For the menu:
Rachael Ray's Elsa's Egg Cake
Build-Your-Own Waffle Bar
Fruit Salad
Confetti Cupcakes
Coffee
Mimosas
Egg Cake
This is a family favorite! I have written a few alterations to fit the way we like it. I've made this for a brunch shower in the past and it was a hit. You can easily double or triple the recipe to fit your group. It can be put together the night before, just bake right before you are ready to serve. Note: the pics are from the doubled recipe.
Ingredients (to serve 4):
- 6 slices thick-cut bacon (we always use 1 lb. pre-cooked sausage)
- 1 medium onion
- Salt and Pepper
- 3 cups soft bread (1/2 bakery loaf)
- 1 cup plus 1/4 cup shrdded sharp white cheddar cheese (I could only find yellow)
- 8 eggs
- 3/4 cup half-and-half
- Few dashes of nutmeg
- 1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggino Cheese
1. Prehead the oven to 400F. Lightly spray an 8-inch cake pan with cooking spray. I use an 8-in square Pyrex.
2. Slice the sausage. I cut each piece in half so there would be lots of sausage spread out.
3. Brown the sausage and set aside.
4. Chop the onion.
5. Use some of the sausage fat to brown the onion until tender, about 5-6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. It will look like this when ready:
6. While the sausage and/or onions are browning, cut the bread into small cubes. (Thanks for the help sister!)
7. To the cake pan, add 1/2 of the bread, 1/2 of the cheddar cheese, the onions, and 1/2 of the sausage. I forgot to take a pic of this but it's pretty self-explanatory!
8. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, a few dashes of nutmeg, and some S&P. Hint- whisk the eggs before you add anything else so you can see if there are any unbroken yolks, we learned this the hard way...
9. Pour 1/2 of the egg mixture over everything in the pan.
10. Add the rest of the bread, pressing down slightly, the remaining cheddar cheese and sausage to the pan. Pour the rest of the egg mixture over the top and sprinkle the Parmigiano Reggiano over everything.
11. Bake until puffy and golden brown on top, about 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Waffle Bar
I got a waffle maker from Williams-Sonoma a few years ago and love it! It is perfect for weekend breakfasts or breakfast-for-dinner. My sister, Brooke, had the idea to do a "choose your own toppings" waffle bar for a dinner I had a few months ago. I think it is a great idea to get people involved at a party. Anything where your guests help make their own drink, food, dessert is fun. My friend Charlotte brought some toppings: cool whip, chocolate chips, and berries. I always keep syrup stocked in my pantry for waffles. I bought waffle tongs from Williams-Sonoma and I found this cute syrup pitcher from WS too. I made the batter before my guests got there so it was read to go!
Fruit Salad
My friend, Evan, pitched in and made a wonderful fruit salad.
Confetti Cupcakes
For dessert, I used store-bought cupcake mix with whipped white icing. With cake mix costing $0.99, it would seriously be cheaper (and easier!) than making cupcakes from scratch. I was so excited to finally have an excuse to buy the Williams-Sonoma cupcake/muffin tins. For decorations, I bought clear sugar sprinkles to go on top. I also found a cupcake decorating kit from (again) WS. I couldn't find it online but it had a set of 24 themed paper liners and paper toppers. I used a fondant set my mom bought me a few years ago to make initials of each of the guests. Super easy! For display, I borrowed my mom's cupcake stand. This thing has been used more times than I can count.
Coffee
I had coffee ready for when the guests arrived. I like to collect different coffee cups so each person will have their own print and style. Nerd alert: picking out which mug I want to use is a highlight of my day.
Mimosas
Enough said. Friends volunteered to bring the ingredients!
We had a great time getting together in this casual celebration.
Egg cake and waffle bar were delicious!!
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