Christmas and New Year’s mornings call for special breakfasts or brunch. Nevertheless, those holiday mornings often do not lend themselves to making an elaborate breakfast or brunch. My family sometimes used to make French toast for Christmas breakfast. (I remember a few Christmas mornings in my twenties where I got daring and made egg nog French toast or used cinnamon raisin bread! – It felt more adventurous at the time.) Now we have a wonderful tradition of my Dad bringing muffins from a fabulous local shop and pairing them with fresh fruit and maybe sausage or bacon. In a day that often ends with a big dinner, these breakfasts have been just what we needed.
Still, I have been thinking about how we could manage to serve a hot breakfast or brunch without too much disruption to the flow of the morning or getting up an earlier than we already do. If not for Christmas morning, what could I make to start 2015 off right? Here are a few ideas for both sweet and savory recipes that will allow you to prep the afternoon or night ahead and still have a scrumptious meal on the holiday morning.
- Praline French Toast (from King Arthur Flour)
- Overnight Bananas Foster French Toast Casserole (from Chef in Training)
- Onion, Bacon, and Swiss Cheese Strata (from Serious Eats)
- Breakfast Slab Pie (from Smitten Kitchen)
- Brie and Mushroom Strata (from the kitchn)
- Overnight Apple Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls (from Baked by Rachel)
- Fontina Speck and Onion Strata (from Martha Stewart)
- No-knead Pumpkin Rolls with Brown Sugar Glaze (from the kitchn)
