 Brunch places are popping up all over my little town. Love You Brunches, La Gabrielles Crepes and Waffles and The Brunch Apothecary are just a few. We honestly don't go out for brunch very often - we usually prefer to brunch at home but that doesn't mean that I don't want to check out a few of these local brunch spots. The great thing about brunch menus is that they can include breakfast foods, lunch items, a plated meal, finger foods, hot coffee, chilled cocktails and mocktails, sweet treats and something savory options. I could go on and on. Nothing is really off the table (so to speak😅) as far as brunch menus are concerned.  The menu planning is one of my favorite parts of hosting a brunch. I usually start by planning a fresh fruit option, a sweet choice (muffin, cinnamon roll, coffee cake, etc) and at least once source of protein. Eggs are my favorite source of morning protein.🥚 They're delicious, loved by almost everyone and can be prepared in a LOT of different ways. If you've never tried egg Frittata muffins - here's your chance. These little protein bites are DELICIOUS! Customize them by adding your favorite vegetables, meats, cheese or herbs. These can be as unique as you are. I used white tortillas, goat cheese and vegetables in mine but I'd love to hear about your creations.  Frittata Muffins 6 eggs 4 Tablespoons milk 1 garlic clove, minced 1 cup red pepper, diced ¼ cup cherry tomatoes, quartered 5 Tablespoons fresh spinach, chopped 1 teaspoon fresh parsley ¼ teaspoon pepper ¼ teaspoon salt 2 Tablespoons goat cheese, crumbled 3 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated 4 tortillas chives
  Garnish with chives to serve.
Ciao!
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 Rise and shine... it's brunch week on the blog! Brunch is so trendy right now and I'm not mad about it. There's so much to love about brunch. It just hits differently than other meals. It's is more of a feeling than a meal - a vibe. For me, brunch means a casual atmosphere to gather together and indulge in my favorite comfort foods. 🥐🍳🥓🧇🥞🥯 Who doesn't love a meal where sipping mimosas in yoga pants and a hoodie is perfectly acceptable?🥂  Brunch menus include breakfast AND lunch items which means there's lots of variety. Combining breakfast and lunch into one meal is also, just efficient cooking.😅 Anytime I can get away with cooking one less weekend meal - count me in. Today I'm sharing my new favorite brunch item with you: Breakfast Focaccia. I make the dough the night before the brunch is planned so it comes together quickly on the morning of the brunch. I made a simple version of this eggy pizza but you can spice it up however you like. You can add more eggs, bacon, sausage, vegetables or smoked gouda cheese. Create your own breakfast focaccia or have your brunch guests top their own custom slice.  Breakfast Focaccia 4 1/4 cups flour 2 1/4 teaspoons yeast 1 Tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1 3/4 cups warm water 5 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled 6 eggs 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
 Carefully pour an egg into each ramekin hole.  Bake another 8-12 minutes until eggs are desired doneness. I baked mine 9 minutes.
Ciao!  I live in The Peach State so I feel an obligation to kick off peach season in Georgia with a quintessential peach recipe.😅🍑 We actually don't have any peach orchards in my neck of the woods (so to speak) but I'm headed to South Georgia next week where peach orchards are prevalent.🌳 So I will do what any other girl would do when surrounded by peach trees, pick ripe peaches and eat peach ice cream.😂🍦  It's not always practical to make the 4 hour trip south to the Peach farms so the next best thing to picking my own fruit is a trip to our local farmers market. There are lots of great vendors at the market but my favorites are the farmers who bring their fresh fruit and vegetables.🍑🍅🌶️🌽🫛🫑 It's still a little early in the season for Georgia peaches but as soon as a girl who always likes to be prepared - I've already got my favorite peach recipes ready. I like to keep my fruit recipes simple - so as not to cover up the fresh flavor of the fruit. This Peach Strawberry Crisp is exactly that. It's simple but also exceptionally delicious.🍓🍑  Peach Strawberry Crisp Crisp Topping: ½ cup all-purpose flour ½ cup whole oats ½ cup brown sugar packed ½ cup sliced almonds coarsely chopped 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon ½ cup unsalted butter softened Peach Strawberry Filling: 20 ounces peeled and sliced fresh peaches 20 ounces sliced fresh strawberries ⅔ cup granulated sugar 3 Tablespoons cornstarch 1 Tablespoon lemon juice 1 teaspoon vanilla
 Allow the crisp to cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Ciao!  I just started planting vegetables in my garden last week but the one thing that I do have that's ready to harvest is lettuce.🥬
Bring on the salads!! One of my favorite salads from last summer is this Caesar Salmon Salad. It is super simple to make but really tasty. 😋  The cool thing about this salad is that the "dressing" goes right on the salmon before it's cooked. It's really more of a marinade than a dressing. Instead of adding more Caesar to my salad - I squeeze the charred lemons over the bowl. The lemons, the grilled salmon, the Caesar marinade and the home grown lettuce all add up to a scrumptious meal.🥗  Caesar Salmon Salad 2 garlic cloves 3 Tablespoons butter 2 Tablespoons olive oil 4 cups bread cubes 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 lemons 3/4 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese 2 teaspoons dijon mustard 1 teaspoon anchovy paste 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1 salmon filet 8 cups little gem lettuce shaved parmesan, for garnish
 Place lettuce, croutons and cheese in a bowl.  Arrange pieces of salmon over lettuce. Squeeze charred lemon halves over salad and drizzle with dressing.
Ciao!  I have a love/hate relationship with tomato plants. 20 years ago when I first started my garden, I was so ambitious that I planted a least a half dozen different kinds of tomato plants.👩🏻🌾 I had heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, yellow plum, grape, sweet 100s and better boy varieties. I watered and cared for those plants like they were my own children and they produced bushels of fresh tomatoes and that's when I found out that I'm the only person in my family who actually eats fresh tomatoes.😂🤷🏻♀️ In retrospect, I probably should have asked my family if they liked fresh tomatoes before I planted a garden full of them.😅 I'd like to say that I shared all of those tomatoes with friends and neighbors but the truth is I passed them out to anyone who would take them. Coercing innocent bystanders and literally anyone who happened to walk past my house that summer, into accepting a bag of tomatoes might actually be more accurate than "sharing".😂  After my inaugural overly abundant tomato crop, I've downsized my tomato gardening.🍅 Every since then, I started planting a single tomato plant because I still really enjoyed the process of tomato farming even on a much smaller scale. I like tomatoes as much as the next girl but I still find have a hard time eating all of the tomatoes that my single plant can produce. Every summer, I was leaving bags of fresh tomatoes on my neighbors porches like a reverse porch pirate.😅🏴☠️ So before I got written up by my HOA, I had to come up with creative ways to use up all of my tomatoes. I started looking into fresh tomato pasta sauce and salsa recipes. That's also when I came across this Skillet Chicken with Cherry Tomato Sauce recipe. It's a simple and delicious way to use up my fresh tomatoes AND a sneaky way to trick my family into helping me eat all of these tomatoes. 🤣🍅  Skillet Chicken with Cherry Tomato Sauce Chicken 1 Tablespoon Herbs de Provence 1 teaspoon pepper 1 teaspoon salt 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 2 Tablespoons olive oil Sauce 2 Tablespoons olive oil 3 garlic cloves, sliced thin 1 teaspoon anchovy paste 10 ounces cherry tomatoes 1/2 cup white wine 1 Tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup crushed red pepper flakes 2 Tablespoons butter
 Serve over (or beside) egg noodles. Ciao!
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