Festive recipes: family-friendly festive brunches to make at home

The team at Bottomlessbrunch.com have delved into the details to bring you a list of the best brunches to try out this yuletide season, and into the new year, that will benefit from having extra helping hands in the kitchen.

Chocolate orange waffles

Add some Christmassy flavours to your brunch with this indulgent chocolate orange waffle recipe. With only a few easy steps to follow, you can let your children take the lead and mix together the batter.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

2 eggs

200ml milk

130g self-raising flour

20g cocoa powder

20g caster sugar

60g butter, melted

1 tsp orange essence

1 large orange, zested

25g dark chocolate, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve

Toppings: Orange segments, maple syrup, grated chocolate and whipped cream

Method

Switch on your waffle maker and mix the eggs and milk together in a jug.

In a bowl, combine the flour, cocoa and sugar, then carefully whisk in the egg and milk mixture until you have a smooth texture. Slowly pour in the melted butter, the teaspoon of orange essence, zest and chopped chocolate.

Pour a ladleful of batter into the waffle maker and cook for 5-6 minutes. Then repeat the process until the mixture runs out.

Place your waffles on a large plate, and serve with maple syrup, whipped cream, orange segments and grated chocolate.

Panettone pudding

Panettone pudding is a great way to give your leftover Christmas panettone a new lease of life and if you can’t have a panettone as part of your brunch over the festive period, then when can you?. This recipe is a festive twist on bread and butter pudding, and bound to go down as a treat with the whole family.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

50g butter, softened

250g panettone (about 5 medium slices)

2 eggs

142ml carton double cream

225ml milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp caster sugar

Icing sugar, for sprinkling

Softly whipped cream, to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 160C and grease a baking dish with a little of the 50g butter. Next, chop up 250g panettone into chunky wedges, leaving the crusts on.

Lightly butter the slices of bread and arrange them in the dish, buttered side up.

In a bowl, whisk together 142ml double cream, 2 eggs, 225ml milk, 1 tsp vanilla extract and 2 tbsp caster sugar. Pour the mixture into the tray evenly covering the panettone.

Place the dish in a larger roasting tin and pour hot water around it to the depth of about 2.5cm. Bake for around 35 minutes until the pudding is just set and is slightly browned on top.

Dust with a sprinkle of icing sugar and serve with whipped cream.

Egg muffins

Egg muffins are a great bake to bring to the table at a family brunch, as they’re not only quick and easy to make but they’re also packed with flavour and can be frozen for use at a later date or in the kids packed lunches once the January term starts.

This savoury recipe is also really versatile, meaning you can swap and change the ingredients based on what your little ones like and what you have lying around in the fridge.

Serves:12

Ingredients

Cooking spray

3 slices of bacon

1 small onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

6 large eggs

3 tbsp milk

1/4 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Salt and pepper

50g grated mozzarella

Method

Preheat the oven to 160ºC (fan) and grease a muffin tin with cooking spray. In a frying pan over a medium heat, cook the bacon until crispy, leave it to cool and chop it into small pieces.

Add the chopped onion and red pepper to the pan and cook until soft, around 5 minutes.

In a bowl, whisk eggs, milk, paprika, and garlic powder and season with salt and pepper. Add the cooked vegetables, bacon and mozzarella into the mixture and pour it into the prepared muffin tin.

Bake until cooked through and golden, for around 30 to 35 minutes.

Brie and cranberry wreath

Brie and cranberry is the perfect combination of flavours, so why not try them out in a delicious pastry wreath for a festive brunch? It’s the perfect festive sharer to serve up to your guests that will definitely keep the Christmas spirit alive all the way into January.

Serves: 8

Ingredients

Puff pastry

1 wheel of brie

Cranberry preserves/sauce

Pistachios, roughly chopped

1 beaten egg

Method

​​Shape the pastry into a circle and roll out the pastry until it’s around ½ cm thick.

Use a large round bowl as a guide and cut the puff pastry into a large disc and cut a star into the middle.

Next, spread the cranberry sauce over the pastry, avoiding the star in the middle. Then evenly add the Brie and pistachios around the wreath until you have a good amount of filling.

Pull each point of the star over the filling towards the outer edge, then pinch the pastry together using your fingers.

Brush your wreath with an egg wash before baking for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and puffed.

Rudolph pancakes

If you and your little ones are still feeling christmassy, this recipe will make your pancake brunches a little more fun and festive. They are super easy to make using just two different sized round pancakes and with a variety of toppings to choose from, your little ones can get creative with their brunch.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 cup (250ml) milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 cup (150g) self-raising flour

2 tsp butter

4 rashers streaky bacon

Whipped cream

Blueberries

4 strawberries

Method

Start by making a standard pancake batter by whisking together milk and egg in a bowl and sifting flour into it.

Once your mixture is smooth, melt the two teaspoons of butter in a large frying pan and pour in the batter to form one large circle and one smaller circle.

Cook for a few minutes until bubbles form and then flip the pancakes and cook on the other side. Repeat this step with the remaining ingredients. In a separate pan, cut your 4 bacon rashers in half and cook them until they have a nice crisp texture.

To create Rudolph, place the large pancake on a plate with the smaller pancake on top, but positioned halfway down. Place the bacon rashers at the top of the head to create antlers, and use the whipped cream and blueberries to create the eyes and a strawberry for a nose.

Recipes courtesy of: www.bottomlessbrunch.com