Friday Brunch with Friends

This was the first time I've ever created a timeline for a meal...and let me tell you - it worked wonderfully! I wasn't as stressed in the kitchen because I knew exactly what needed to be done and when to do it - and more importantly, everything was ready and served on time! Obviously a timeline isn't necessary for every meal, but I will definitely be implementing it for any complicated dishes, big holidays, or dinner parties. It also helped to list a couple things that needed to be prepped the night before - and that really saved me some time too! :)

We had our friends Gina & Andrew over for Friday brunch since we all had the day off. I decided to finally break out my Julia Child cookbook and go with a french menu. To kick things off...I made Strawberry Orange Juice (the only non-Julia Child thing on the menu).

One thing I'm secretly very proud of (actually not so secretly since I gladly tell anyone and everyone) is that I'm 1/8th French! I think it is the coolest thing in the world. So like any good little french chef....I made crepes. Whole wheat crepes with Almond Cream filling and drizzled with chocolate to be exact. My mom always makes crepes for Easter - or strudels as we Germans call them - even though they are not really true strudels, they are actually crepes. But I never realized how time consuming crepes can be. But it is only because usually a whole batch makes a TON of crepes! So in reality, one crepe only takes about 90 seconds...but multiply that by 30 crepes and your looking at a solid 45 minutes of straight crepe making. I only made about 10-12 crepes though, so it wasn't too bad.

Crepes with Almond Cream filling and Chocolate

Julia Child’s Master Crêpe Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

2/3 cup cold milk

2/3 cup cold water

3 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons melted butter, plus more for brushing on pan

Directions:

1) Mix all ingredients until smooth in a blender or with a whisk. Refrigerate.

2) Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Brush with melted butter.

3) Pour in 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter into the center of the pan and then tilt the pan in all directions to cover the bottom evenly. Cook about 1 minute, or until browned on the bottom. Turn and cook briefly on the other side.

4) Cool on a rack or plate as you finish making the rest. Serve as desired.

Gratin of Potatoes, Bacon, Egg, & Onion

I don't like a breakfast that is solely comprised of sweet things. So of course I included something with bacon, egg, & potato - adapted from Julia Child's gratin recipe here, only I used bacon instead of ham.

Top it off with a good cup of coffee and there you have it! Friday brunch with friends :) I think we will make this a tradition...