Just don’t call it Brunch.
Friends know that I have a complex relationship with the meal some call Brunch. The word I most often use is “hate” though that may be a bit strong.
I love breakfast. I attended a small liberal arts school in Indiana and there weren’t a lot of late-night dining options. In fact, other than drive throughs, there was only one: a faux country-style, all-night dinner just within walking distance of campus. It was decorated with fake nick knacks, gingham curtains and kitschy stick-on borders. It was always too bright, the chairs too close together. I’d order biscuits and gravy, sometimes with a side of smoked sausage, and drink bottomless cups of coffee with friends who wanted to “study” by arguing the merits of various REM records or Douglas Copeland books. To this day, I have no idea if it was actually any good. I haven’t been back in twenty years. I rode past on a long bicycle ride a few years ago and decided that it probably wasn’t a good start to a 100-mile day.
I have other memories of breakfasts. Some traditional, some weird: Pints and a Full English with friends of 25 years on the way to a 2015 Rugby World Cup match. Pancakes and house-made sausages with my father at a diner in Temagami after ten days of paddling a hand-built canoe though Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater park in Northern Ontario. An April morning walking Rue Montorgueil in a light rain with good friends and pastry from Stohrer.
I don’t have good memories of brunch. Lines to get into crowded DC or New York restaurants. That one table (there’s always that one table) that’s yelling the whole time. And “Sorry, we’re only serving the brunch menu now,” even though it’s 2pm, you’re at an Irish pub, and it’s pouring rain, and everyone in the place is there to watch a Liverpool match. Other than the Bloody Mary, Brunch is the worst of all worlds.
All that said, I love a huge breakfast. An over the top breakfast. Five options on the table, three Bloody Mary, sweet and savory, sitting in the sun through the early afternoon. Breakfast. Just don’t call it brunch.
This week’s menu is just that sort of breakfast. And honestly, you can call it whatever you want. I won’t judge. Actually, that’s not true. I’ll probably judge, but you can say “well, he’s wrong,” and move on.
This week’s menu:
Simple Fruit Salad
Cinnamon & Cardamom Challah Rolls
Chipotle Maple Glazed Bacon
Brown Butter Hash Browns
Chicken and Waffles
Scroll for pics and recipes, and please, share The Weekly Menu with friends and family!
Simple Fruit Salad
I’m allergic to melon. I know, you probably don’t care, but it’s the standard for every single hotel/chain restaurant/semi-sort-fine dining Brunch/Breakfast fruit plate that ever was. Apparently somewhere in the time of Escoffier a hotelier decided that “hence force, ‘fruit’ will be three pieces of cantaloupe, two pieces of honeydew, and possibly a strawberry … if you’re American.” I’m American. This very simple fruit salad is boosted by a couple of additions. Orange liqueur, and mint leaves. I also add a pinch of salt. You won’t notice any saltiness in the final dish, but it helps make the berries’ flavor more pronounced. If you’re reading this in the future (springtime!) and live in one of the magical places you can get Fraises du Bois, use those. Or just eat those with a bottle of good champagne and skip the rest of this whole thing.
Serves 4
1 pint of blueberries
1 pint of strawberries
1 tbsp granulated sugar
¼ tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp orange liqueur (Curaçao, Cointreau, Grand Marnier, etc)
¼ cup loosely packed mint leaves
½ cup heavy whipping cream
Wash and remove the green tops from the strawberries and slice into ¼ inch thick slices.
Wash the blueberries.
Combine the berries, salt, sugar, and liqueur.
Cut the mint leaves into a chiffonade and add approximately half to the fruit. Reserve the rest for garnish.
Chill for 30 minutes to allow the fruit to macerate and flavors to combine.
Using a mixer, or a volunteer who doesn’t mind building up their arm strength with a whisk, whisk the whipping cream until it forms stiff peaks.
To serve, transfer the fruit into a bowl, scatter with remaining mint leaves, and top with a huge dollop of freshly whipped cream.
Challah Cardamom Cinnamon Rolls
Swedish cinnamon rolls often include a measure of cardamom – a touch I really love because I like cardamom. And it adds a slightly mysterious element to the whole thing. That familiar warmth of cinnamon is backed by a slightly unfamiliar, but equally warm flavor that makes me … happy? Is that it? Is this happiness? It’s 2020, so who knows. But maybe it is.
I use a challah dough to make these because it’s rich, fast, and forgiving. You could (probably) make the whole thing the same day you’re serving it, but I tend to make the dough, and stuff and shape the rolls the night before – letting them slowly rise overnight in the refrigerator.
Finally, you can choose to top these however you like. I like a cream cheese frosting spiked with a touch of almond extract, but they’re equally good glazed, or even just standing alone.
Challah Dough
500g All Purpose Flour
3 large eggs
7g instant yeast (one packet)
50g granulated sugar
50g vegetable oil
115g lukewarm water
5g kosher salt
Add warm water and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. If you are using instant yeast, continue. If are using “active dry” yeast, allow it to rest ten minutes for the yeast to proof.
Add flour, sugar, oil, two eggs, and one egg yolk – reserve the remaining egg white for the glaze.
Add the salt and increase the speed to knead for approximately 5 minutes or until a sticky dough forms.
Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until nearly doubled.
Cinnamon Cardamom Filling
¾ cup dark brown sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom
Mix the three filling ingredients well and set aside.
To fill, turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and using well-floured hands, and or a roller, form into a long rectangle (about 8x12 inches) about ¼ inch thick.
Working with the long edges toward you, generously coat the rectangle with the filling, leaving 2 inches at the far edge to seal the roll.
Lightly wet the unfilled edge and roll the dough into a long roll.
Using a very sharp knife, cut into rounds and place in a well-greased pan (I use a cast iron skillet because … well, it looks cool).
Allow to rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes or overnight in the refrigerator (covered with greased plastic wrap).
Whisk the remaining egg white with 1tbsp water, and brush onto the surface of the rolls.
Bake at 350 °F until browned. Allow to cool and frost (if desired) with cream cheese frosting.
Basic Cream Cheese Frosting Glaze
4 oz softened cream cheese
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
¼ tsp almond extract
Whisk cream cheese, extract, and sugar together until smooth and light.
Maple Chipotle Glazed Bacon
All bacon is good. Even bad bacon is pretty good. Although those limp weird chewy bacon slices you get on fast food burgers might be pushing the edge of the “good” envelope, they’re still probably an overall improvement to the pseudo-food object they’re accompanying.
But the best bacon is baked bacon. Yup. Bake your bacon. It comes out crisp where it should be crisp, meaty where it should be meaty, and best of all, it’s flat. Sure, maybe flat bacon isn’t best if you want it on a BLT, where the curly bits help bulk out the sandwich and … yeah. Anyway, baking your bacon is especially great if you’re serving more than one or two portions – because it allows you to do large batches relatively unattended and it allows you to do whacky fun stuff like glaze it with sweet and spicy mixtures like the maple chipotle glaze you see here. It turns out sweet, spicy, and shiny pretty.
Choose good relatively thick-cut bacon. I generally use the dry rubbed bacon from the Whole Foods butcher counter (I’ve seen this product at stores all over the east coast) or use a locally produced product from Falters Meats – which when I say local, I mean made a couple hundred yards from me … you may not be able to find that one outside of Central Ohio.
1 lb good quality thick-cut bacon
1 oz maple syrup
1 tsp chipotle pepper powder
Preheat your oven to 350 °F.
Line a baking sheet with foil – this makes cleanup easier.
Place a baking rack on the foil-lined sheet.
Mix the syrup and chipotle powder, and set aside.
Arrange the bacon on the backing rack, and lightly brush both sides of each piece with the syrup/pepper mixture.
Bake until crisped to your preference.
Brown Butter Hash Browns
Breakfasts can be simple. Big breakfasts require potatoes. Fried potatoes of some sort. Steakhouse style hash browns (fussy tiny cubes of delicious crispy starch instead of the diner style shreds) are my favorites. And if I’ve got brown butter lying around, I cook them in that instead of neutral oil. To be honest, the first time I did it, it wasn’t intentional. I was rushed and trying to clarify butter (because hash browns are better in clarified butter) and it browed and … well, I used it any way and they tasted really good.
The technique I use here is a little weird. I fully cook the potatoes in the microwave, dosed with a little baking soda. This speeds up the process (which means the butter is less likely to burn while the potatoes are crisping) and the baking soda softens the potatoes – making them sticky, and allowing them to brown faster.
3 medium russet potatoes
1 tsp Kosher salt
¼ tsp baking soda
2 tbsp brown butter (see note)
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Peel, and dice the potatoes into a ¼ inch dice. Do not rinse.
Add potatoes to a microwave safe bowl and sprinkle in salt and baking soda, stirring to coat well.
Microwave on high until potatoes are fully cooked, stopping frequently to stir. The time this will take depends on the power of your microwave. In mine, it takes about 5 minutes.
Allow to cool slightly.
Add 2 tbsp of brown butter and one sprig of thyme to a pan over medium heat.
Once the butter has melted and the thyme is sizzling, remove the thyme and discard.
Press the potato mixture into the pan, flattening it with a pancake turner.
Cook until well browned and crispy.
Slide the potatoes onto a plate, turn over, and crisp the other side.
To serve, scatter with fresh thyme and season with salt and pepper.
*NOTE: To make brown butter, add ¼ lbs butter (1 stick) to a thick-bottomed pan and cook over low heat until the butter solids begin to brown. Immediately remove from the heat and strain through a very fine strainer to remove the browned solids. The resulting brown butter should smell like caramel – not acrid – be clear when hot, and have a light brown color.
Chicken and Waffles
This is a retread. Sorry. Not sorry. I originally published this recipe on my other food project, The Chicken Thigh Guy, and I’m reusing it here for two reasons. One, I’m a shameless cross promoter and you should all check out the recipes over there. Two, it’s really, really good.
Chicken and Waffles is the undisputed king of the brunch dishes. Egg Benedict is a classic contender, quiche is fancy, and shakshuka is nice when you want a little spice, but nothing is as satisfying as that balance of sweet and salty, crunchy and soft, breakfast and dinner that makes Chicken and Waffles a perfect treat.
AND IT IS. As far as I’m concerned, the only other contender for breakfast/bunch item superiority is the Bloody Mary and even then … it’s a close second.
This recipe uses yeasted waffles. They require a little more preparation than the quick and fast recipes you often see – and the require an overnight rest. , but the flavors are great, and the resulting waffle has the structure you need to stand up to a big hunk of chicken and delicious syrup.
Fried Chicken
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
1 cup cultured buttermilk
¼ cup hot sauce (*see note)
2¼-cups AP flour
¼ cup cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp ground sage
2 tsp ground black pepper
3 tsp Kosher salt
Mix the buttermilk, hot sauce, 2 tsp of salt, and 1 tsp of black pepper in a non-reactive bowl. Add the chicken and turn to coat.
Place the chicken and the marinade in a large, plastic, storage bag, squeezing out as much air as possible. Place in the refrigerator to brine and marinate – at least 8 hours and preferably overnight.
Mix the flour, cornstarch, sage, cayenne, baking powder, and remaining salt and pepper in a large container with a tightly fitting lid.
Sprinkle 1 tsp of the marinade into the flour mixture and shake vigorously.
Working one piece at a time, add the chicken to the breading container, and shake to coat well. Check to see that there are no bare spots, and use your fingers if necessary to pack breading onto the chicken. Repeat until all of the chicken is breaded.
Place the chicken pieces on a rack over a sheet pan and return to the refrigerator for 30 minutes to allow the flour to hydrate.
Fry at 350 °F for approximately 20 minutes, or until the crust is well browned and the internal temperature of the chicken has reached 170 °F.
To serve, top a waffle with a piece of chicken, drizzle pecan-butter maple syrup over the top, and garnish with sweet-pickled chili slices.
*Note: Use a flavorful, but fairly mild hot sauce such as Texas Pete, Frank’s Red Hot, or Crystal. You will need some heat, but also the vinegar and salt in the preparation are necessary for the chicken to brine properly.
Yeasted Waffles
1½ cups AP flour
½ cup whole wheat flour
1½ cup whole milk
4 tbsp melted butter
1 packet or 1½ tsp instant dry yeast
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 large eggs
Melt the butter and combine all ingredients in a blender. Quickly blend until smooth.
Pour into a non-reactive container, cover with plastic wrap or a lid, and allow to sit at room temperature for 1 hour.
Move to the refrigerator and allow to ferment overnight.
Prepare according to your waffle iron’s instructions.
Pecan Butter Maple Syrup
1 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp butter
½ cup crushed pecans
Warm the syrup in a pan, stir in the pecans, and cook for 10 minutes. Add the butter, and swirl to combine.
Pickled Chilies
2 red chili peppers, red jalapeño or Fresno
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp Kosher salt
1 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp water
Thinly slice the peppers into disks. Discard the tips and stems. In a small glass bowl just large enough to hold the peppers without peeking over the top, add peppers, salt, and sugar, stirring to coat. Allow the salt and sugar to soften the peppers and extract some moisture for 30 minutes. Add the water and vinegar, and agitate to dissolve the salt and sugar. Chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour before serving.