food comas

Brunching is one of my favorite things to do in Manhattan, as the city is packed with a plethora of brunch spots that can suit any desire for a traditional (Bubby’s) or nouveau American brunch (Five Points), an Asian Fusion brunch with a DIY Bloody Mary Bar (Double Crown), a Chinese dim sum brunch (Ping’s Seafood, 88 Palace), a cheap and boozy brunch (Yerba Buena Perry), or al fresco brunch… the possibilities are endless!

In California, some of our favorite spots we have highlighted include Foreign Cinema in San Francisco, Blue Onion Cafe in King’s Beach (Tahoe), and Los Gatos Cafe in Los Gatos (obviously).

However, once in a while, it’s nice to do something a little more low key and so Natalya and I decided to host a Sunday brunch at our apartment for a couple friends.  We kicked it off with a round of mimosas and put together some of our favorite quick & easy brunch dishes.  For this particular occasion, we made Fontina and Gruyère Grilled Cheese Sandwich served with Creamy Tomato Soup, Tomato and Feta Baked Eggs, Roasted Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Prosciutto, and then had some juicy watermelon slices for dessert!

I shall keep updating this post with new additions so we have a nice collection of our favorite brunch recipes.

Fontina and Gruyère Grilled Cheese Sandwich served with Creamy Tomato Soup
This is my favorite brunch dish from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery in the UWS — san marzano tomato soup with grilled fontina & gruyère cheese on pain au lait.  Natalya and I have recreated it at home many times with our trusty mini George Foreman grill, and the main key of this recipe is really the bread.  Unless you can get that light and fluffy piece of magic direct from Bouchon, just ensure to get the very best quality white bread from your local bakery.  Lightly butter each side so you get that lovely golden brown color all around and place a generous slice of fontina and gruyère cheese in between.  You will never have a grilled cheese sandwich quite like this one.

I have yet to make my own tomato soup, but it’s on the to-do list!  I usually just buy it canned, and the creamier the better!

Tomato and Feta Baked Eggs
This recipe is from one of my favorite cooking blogs, Kevin’s Closet Cooking, and it has quickly become my favorite breakfast dishes to make.  These baked eggs have a fresh Mediterranean twist by using fresh herbs like dill and crumbled feta.

Roasted Asparagus with Poached Egg and Prosciutto
It was springtime and I felt a warm asparagus salad would be a great addition to our Sunday Brunch.  Plus, we are poached egg fanatics here so two egg dishes sounded ideal to us!

Poached Eggs with Salmon and Tomato
I told you we love poached eggs!  This is Natalya’s healthier take on Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict… no Hollandaise or bread required!

Peanut Butter and Banana French Toast
Take a walk on the sweeter side of our kitchen — Pris makes a brunch / dessert hybrid with a peanut butter and a banana sandwich in french toast form!