Tis the season to gather, eat, and be merry.
Holiday brunches are opportunities to spread and share both the holiday spirit and food on a greater scale in every way. You'll capitalize on the holiday occasion for greater entertainment value, extend your holiday hospitality to a greater number of family and friends (including those not joining other gatherings), and milk greater bang-for-your-buck mileage from your leftovers.
Thanksgiving Weekend Brunch
Unlike Thanksgiving dinners, often stressful affairs, your brunch should be relatively effortless, a laid-back unwinding time in the aftermath. First, don't feel pressure to host the next day; your bounty will be as tasty, and you recharged, at a weekend brunch. Next, make it a casual gathering for friends. Thanksgiving angst is, for most, tied to family complications and drama; your brunch will be a thankful departure and happy respite from all that. Finally, Thanksgiving leftovers are easily reinvented into fresh, innovative brunch dishes: sweet potato pancakes, turkey frittatas, cranberry mimosas--truly endless possibilities. This brunch practically makes itself, an entertainer's dream worthy of a hearty thanks, indeed.
Hanukkah Brunch
Light the Menorrah and get deep-frying for a Hanukkah brunch.
While Hanukkah's eight days are not national holidays, at least one will fall over the weekend, so capitalize on the time to give Hanukkah its due with a brunch. The food includes universal crowd-pleasers: crispy potato pancakes (latkes); deep-friend doughnuts (sufganiot); and cheesecake. It's Jewish tradition to eat foods reflecting a holiday's significance; on Hanukkah, these foods are all about oil (symbolic of the miracle Menorrah oil that burned for eight days in an ancient victory for the Holy Temple) and dairy (symbolic of the bravery of a Jewish widow whose cheese fueld the victory).
New Year's Day Brunch
New Year's Eve is down for the count, but don't take off your party hat just yet.
You've bid adieu to last year, now give the new year a proper warm welcome with a New Year's Day Brunch. Host a New Year's Day Brunch for your friends and family to enjoy the day-after splurging (and recovery) together, while celebrating the year to come in style and good company. A buffet spread is a best bet, with piles of bagels, french toast, bacon and eggs. And of course, mimosas and bloody marys are a must.
Tags: Year Brunch, eight days, potato pancakes, your brunch
