Lazy Saturdays, Sundays and long weekends are perfect for fuss-free brunches with the family. Our Editor whips together some of his favourites for you to dig into this Easter.  

Mushroom, tomato and Brie baked eggs 

Serves 4 

A twist on the classic shakshuka breakfast. Cut the cost by swapping out Brie for Cheddar or crumbled feta. 

Ingredients

Glug olive oil
2 onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 punnets button mushrooms, quartered
2 Tbsp butter
1 cup cream
Few sprigs thyme
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 punnet vine tomatoes
1 wedge Brie, sliced
4 eggs
Crusty bread, for serving  

 Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Heat oil in an ovenproof pan and sauté onions and garlic for about 8-10 minutes until golden.
3. Add mushrooms and cook for another 8-10 minutes.
4. Stir through butter, cream and thyme, then simmer gently for 3-4 minutes. Stir through mustard and season.  
5. Nestle in the tomatoes and Brie.
6. Create 4 holes in the mixture and crack each egg into it.
7. Bake for about 4-6 minutes or until the egg is cooked and the cheese has melted.
8. Serve with crusty bread to soak up all that decadence.  

 

Asian-style croque madame  

Serves 3 

Swap out the flapjacks for waffles or crusty bread if you prefer. 

Ingredients

Butter or oil
9 store-bought flapjacks   

For the bechamel 

¼ cup butter
3 Tbsp flour
1L milk
Pinch nutmeg
½ cup grated Cheddar 
3 Tbsp chopped fresh coriander 
Salt and milled pepper   

1⁄2 cup mozzarella
9 rashers streaky bacon, cooked
2 spring onions, sliced
4 fried eggs, for serving
2 Tbsp sesame seeds, toasted chilli oil, for drizzling  

 Method

1. Pop flapjacks into the toaster until slightly crispy. 
2. For the béchamel, heat the butter in a pot and whisk in the flour until smooth.
3. Pour in milk while stirring and cook over a low heat for 8-10 minutes until mixture has thickened.
4. Add nutmeg, Cheddar, coriander and season, then stir until melted.
5. Preheat oven to 200°C.
6. Arrange 3 flapjacks onto a greased, lined baking tray.  
7. Top each one with a dollop of béchamel, then sprinkle with mozzarella.
8. Add another flapjack, half the bacon, spring onion and more béchamel.
9. Top with remaining flapjacks to create a 3-layered stack and spread with the remaining béchamel.  
10. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake until golden and cheese melts. 
11. Serve sprinkled with remaining spring onions, fried egg, sesame seeds and chilli oil. 

Stone fruit muesli crumble  

Serves 4 

Make a big batch of this muesli and store in an airtight container for breakfast on the go. 

Ingredients

For the muesli crumble

3 cups rolled or regular oats
½ cup desiccated coconut
¼ cup chopped mixed nuts 
¼ cup chopped mixed dried fruit 
2 oranges, zested and juiced 
¼ cup melted butter
¼ cup dark brown sugar
6 plums or nectarines, halved 
½ cup orange juice  

1 tsp vanilla
¼ cup dark brown sugar
1 tub (230g) crème fraiche 
3 Tbsp honey  

 Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. In a large greased baking tray, combine all the muesli crumble ingredients and toss through to combine.
3. Bake for about 10-15 min, stirring regularly until golden and toasted. Remove and set aside to cool.
4. Place plums or nectarines into a baking tray or skillet.  
5. Whisk together orange juice, vanilla and brown sugar. Pour mixture over the stone fruit and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until softened and sticky.
6. Whisk together the crème fraiche and honey, then set aside.
7. Serve the stone fruit with muesli crumble and honey crème fraiche.  

Jaffles 3 ways  

Serves 3 

If you don’t have a jaffle iron, try these combinations using a sandwich press or a snackwich machine.  

Ingredients

For the spinach and feta filling

½ cup finely chopped spinach
2 discs feta, crumbled 
1 tsp chilli flakes
Pinch nutmeg   

For the pork filling

oil, for frying
1 pork rasher, cubed
¼ punnet button mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 Tbsp chopped chives or sage   

For the chicken filling

¼ cup shredded rotisserie chicken
¼ cup grated mozzarella 
4-5 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped 
6 slices white bread, buttered on one side, for serving  

 Method

1. Wilt the spinach in a dry pan over medium heat, then remove from heat.
2. Stir through the feta, chilli flakes, nutmeg and season well. Set aside. 
3. For the pork filling, heat the oil in a pan and fry pork until crispy, remove from the heat.
4. In the same pan, add mushrooms and garlic, then fry for 4-6 minutes or until fully cooked.
5. Combine the pork, mushrooms and garlic and stir through fresh herbs. Set aside.
6. Mix together the chicken filling ingredients. Season well and set aside.
7. Fill each sandwich with respective filling and cook in a jaffle pan over a gas flame or medium coals for about 3-4 minutes per side.  

 

Potato latke tray bake  

Serves 6 

Sneak in some more veggies by adding grated broccoli or cauliflower to the latke mixture. 

Ingredients

4-6 baby marrows, grated 4 potatoes, peeled and grated
½ onion, grated 
2 eggs, whisked
¼ cup flour
3 Tbsp chopped coriander 
salt and milled pepper
oil, for frying
3-4 red peppers, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped 
½ cup red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp brown sugar
½ cup plain yoghurt
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp ground cumin
4 boiled eggs, for serving  

 Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Place baby marrows and potatoes in a clean tea towel and squeeze to remove excess moisture.
3. In a large bowl, combine baby marrows, potatoes, onion, eggs, flour, herbs and season well.
4. Press mixture into a large greased and lined baking tray. Bake for about 20-25 minutes until golden and cooked through.
5. Heat the oil in a pan and fry peppers, onion and garlic for about 5-6 minutes.
6. Add red wine vinegar and sugar and cook over a low heat for about 15 minutes or until sticky.
7. Once cool, blitz the mixture for a few seconds and set aside.
8. Combine the yoghurt, garlic powder and cumin. Season well and set aside.
9. Serve latke, topped with boiled eggs, yoghurt and red pepper relish.  

 

Recipes: Chad January

Photography: Zhann Solomons