Mother's Day Brunch Fit for a Queen

Sorry everyone I have been MIA .. I promise to start posting more regularly!! But better late than never right???? 

Lets jump right into it... This Mother's Day the Garlic Goddess went all out. I wanted to create a restaurant like brunch, without being too pretentious and use the flavors the Queen of the household loves aka my Mother!! 

So what exactly did the menu consist of you ask? 

I started the brunch with a Watermelon , Feta and Mint Salad... the flavors blend together surprisingly well and make a salad that is sure to stop anyone in their typical brunch tracks!! 

The Watermelon Mint Salad 

• 1 watermelon 
• 1 Vidalia or other sweet onion
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 balsamic vinegar 
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 ounce container of crumbled Feta 
• 6 - 10 mint sprigs

Now from here everything is pretty simple. Cut and dice the watermelon into bite size pieces.  Next slice the onion into thin rings and then in half, and into quarters. Mince about 2 tablespoons of the fresh mint. Add the feta cheese to the bowl with everything else. 

In a separate bowl combine the red wine vinegar as well as the balsamic, salt and pepper. Slowly drizzle in the Extra Virgin Olive Oil while whisking, this creates an emulsion. Your last step is to pour the dressing over everything and make sure everyone in the bowl is coated evenly. Use extra mint sprigs for garnish!! ;) 

Next on my Mother's Day Brunch menu was a Tarimsu Bundt cake with Marscapone Cheese and Kahula icing 
Thats right people.. you heard (ok, ok read) that correctly!! 

Tiramisu Bundt Cake

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp sea salt

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups milk (2%)

1/4 cup espresso or very strong coffee

1/4 cup Kahlua

First things first, preheat your oven to 325 degrees!! Grease the bundt pan with butter or PAM and set aside. In a medium sized bowl sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl beat together butter and sugar until it is light and airy. Next, add the eggs one at a time, after the eggs are successfully incorporated add the vanilla extract. Work in the flour and milk alternating until everything is fully mixed in. Lastly add the kahlua and espresso until everything is well combined. Pour batter into the pan and bake for about 55-60 minutes. 

Cool on wire rack before frosting. 

mmm frosting.. This frosting is d e l i c i o u s and easy.. making it even better!!

Mascarpone Cheese Kahlua Frosting 

• 4-ounce mascarpone cheese - make sure its room temp.!!!
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup Kahlua
• 2 cups confectioners sugar 

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth and lovely. Spread all over the the cake in an even thick layer. 

All this sweetness needs some savory so next up on the menu. Is Egg- In - A - Hole. 

Instead of making the egg in bread, I put a healthier spin on it and used a pepper ring to hold the egg. This is so simple and makes up for the time consuming Budnt Cake! 

The basic ingredients needed depends on how many people you need to feed. 

Egg - In - a - Hole 

• 2-3 bell peppers
• dozen eggs
• salt and pepper 
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil 

Wash and cut the peppers into thin rings. 

Place a ring onto a non stick pan coated with Olive Oil.




Then crack an egg into the rings and cook! Flipping can be a bit tricky, but if you break a yolk or 2 don't worry about it!! 

Mother's Day brunch is a big deal, so what does the Queen like with her eggs? Asparagus. I decided to Grill Prosciutto Wrapped in Asparagus!


Grilled Prosciutto Wrapped in Asparagus 

• 28 asparagus spears, tough ends removed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
•  Pepper to taste - no salt needed, the Prosciutto is salty enough!! 
• 14-20 slices Prosciutto di Parma, sliced thin

Wash and snap the asparagus ends off. Drizzle with Olive Oil and pepper to taste. Pair asparagus together then wrap in prosciutto. Place on grill until they are crisp and tender about 10 minutes or so. 

Garlic Grilled Toast

The last thing the brunch needed was some crusty garlic toast to dip the runny egg yolk in. I bought a fresh loaf of bread drenched it in Extra Virgin Olive Oil and tossed it on the grill. After the bread came off the grill I took a clove of garlic and rubbed it all over the crusty bread. 

So that was my Mother's Day Brunch fit for a queen!!! Of course along with this lovely meal I served Mimosa and a Crisp White Wine - Sauvignon Blanc. And for all the coffee drinkers I had the Kahlua readily available. 

Stay tuned for my Blondie Brownie Trifle Recipe - perfect for any occasion, especially a summer BBQ!!!