We love breakfast at this house and because we are like passing ships on weekday mornings it is great when we can gather for brunch on the weekends. Brunch has such wonderful memories for me; I remember as I child huge meals that my dad would make either on Saturday or Sunday after church, My dad loved making huge skillets of scrambled eggs. He sauteed the onions in butter first while he whisked the eggs together using a fork and then he'd pour the cool egg mix into the hot cast iron creating a sizable sizzle. I remember that sound like it was yesterday but I don't think it has anything to do with why I love brunch today.
In my 20's brunch meant meeting friends for food and beverages at classic little joints from Minneapolis and St Paul to Denver and Boulder, Colorado. These gatherings could take the better part of your day but what an excellent way to relax and enjoy your friends before husbands and children came along. Bloody Mary bars, crispy hash browns fresh off someone else's griddle, patio dining, and laughing all come to mind when I think of those shared brunches around big round tables. We were free with our time and you only had to pay for what you ate and drank.
Now as a family it is not only much harder to take the family out for brunch price-wise but also what we can create at home often tastes much better. Our local nature center hosts a maple syrup festival this weekend and I had my heart set on going though but with the snowy week we had I didn't make it over there until Friday to pick up tickets and once I parked my car and trekked the long winding path to the lodge I was not happy to find the door locked. Searching the assortment of signs I saw they had closed 10 minutes ago. "Aaargh" is how I felt. I told myself it was okay I didn't really want to go anyway and now I really didn't plan to go! I got in my car to drive away and 5 beautiful mama deer (does) ran right in front of me through the snowy park path and my mental balance was completely restored. When I got home and explained how I'd screwed up getting the tickets, and the deer running in front of me, my husband and I decided what was most important was the maple syrup after all. For the price of the tickets I would be better off with a big bottle of their syrup anyway.. I broke the news to the kids by telling them I would be hosting my own maple syrup festival in the morning around 10 am. We ate pancakes, fried eggs, pineapple and cups of steaming homemade hot chocolate. There was laughter and good food, which is really all it takes. Bliss.
A new tradition is born;
The Holt Family Maple Syrup Festival: to be held any Saturday morning we can all get together.
I followed
Katie Workman's pancake recipe but it is quite similar to this one from the
recipe girl. I use whole wheat flour and I don't add sugar. I couldn't find Katie's recipe online and if I keep copying her recipes to my blog they'll be some kind of copyright issue I'm just sure...You'll have to buy the book as I've done.
This post is linked to Beth Fish Reads Weekly Cooking meme. Click her link to find many other marvelous food-related posts and lots of lovely conversations.
Have a peaceful Saturday.
8 comments:
What a lovely way to make a family tradition. I do enjoy it when my sons are home and we can all have a family breakfast together.
I have to one litre jugs of local maple syrup in my cupboard. Pancakes made at home at the best and this way I can make them dairy free. my kids love when we have pancakes, they are family comfort food. Our local maple syrup festival is the first weekend of April. I'll have to check the pancake recipe with the organizers.
Too funny on the copying too many recipes. But seriously, her recipes are fantastic. I love your new family tradition. I too have fond memories of Sunday brunch at my grandparents' with the aunts and uncles and cousins and a mountain of good food.
Perfect!! A new family tradition will be much more memorable, and certainly more delicious :-)
Like your starting a new family tradition centered on sharing a leisurely meal. Brunches have always felt like special gatherings and now I'm craving pancakes. My favorite recipe is Molly Wizenberg's Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes.
Lovely post. Thanks for a great recipe
We have a friend who makes maple syrup. We always get a bottle or two, depending on how much he gets. My kids love it. In fact, we had waffles for dinner tonight.
Sounds like a lovely new tradition. Have a terrific week.
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