How to prepare the perfect brunch at home
What's better than spending a few hours in joy and complete carefree with your friends in front of a set table? This is the idea behind the concept of brunch, the meal that has become the symbol of the weekend. Although it has only entered the trend in recent years, this breakfast-lunch boasts almost two centuries of history and thus some of its recipes that have become essential. Eggs, bacon, toast, but also cakes, pancakes with maple syrup, muffins, fresh fruit and other delicacies that combine both sweet and savory flavors to satisfy everyone's preferences. Lately, in Italy, many people love add some recipes from our kitchen, such as pasta or rice salad and the beloved brioches.
In this article, we will reveal where this delicious tradition comes from and how to prepare the perfect brunch right at your home, taking into account that it can be considered as the weekend breakfast and being careful not to make some mistakes ...
The origins of brunch
The term "brunch" indicates a large meal consumed between late morning and early afternoon. Unlike what is commonly thought, brunch did not originate in the United States but in England during the nineteenth century. At that time wealthy families organized large buffets in their homes when they returned from long and exhausted hunting trips. "brunch" was coined only at the end of the century, in 1895, by Guy Beringer who defined it as the ideal breakfast for Sunday morning, after the excesses and revels of Saturday night. The writer extolled the "cheerfulness and sociability of that moment, which distracted from the fatigue of the week days and cheered the weekends.
Brunch's popularity peaked at the end of World War II, when it was no longer just a meal for nobles and aristocrats but became a Sunday tradition for ordinary people as well.
Brunch hit today
Today, in Italy, brunch has become the most awaited meal of the weekend. It is a moment of sharing and relaxation to be spent with the family, especially with children, or with closest friends. There are many people who decide to have brunch inside a hotel, where they spend the weekend, or in a restaurant, but many prefer to prepare it and enjoy it at home.
Brunch is served on Saturdays and Sundays between 11 am and 3 pm, depending on who sees it more as a "hearty breakfast and who thinks it is a perfect lunch when you don't want to follow or traditional schedules." There is no "single recipe, but both sweet and savory flavors are combined, making it perfect for anyone's tastes." The watchwords are informality and conviviality: if you decide not to have brunch at the restaurant, but to make it at home, make sure to prepare a buffet or a table set in a simple but effective way, perhaps with a few bunches of flowers and pleasant background music to brighten the meal of your guests.
Recipes and menus to prepare brunch at home
As already mentioned, there is no single set menu for brunch, but there are foods that cannot be missing in any way: eggs, especially scrambled, bacon, toast and sandwiches, cakes, jams, yogurt and fresh seasonal fruit are a must of the perfect brunch.
- Eggs: with this food you can really indulge yourself. You can prepare the eggs as you like: scrambled, fried, boiled, Benedict or opt for an omelette or an omelette with the addition of cheese and vegetables.
- Bacon: a few slices of toasted bacon are ideal to accompany eggs, toast or pancakes.
- Bagel or sandwich: toasts stuffed with cheese, salami or vegetables or simple are suitable to accompany various foods. A great idea is that of toast with avocado and smoked salmon.
- Cakes: Any American or English sweet treat is welcome. Muffins, cupcakes, brownies and even the best classic Italian desserts, such as tart.
- Pancakes: Despite being an English tradition, brunch can't exist without pancakes nowadays. These fritters made from eggs, flour, milk and butter, which came directly from America, have established themselves in brunches all over the world, served with maple syrup, fresh seasonal fruit or other savory foods.
Lately, dishes from our kitchen have also been added to the purely international recipes: from stuffed brioches to rice or pasta salads to pizzas and scones.
Drinks to accompany brunch
Just like the choice of dishes to be served, complete freedom is also left for drinks. In addition to the most famous ones, such as coffee or tea, the Americans have introduced some fruit-based cocktails to make the brunch moment even more unique and special!
- Coffee: especially the long American one, it has become the symbol par excellence of brunch.
- Juice or freshly squeezed orange juice
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- Cocktail: in addition to the classic Spritz, the Mimosa cocktail, based on orange juice and champagne, is the most popular.
- Water with romantic herbs, such as mint, sage or rosemary.
