3 Mother's Day brunch recipes to make this weekend
We have no doubt that by now you've taken care of the Mother's Day basics. You've purchased the perfect Mother's Day gift and you're ready to take our breakfast-in-bed recipe recommendation and fix up a morning meal as she rises from bed this weekend. She'll definitely be proud and appreciative with those, but she'll wear even more smiles than usual if you remember that moms love brunch even more than the rest of us.
Instead of attempting to bribe your city's best brunch restaurant for reservations on short notice (and good luck with that), make Mother's Day brunch even more special by making it yourself, with help from Southern Kitchen's recipe tsar Jeffrey Gardner. He's back with three dishes -- two from our recipe collection and one of his own -- to help you put together a fantastic midday meal any mother will love.
Breakfast Casserole
Instead of making a spread of scrambled eggs, sausage, and grits, why not combine all three into a layered casserole? The cast iron skillet promotes great browning of the sausage, and the charred tomatoes add acidity to an otherwise rich dish. This can even be assembled the night before, then baked in the morning.
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Shrimp & Tasso Cream over Stone Ground Grits
Don’t feel like braving the crowded masses of restaurants on Mother’s Day? Bring the restaurant experience into your own home with this hearty fare. Shrimp and grits is one of those dishes that can bridge the gap between breakfast and lunch. Tasso is a spiced Cajun ham that can really brighten up the rich cream sauce. If tasso isn’t available to you, andouille sausage would be a great substitute.
Yeast Cinnamon Rolls
Who can resist that intoxicating aroma of warm cinnamon baked goods wafting through the house? Don’t be intimidated by working with yeast: this is about as easy of a dough as you can make. If you need to speed up the rising process, just place a heating pad under the bowl as the dough is proofing. Cream cheese icing is another good substitute for the glaze if you prefer more of an iced cinnamon roll.
Chef Jeffrey Gardner is a native of Natchez, Miss., and a graduate of Millsaps College and Johnson & Wales University. He lives in Atlanta and has served as sous chef for popular restaurants South City Kitchen Midtown and Alma Cocina. In 2013 he became executive chef for East Cobb restaurant Common Quarter and was named one of ten “Next Generation of Chefs to Watch” by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. He has appeared on TV shows including Food Network’s Chopped and Cooking Channel’s How to Live to 100, and also filmed a series of healthy cooking videos with retired pro wrestler and fitness guru Diamond Dallas Page. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling the world with his wife Wendy, watching game shows and “spending all his money on Bruce Springsteen concerts.”
