It has been years since I have been to the Easter Sunday church services, years since I was a young Catholic jumping up and down in my most flowery Easter dress awaiting the most sacred and joyous of all Christain celebraitions. It was supposed to be a grand affair, but in truth, except for the overly crowded church service with people standing in the aisles in their best spring attire, Easter has become just another day, just another weekend. Even after church, most people just return home and lazy around just as if it were any other Sunday in the year. But just like any holiday, Easter is an excuse for eating.

This Easter, as I have the house to myself for the first time, I decided to try something new and delight myself with a homemade Easter brunch. After browsing a few websites with Easter brunch ideas, I came up with a fascinating menu filled with scrumcious chocolate concoctions. But of course, only chocolate for a bruch would probably not be the best idea. I thus picked up my bags and headed to the grocery store (which in the US remains open on Easter). I browsed the aisles for the perfect mix of ingredients. In my basket, I had a loaf of bread (still slightly warm), a bunch of asparagus (on sale this week), a jar of Bonne Maman preserves (because it’s the only reasonably priced jam made with real sugar and not high-fructose corn syrup), some feta cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms and a bunch of cilantro. Strange mix, I know, but how can you go wrong with items that are completely fresh, natrural and thus non-processed. I was convinced, I would be able to create a delicious and satisfying bruch with the items in my shopping basket.

As I began unpacking my grocery bags, I started searching my brain for the long lost brunch recipes. Eggs (which I already had from a previous grocery adventure) are next to essential for any brunch whether you are making, scrambles, egg benedict or an omelette. I needed an egg dish. I tossed around the idea of a feta and asparagus omelette or an egg hash of sorts (made with potatos -also already in the pantry). I even thought a quiche would be nice. I also would need something somewhat sweet, something like pancakes, waffles or crepes. But the something sweet will definately have eggs in it and if I made an omelette or other such savoury egg-based dish, I would be doubling up on the eggs. I decided to forgo the savory egg dish. To try something new for my something sweet and doughy, I decided to make a German pancake, a super simple recipe that is great served with cream and strawberries or just maple syrup. Egg-based dish – check.

To go with my German pancake, I needed some vegies and maybe some starch. I decided to use a little of everything. I blanched my aparagus in boiling water and tossed it with a bit of olive oil, salt, peper and a tiny bit of feta (for color) and then, topped it with some sliced sun-dried tomatos. I sauteed some sliced mushrooms with onions and garlic, added a little cream and seasoned and garnished with chopped cilantro. For the starch, potatos seemed the logical choice. I cubed a potato and sauteed it in butter and olive oil, seasoned with salt, peper and paprika and then garnished (again) with chopped cilantro. It was beginning to look appetizing. The vegies were cooking, the German pancake was baking.

I needed just one more thing: meat. Now, as you will recall, I didn’t buy any meat at my recent trip to the grocery store. I rumaged through the fridge for what unfrozen meat could be salvaged for an Easter morning brunch. Ground beef? No. Chicken breast? Double no. It was beginning to look dire, but I decided to have one more look. In the cheese and meat compartment of the refridgerator, I saw it, a chunk of ham. Don’t worry – this is not a ham that has been sitting in the back of my fridge for who knows how long. It is a ham that we bought for the sole purpose of making sandwiches and as deli-sliced ham often goes bad quickly, we thought it would be a good investment to buy a hormel half ham for sandwich making purposes. I pulled out the ham and cut 2 thin slices and threw them on the griddle for a few minutes (to warm the ham through and give it slight charred flavor).

After an hour of slaving in the kitchen, I was ready to eat. My Easter brunch for one was as follows:

German Pancake:

3 wholes eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup flour

a dash of salt

1 tablespoon melted butter

powered sugar for sprinkling

Mix eggs, milk, flour and salt until well blended. Put melted butter in a bottom of a baking dish. I used a square pyrex dish, but I am sure you can improvise and use whatever you have lying around as long as it is not flat and has sides (because the pancake dose poof). Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or until poofed. Serve with anything sweet you have lying around (syrup, jam, honey, fruits, etc.).

Blanched aparagus with feta and sun dried tomatos (no recipe needed)

Sauteed mushroom with onions and cream (again no recipe needed)

Ham (throw on skillet/griddle and warm. Now, did I really have to explain that?)

Skillet potatos (sautee in butter/olive oil until soft)

Final evaluation – best Easter brunch ever. Serve with freshly pressed orange juice and you’ve got yourself a meal that would have cost you at least 12.50 at your local restaurant. Cooking yourself make eating a lot more satisfying. And with that, I am off to do the dishes.