Why I love Easy Brunch Ideas
I will be the first to admit that I am a big weirdo who dislikes traditional westernized breakfast foods: eggs with bacon and sausage, breakfast burritos, pancakes.
It is one of my most unpopular opinions and I’ve had to learn how to exist in a world where everyone loves brunch. Brunch has become the ubiquitous meal that we Millennials share with friends on the weekends. My friend once jokingly told me that I was uninvited to brunch for the rest of our lives when I revealed my unpopular dislike of breakfast foods.
So I had to challenge myself to try and make easy brunch food that I might actually enjoy. My idea of brunch is definitely more on the lunch-y side, with more bread and sandwiches, and less of the pancakes and omelets. And since we all live such busy lives, easy brunch ideas are a must.
I actually made this brunch spread for some coworkers last year. We work remotely most of the time, and are scattered across Los Angeles and Orange Counties. So we miss the camaraderie of going into the same office on a regular basis. This brunch that I hosted was an attempt to bridge our worlds and have an opportunity to us to literally break bread together and share about our struggles, silly/funny stories, and successes. I much prefer cooking for friends instead of going out to eat. It can take hours of preparation and work to entertain, so having easy brunch recipes was key to me pulling it off.
It is so incredibly rewarding when I see someone find true enjoyment in what I’ve prepared. In that spirit, I hope that you will be able to share some of these easy brunch recipes with loved ones and bring a smile to their faces at your next get-together.
Or better yet, make the whole shebang! That’s why I made this easy brunch menu for your convenience. 🙂
Simple Shakshouka: The Star of an Easy Brunch
Shakshouka is a popular breakfast dish in Arab and Israeli cuisine. Shakshouka, is essentially eggs poached in a spiced tomato sauce. It feels just enough like lunch or dinner for me to enjoy. Although its origins are up for debate, just like most foods, it is enjoyed in many different countries. And recently, it has become very popular in America. I love it because of the rich tomato sauce with all its fragrant spices. It is also much easier to poach eggs this way compared with the traditional water bath method.
Simple Shakshouka
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 lb sausage
- 1/2 onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 24 oz crushed tomatoes
- 6 eggs
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet on high heat. When pan is hot add in oil and sausage. Saute on medium heat until sausage is browned.
- Then add diced onion, garlic, bell pepper. Add in cinnamon, cumin, paprika, and garlic salt and saute for 3 minutes.
- Add in crushed tomatoes and allow sauce to simmer on low for 10 minutes.
- Create small dips in your tomato sauce to hold the eggs.
- Gently crack eggs and place them into the tomato sauce, slightly spaced apart.
- Put a lid on the eggs in tomato sauce and cook on medium heat for 6-10 minutes, depending on if you want an over easy or well-done egg. If you are cooking in a cast iron skillet, this will reduce your cooking time for the egg.
- Optional: garnish with fresh parsley and feta cheese and serve with crusty bread. I didn't have any when I made this, so I went without. It was still really delicious from all the spices!
Coconut Banana French Toast: The Dessert Element of an Easy Brunch
I always like to do Asian spins on American foods. Which is how I came up with this coconut French toast. A sweet dish is a must on any brunch menu. Vietnamese desserts often feature coconut milk and banana together. I wanted to try this flavor combination in French toast, and it actually turned out really delicious. Instead of using heavy cream or milk, I used coconut milk. I encourage you to be creative with your own food creations! You might come up with the next big trend! 😉
What is the difference between coconut cream and coconut milk?
Coconut cream is the fat and liquid that are extracted when you squeeze the flesh of a coconut. When it is diluted with water, that becomes coconut milk. I often prefer to use coconut cream because it is richer in coconut flavor. You can always dilute it yourself to make coconut milk. For this coconut banana French toast recipe, I prefer using coconut cream over coconut milk. But if you’re in a pinch, coconut milk will be fine. Just consider adding in some coconut extract to boost up the coconut flavor. The brand that I prefer is Kara. The flavor is superior to most other brands of coconut milk and cream that I have tried.
Coconut Banana French Toast
Ingredients
French Toast
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 4 eggs
- 1/3 cup coconut cream
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons butter unsalted
- 1 French baguette sliced into 1-inch thick pieces
Caramelized Bananas
- 1 tbsp butter unsalted
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tbsp coconut milk
Instructions
French Toast
- Prepare custard mixture by mixing vanilla extract, brown sugar, salt, eggs, and coconut cream, and milk into a mixing bowl.
- Dip slices of French baguette into the mixture for 1-2 seconds on each side and set aside.
- Heat a skillet on medium heat. Add in a bit of butter and allow to melt on pan. Place 1/4 of the soaked bread onto the pan spaced sligihtly apart. Allow to sear for 3-5 minutes on each side. Repeat this step for another 3-4 batches.
- Set aside.
Caramelized Bananas
- Heat a skillet on medium heat. Add in a bit of butter and allow to melt on pan. Add in sliced bananas and allow to brown 2-3 minutes on each side.
- Once bananas are brown, add in brown sugar, salt, and coconut cream. Cook for 1 minute.
Assembly
- Scoop about 1 tbsp of the caramelized banana mixture on top of each slice of toast. Top with sauce from the caramelized bananas.
- Optional: top with a drizzle of coconut cream or coconut milk
Cinnamon Peach Yogurt Parfait
When I think of easy brunch ideas, a yogurt parfait is a must! It’s refreshing, delicious, and adds a touch of sweetness to your brunch menu.
Yogurt is easy to dress up as long as you have some yummy fruit topping and some granola or toasted nuts. I cooked down fresh peaches with brown sugar and cinnamon and mixed my plain yogurt with some honey and vanilla extract to give it flavor. In my opinion, flavored yogurts have too much added sugar in them. I’d rather add my own honey/brown sugar so that I can control how sweet my yogurt is.
Also, full fat or nothing baby! Non-fat yogurt has its place, but nothing beats the rich mouth feel of a full fat yogurt. So. So. Good! Green Mountain’s 5% milkfat yogurt has become my favorite. Go and buy yourself some. You won’t regret it! For other yogurt recipes, check out my pina colada yogurt!
How do I know if peaches are ripe?
Very easy: smell them! They will smell fragrant and floral. Basically they smell like what a peach should smell like when they are ripe. This will make it much easier for you to peel your peach as opposed to when it’s unripe. It will also be a lot more delicious in your recipe.
Peach Yogurt Parfait
Ingredients
- 2 cups full fat yogurt
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 peaches peeled and diced
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Blanch peaches in boiling water for about 3 minutes. Take them out and shock them in ice water. When they are cooled, gently remove the skins.
- Remove the pit of the peaches and dice peaches into small pieces.
- Add peaches to a small saucepan and add brown sugar and cinnamon. Allow peaches to simmer on medium low heat for about 5-10 minutes, until they are just softened.
- Meanwhile, mix yogurt with vanilla extract and honey. Set aside.
- When peaches are slightly softened, taste for seasoning and add cinnamon or sugar to taste. Allow to cool.
- Place a layer of peaches on the bottom of a small ramekin, followed by a scoop of yogurt. Top it with the peach compote.
The Easiest Brunch Food of all: BCTs (Bacon Cucumber Tomato) Toasts
This is a riff on a fully loaded New York style bagel. Because what could be better for easy brunch ideas than a bagel? I didn’t use a bagel because I wanted my guests to have enough stomach space to enjoy the rest of the meal. Instead of smoked salmon, I put crispy smoked bacon on top.
I remember that eating bagels with these fillings was the only reason I would get up in the morning when I was still in university. I hope that these give you a reason to get up on the weekends. 😉 They are so easy to assemble and will be a crowd pleaser. You can also choose to do a homemade Junior Mac for a nice brunch burger.
BCT (Bacon Cucumber Tomato) Toasts
Ingredients
- 1/2 loaf French bread
- 2 tbsp full fat cream cheese
- 5 slices bacon
- 1 cucumber thinly sliced
- 1 tomato thinly sliced
- 1/4 red onion thinly sliced
Instructions
- Start by frying bacon on a skillet on medium. Render the fat and flip. When it is golden and crispy, the bacon is done. Remove from skillet and onto paper towels.
- Cut bread on the diagonal into 1-inch thick slices. Toast at 350 degrees F for 5 minutes until light brown.
- Meanwhile, thinly slice cucumber and tomato.
- Optional: thinly slice red onion and soak in cold water for 5 minutes. Soaking raw onions takes away some of their bite and spiciness.
- Assemble by taking a slice of bread and spreading generously with a layer of cream cheese. Top with cucumber, tomato, bacon, and soaked red onion. Easy peasy!
Bruschetta
Are you starting to see a theme? I’m a huge fan of breads for easy brunch ideas because they feel more like lunch to me. 🙂 Bruschetta is a really easy finger-food to put together. Hailing from Italy, it is essentially toasted crusty bread brushed with garlic and served with diced tomato. You can cut the tomato ahead of time and serve it with the freshly toasted bread that is rubbed with garlic. When I ate this dish in Italy, it was so simple. I think that my version is somewhat of an Americanized version, but it’s still yummy in my book. 🙂
Bruschetta
Ingredients
- 1/2 loaf ciabatta bread sliced into 1-inch thick pieces
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp aged balsamic vinegar
- 1 small bunch basil chopped
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch pepper
Instructions
- Evenly drizzle olive oil onto the sliced bread. Toast at 350 degrees F for 5 minutes until lightly brown. When it is brown and crispy, take out of the oven and immediately rub the surface of all the toasts with 1 clove of raw garlic.
- Prepare the tomatoes. Dice them and season with 1 pinch of salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar, and chopped basil leaves.
- Place tomato mixture generously on top of toasts and drizzle with a finishing touch of olive oil.
Price Comparison
I spent about $54 on groceries to make this and it served 8-10 people, depending on appetite. When you eat out for brunch, prices tend to get hefty nowadays. It is a very popular time to go eat out at a restaurant, so you can expect some good price gouging.
Restaurant ($20) vs. Home-made ($5.40 – 6.75). As you can see, the price difference is huge. You are paying well over double the price to eat out for brunch. So do your wallet a favor and cook brunch for your friends next time.
Tag me on Instagram @jennskitchendiary if you’ve made any of these recipes!
