I never knew what having a scone really meant. The only time I'd ever, in my life, had a real honest-to-goodness scone was at my friend Ellen's house. She, being one of my highly cultured friends, made homemade scones with whipped cream (and having never eaten an honest scone before, I had to ask what the white fluffy stuff was) and strawberry jam, and Earl Grey tea with cream and lumps of sugar. 

So when I stepped out into the scone-making world, a bar had already been set; and I had to clear the bar, because no way was I going to disappoint myself, or the bf for that matter. That's when I reached for both Bittman's book and the Joy of Cooking: this is what I'd call scone research. 

What makes a scone a scone, you ask, and not a biscuit? Two words: heavy cream. Also known as sweet glorious nectar of the gods, don't you agree? Yes, my friends, heavy cream gives scones their decadent yet simple, lightweight yet filling, country-biscuit yet hi-falutin-pastry-like feel. 

The recipe I used went a little something like this (adapted from How to Cook Everything): 

2 cups flour

1 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

2 tbls sugar

5 tbls cold butter

3 eggs

3/4 cup cream

• Heat oven to 450. Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl, reserving 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Cut the butter into bits and either pulse it in the food processor (easier) or rub the butter into the dry mixture with your fingertips (messier and more fun). Make sure all the butter is thoroughly blended in before you move on. 

• Beat 2 of the eggs with the cream in a large bowl. With a few swift strokes, combine them with the flour mixture. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead only 10 times. The dough should stick a little to your hands. 

• Press the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle and cut into 2-inch rounds with a biscuit cutter (I used a glass tumbler). Put the rounds on an ungreased baking sheet. Gently reshape the leftover dough and cut again. Beat the remaining egg with 1 tbls water and brush the top of each scone; sprinkle each with a little of the remaining sugar. 

• Bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until the scones are light golden brown. 

• Serve with fresh whipped cream and local berries. Over and over again. The next weekend, Ryan's parents were coming into town and spending the night with us. I asked Ryan if I should make scones for them. "Are they going to be exactly like the ones you made last week?" he asked. Apparently I'd set my own scone bar. Thankfully, when I made them for his parents, they were just as good as the week before. Here's hoping that they'll be just as good from here on out.