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For a leisurely holiday get-together, there's nothing like Sunday brunch. Casually scheduled for any time between 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., this meal features favorite foods from both breakfast and lunch. Brunch give you lots of opportunities to serve delicious and nutritious fare, especially fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

Your meal can be as simple as a brunch platter consisting of a green bean salad (with thin-sliced red onion, toasted hazelnuts and a light vinaigrette), thin slices of roasted ham or turkey served with crusty whole grain bread and a variety of fresh fruits. For more sophisticated yet simply made brunch dishes, consult your favorite cookbooks for their takes on baked omelets, gratins, frittatas and quiche. For a complementary side dish, sauté sliced mushrooms and fresh spinach with minced garlic, ground pepper and nutmeg, or steam fresh asparagus and serve with a sprinkle of lemon juice.

If you're planning a more extensive brunch buffet, be sure to include lots of colorful fresh fruit. Mix diced pineapple and apple with halved strawberries, plus sliced banana and kiwi fruit. Dress with a mixture of low-fat yogurt and honey, then sprinkle with chopped nuts. For melon balls, cook a mixture of sugar, water, fresh ginger slices, whole cloves, and a cinnamon stick – simmered 5 minutes, then strained and cooled before tossing with fruit.

Breakfast baked goods are brunch staples. Find a low-fat recipe that features healthy add-ins, like bran-apple muffins, or orange-glazed prune muffins. Quick breads like whole wheat zucchini bread or blueberry corn bread are popular fare at a brunch buffet. Add some four-grain waffles (made with rolled oats, buckwheat flour, whole wheat flour and cornmeal), topped with berries or a combination of apples, bananas and pears that have been sautéed in a little soft tub margarine or butter until soft.

This poppy seed muffin can be made at the last minute, with less fat than usual, thanks to a lemony yogurt.

Lemony Poppy Seed Muffins

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. poppy seeds
  • 1 Tbsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 Tbsp. grated lemon zest
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1 1/4 cups lemon non-fat yogurt
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1 egg plus 2 egg whites
  • 4 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line either mini or regular muffin tins with paper cups, or lightly coat with vegetable oil spray.

  2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda, zest and salt.

  3. In separate bowl combine yogurt, oil, egg, egg whites and lemon juice. Whisk until smooth. Pour yogurt mixture into flour mixture and stir until just combined. (Batter should be slightly lumpy, not completely smooth.)

  4. Spoon into prepared pans and bake until tops are springy to touch and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (Timing will depend on size of muffins.)

  5. Cool slightly in pans, then remove and continue cooling on wire racks. Serve immediately or keep muffins in tightly-sealed container to preserve their moistness.

  6. Makes 36 mini muffins or 12 regular-size muffins. Each mini muffin contains 63 calories and 2 grams of fat. Each regular-size muffin contains 190 calories and 6 grams of fat. <

Source: AICR


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