Photos by Jamie Plain
What better way is there to celebrate the approaching spring weather than inviting friends and family over to enjoy a delicious brunch? With in-season ingredients like fresh berries and asparagus, it’s the best time to experiment with fresh seasonal flavors. These three recipes are simple to make, but will still impress your guests and have them asking for seconds! Enjoy!
Smoky Asparagus Bacon Quiche
Ingredients:
One Pie crust (either store-bought or your favorite homemade recipe)
4 eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
1 bunch asparagus (chopped, leave some longer for decoration on top)
1/2 cup bacon (cooked & crumbled)
1 cup smoked cheddar cheese (grated)
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Press your pie crust into a pie/quiche/tart pan and prick the bottom with a fork. Line with parchment papers and pie weights. Pre-bake your pie crust for 10-15min (until it starts to golden), then take it out and set it aside.
2. Cook your asparagus in a pan on high heat for about 5-6 minutes until they are bright green and tender. Add a splash of water in the pan to create some steam. Then remove them, drain them, and chop them up (optionally leaving some longer to decorate the quiche with).
3. Beat eggs, cream, milk, and salt/pepper together until completely combined. Then fold the grated cheese into the mixture.
4. Sprinkle the bacon and asparagus on the bottom of the crust, then pour the egg mixture on top (optional, arrange some asparagus on top of the quiche for decoration)
5. Bake your quiche until the center is set, (30-50min, depending on the oven). Let cool for at least 10min before cutting and serving.
Lemon and Blueberry Dutch Baby
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup lemon curd (homemade or store-bought)
1/2 pint blueberries
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 425F
2. Add eggs, flour, milk, sugar, vanilla, and salt to a blender and blend until smooth.
3. Place butter in a cast iron skillet and put in the oven until the butter has melted. Remove from the oven and pour the batter into the skillet (you can also use two pans and place half the batter in each).
4. Return the skillets to the oven and bake for around 20min, until the pancake is puffed and golden.
5. Remove the skillets from the oven, then top with lemon curd, blueberries, and a sprinkle of confectioners sugar.
Homemade Bloody Mary
Ingredients:
1 48oz can tomato juice
2 Tbsp hot horseradish
3 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp celery salt
Tabasco sauce (to taste)
black pepper (to taste)
Vodka
Instructions:
1. Mix tomato sauce, horseradish, worcestershire sauce, celery salt, and black pepper together in a pitcher, then season with 10-15 shakes of Tabasco sauce. Refrigerate mixture until ready to serve.
2. When you are ready to serve, rim a glass with Tajin. Fill the glass with ice, then add 2oz of vodka and top with the prepared bloody mary mixture. You can also skip the vodka to keep it non-alcoholic. Garnish with lemons/limes, celery, stuffed olives, bacon, peppers, shrimp, pickles, chunks of cheese, or anything else your heart desires. OL
