Holiday Entertaining: Throw a Breakfast Party

Our schedules for the next couple of weeks are packed. We're sure yours are, too. But if you want to get together with friends to celebrate the season and don't have an evening to spare, why not invite friends over for breakfast or brunch? They can fuel up before they head out Christmas shopping.

If you work from home (and have friends who do, too) or have a flexible schedule, you might even be able to throw a casual breakfast party during the week. We think morning gatherings are great. Set out some good coffee, sliced fruit, and a couple of family-style dishes (one egg, one bread) and start your day off right.

You've got two weekends left before Christmas... Why not?

Here are some tips and recipe ideas:

Food
• Holiday Breakfast Wreath
• Quick Cinnamon Rolls
• Baked Apple Streusel Pancake Bars
• Sour Cherry Coffee Cake
• Mark Bittman's Baked Eggs with Tomato
• How to Make the Best Scrambled Eggs
• Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole

Drinks
• Cocktails for Brunch (including all the classics)
• Breakfast Mocktail: Orange and Elderflower Spritzer
• Peppermint Mochas!

(Image: Flickr member whitneyinchicago, licensed for use under Creative Commons)

Comments (8)

I loved those cinnamon rolls that I made in the picture. So delicious!

http://whitneyinchicago.wordpress.com/2009/04/12/cinnamon-rolls/

posted by WhitinChi on December 8th 2009 at 3:35pm
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i'm actually doing a "stand up breakfast brunch" reception for my wedding. yeah for muffins, mini quieches, cheeses and fruits!!!

posted by gailrebekah on December 8th 2009 at 3:37pm
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Crepes are a great social brunch food. They can be sweet or savory. Everyone can bring a topping or filling. Ideas: fruits, yogurt, whipped cream, nutella, cheeses, ham, veggies, or just plain melted butter and sugar!

posted by acaputo on December 8th 2009 at 4:01pm
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I throw a monthly waffle breakfast party. It started as a way to prove that we would actually use the waffle iron that we registered for! It's been a lot of fun, and there are fewer scheduling conflicts.

posted by rqhays on December 8th 2009 at 4:02pm
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my husband and i are doing a sunday brunch holiday party on the sunday after christmas this year with an egg casserole and large roast (turkey, pork or beef depending what's on sale) will be the center of a buffet of salads, cheese, fruit, etc. if anyone has a vegetarian breakfast casserole recipe they'd like to share i'd love to have it.

@gailrebekah - my mom and step-dad had a beautifully simple brunch reception after their beachfront wedding. it was insanely inexpensive - eggs, breads, cheese, fruit, juice, coffee, etc. and they also saved a ton on booze by only doing mimosas. even at my lushest i can only do about 3 of those suckers before 1 pm.

posted by nenasadije on December 8th 2009 at 4:26pm
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Brunch is my favorite get together meal. I encouraged my grandmother to do a brunch for our family Christmas this year. I am looking forward to it!

posted by jamies-recipes on December 8th 2009 at 4:30pm
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we are actually look for some "bite sized quiche" (or the like) recipes if anyone has any ideas.

posted by gailrebekah on December 9th 2009 at 10:37am
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We host a brunch on Christmas Day for all the friends without family in town (which is most of us!). I make my mom's recipe for homemade cinnamon rolls and everyone else brings something to contribute - fruit trays, ham slices, cheese, etc. Friends are welcome to hang out as long as they want, but it's perfect for a casual get-together.

posted by jonnifer on December 9th 2009 at 11:23am
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