Every week I look forward to Sundays. Sunday is the only day in the week that Koen and I are both off from work together. So we like to make the most of it. That involves sleeping in and making special brunches. Every week we like to try something different.

Our BLT – Pancetta, Avocado, Tomato, and Spinach

Who doesn’t love a BLT? In our version, we substituted the lettuce for spinach and added avocados. I also received a special mayonnaise from my in-laws that is made with saffron and garlic which perfectly complimented the other flavors.

Bacon Pancakes

Bacon is a recurring theme in our Sunday brunches. We had used bacon in our dinner the night before and saved the leftover fat. So of course we looked up recipes that call for bacon fat. Then we found bacon pancakes! First you fry the bacon in the pan, add a little more bacon fat and pour in the pancake batter over the bacon. I topped mine with maple syrup..mmm…

Eggs Florentine

I was in the UK last month and discovered all of the different types of eggs offered for breakfast. I know about Eggs Benedict – poached eggs, ham, toast, and hollandaise – but I had yet to discover Eggs Royale (substitute the ham for smoked salmon) and Eggs Florentine (substitute the ham for steamed spinach). In the UK they use English muffins instead of toast – I couldn’t find English muffins and didn’t have any toast, so we used small ciabattas. Delicious!

Veggie & Egg Tower of Power

My New Roots has a long list of breakfast and lunch recipes and her Veggie & Egg Tower of Power is one of my favorites! The dish combines a lot of my favorite vegetables – sweet potatoes, tomatoes, spinach, and caramelized onions – and topped with a poached egg. I’m not sure if you can call my brunch a tower. It was working really well until I tried to balance the egg on top. But it doesn’t matter because it was delicious!

Banana Walnut Pancakes

When we decided on banana walnut pancakes for brunch, Nikki and Brigiet were here celebrating. Brigiet turned 30 that Sunday and Nikki’s birthday was a in a couple of weeks, so we wanted to make something special. We experimented a little with Koen’s go-to pancake recipe. Nikki is lactose intolerant, so we used almond milk. I measured out the almond milk, then blended it with a banana before adding it to the batter. Instead of butter, Koen used coconut oil as a substitute. To top the pancakes, I lightly toasted walnuts and sliced a banana. Recently Koen watched a YouTube video about pancake art, so he made three special pancakes for the birthday girls, a “B” for Brigiet and “3” “0”.

Wild Mushrooms on Toast

Now that it’s Fall, there is wide offering of mushrooms. This is a bit embarassing to say, but I only started eating mushrooms within the last year and now I can’t get enough! I went so long without them that now I have to make up for lost time. Koen bought a variety of mushrooms and sauteed them with shallots, garlic, pepper, and lemon juice. To top off the whole dish, Koen prepared poached eggs. So good. This was really one of my favorite brunches ever!

Leek and Spinach Frittata

My turn to prepare brunch! This time I browsed Sprouted Kitchen’s website and found their recipe for Leek and Spinach Frittata. I chose it because I love eggs, leeks, and spinach but I also liked the story that accompanied the recipe. Her grandmother came to her about a dish she had seen, calling it an “egg pizza”. It was really delicious – I especially liked the yoghurt and basil with the frittata.

French Toast

An old favorite. We had made sandwiches the last few days and we hate throwing away food. If I have old bread, I love making French toast. I follow a basic recipe of 1 egg for every 1/4 cup of milk (I used almond milk) and adjust the amount based on how many pieces of bread I have. I don’t add sugar or any other spices because I top it off with fruit and maple syrup. Yum!