Christmas Brunch Ideas
Christmas brunch buffet is a meal served close to noon consisting of both breakfast and lunch items accompanied with beverages of choice. In the late 19th century brunch was the meal that combines breakfast and lunch easing into the day typically served between 10 AM to 1PM to enjoy with family and friends. It originated in England in the 19th century and became popular in the United States in the 1930’s. Soon restaurants joined the trend offering consumers decadent spreads of food including signature morning cocktails like bloody Marys,Peach Bellinis traditionally made with Prosecco sparkling wine and peach juice and Mimosas a mixture of fresh orange juice and sparkling white wine. Brunch may have been influenced by the English hunt breakfast or catholic fasting tradition of reducing one’s intake of food to enjoy a hearty mid day meal.
The English Author Guy Beringer advocated for a lighter more social meal served on Sundays begins the delightful tradition of brunch, a harmonious blend of breakfast and lunch multi course meals featuring a vast array of goodies including eggs, meats, cheese selection, fresh fruits, sweets and beverages served buffet style. Beringer championed a lighter late morning meal that was sociable, cheerful and enticing to eat. It swept away worries and cobwebs leaving dinners satisfied with themselves and fellow beings. A Christmas holiday brunch buffet is a delightful light meal that combines both breakfast and lunch items. Whether you set up a buffet table on a kitchen island, countertop, dining room table, sideboard or server, creating a themed buffet can set the tone for the holiday meal for formal or casual gatherings.
Lite sweet and savory appetizers are small bites of food eaten before the main course is served. Gusts will enjoy sampling appetizers on your Christmas holiday buffet display in a relaxing atmosphere during the season. Lite appetizers may include a platter with fresh fruits like seedless grapes with a variety of whole wheat crackers and fruit dip made with greek vanilla yogurt, slightly sweetened with Truvia sweetener. Mini size gourmet Spinach Quiche is a delicious way to begin any brunch. Crispy flaky convenient phyllo cups are perfectly sized pastry shells that are ready to stuff or fill with savory combinations to serve at your next party. Athens mini phyllo shells 15 per box are fully backed and ready to serve at your next party. Just fill the shells with your favorite fillings like sugar free puddings, chocolate, vanilla, butterscotch slightly drizzled with Hershey sugar free chocolate syrup creating mini low calorie decadent desserts.
Make your own phyllo cups placing 4 layers of buttered phyllo sheets cut to size in mini greased muffin cups bringing the sheets of the phyllo dough up the sides of each cup. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for10 minutes. Mini hot tuna melts can be made in a phyllo cup combining drained canned tuna, diced onion, diced celery and olive oil mayonnaise. Heat the tuna salad in a glass bowl in the microwave for 2 minutes. Fiil the phyllo cups with tuna salad topped with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. Chicken salad appetizers is a savory dish combining drained canned or shredded chicken with diced onions, one diced jalapeno pepper with olive oil mayonnaise. Fill the phyllo cups with chicken salad then topped off with chopped Planters Cashews seasoned with dill pickle flavor. Arrange the hot tuna melts with the chicken garnished with cashew nuts on a platter for guests to select.
Other party favorites can also be served alongside appetizers including large Quiche of choice, vegetable, spinach, ham and cheese, Quiche Lorriane, Cheesy Zucchini, Mushroom Asparagus Quiche, scrambled eggs made with truffle butter are classic dishes served at many buffets. Paleo Pancake & Waffle Mix by Birch Benders made with Cassava, Coconut, and Almond flour is low carb and keto-friendly just 11 net carbs per 2 4-inch pancakes provides an additional 6 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber per serving adding more nutritional fuel for your body for a high-performance lifestyle. Birch Benders Paleo Frozen Toaster Waffles is available in a 4-pack 6.56 box in your local retailer freezer section or found online eaten as a delicious quick-fix meal with only 180 calories for 2 waffles plus 11 grams of protein per serving eaten as a lite breakfast Christmas brunch option.
Make it festive topping waffles or pancakes with sugar free maple syrup sprinkled with Ocean Spray Carsins dried cranberries. Roasted Nut Mix can be made with 2 cups of walnuts, 2 cups of almonds, 2 cups of peanuts. Roast an assortment of shelled mixed nuts in a preheated 325 degree F oven on a sheet pan for 20 minutes. Remove the nuts from the oven then add 2 tablespoons with I Cant’ Believe Its Not Butter spread with 1 tablespoon Splenda brown sugar blend with a pinch of salt. Mix the nuts on the tray with a wooden spoon then spread the nuts out in a single layer to cool. Serve the mixed nuts in a serving bowl with the other hors d’oeuvres with white or brown cupcake papers and a serving spoon for single servings. Hors d’oeuvres are simple bite size appetizers small portions your guests will love to eat before your main meal is served Lite beverages served at your Christmas brunch can be served on a beverage table in a safe location for guests to serve themselves.
Lite Nonalcoholic drinks are especially nice like Bloody Mary made with V8 juice, celery, pickle juice, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, celery seeds and cayenne pepper garnished with a celery stalk. Sparkling orange nonalcoholic sparkling apple & cranberry can be made with orange juice, Marinelli’s sparkling unsweetened apple cranberry cider. Gourmet coffees are always a favorite served with Nestle Coffee Mate Zero Sugar Peppermint creamer brings in the flavors of the holiday season. An assortment of other coffee creamer flavors are available turning the coffee you like into the coffee you love with Coffee mate French Vanilla, Vanilla Caramel, Creamy Chocolate, Hazelnut, Chocolate Caramel flavors. For dessert lite shortbread cookies made from Keto Shortbread cookie mix with versatile uses to create pie crusts, snowballs, lemon tea cookies or pecan sandies. Scrumptious shortbread cookies great for dunking in coffee, drizzling with frosting, dipping in sugar free strawberry jam or just enjoying as is.
Cheers!
Patricia Lynn
Images Courtesy of Todd Trapani at Unsplash
