Delicious Christmas Morning Breakfast

There’s a lot of food to cook over the holidays, especially if you have guests popping in and out. Pre-planning your menu is key to organized shopping lists and a seemingly easy way to prepare just about any meal or snack in December.

But what about Christmas morning? Oftentimes, it’s just easier to overlook breakfast because we’re all busy opening presents, getting the roast or the ham in the oven, and preparing for the big meal of the day. Christmas morning is the time where we can actually sit back and relax. The day has arrived… savor the moment.

Just like Christmas itself, we follow many traditions during this time of year, even food traditions. But that doesn’t mean I skimp on the details.

• Set a pretty table the night before.
• Lay out your best dishes over a festive tablecloth.
• Create a sumptuous feast for all your senses.
• Fill bowls or platters with fresh fruit and add a few sprigs of mint.
• Use beautiful goblets for juice, set out a carafe for coffee or tea.
• Embellish any existing table wear by layering decorative dessert or bread plates for small nibbles and quick bites you can take away from the table.

Prepare In Advance

Prepare your menu in advance—whether big or small. If you’re not planning a big afternoon meal, how about cooking up a breakfast brunch instead.

• Try Herb-infused scrambled eggs;
• Vanilla French toast;
• Waffles with berries and cream;
• Irish oatmeal with dried cranberries;
• Fried potatoes with onion and rosemary;
• Thick toast points smothered in jam

Round out this breakfast feast with rich coffee made with a dash of cinnamon, pumpkin-spiced tea, hot chocolate, and freshly squeezed orange juice.

Many of these recipes can be prepped the night before. It’s often said, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so why skimp out on one of the most festive days of the year?

If you prefer something a bit lighter, or in this case, delightfully delicious and easy to prepare. Cinnamon rolls, store-bought sconces, or melt-in-your mouth muffins will do just fine.

Any time I want to make something quick and delicious for breakfast, I turn to my grandmother’s Banana Bread recipe. You can make muffin (or bread) mix a week in advance and freeze it until Christmas Eve. Get your muffin or bread tins ready the night before, then simply scoop and bake the muffin mix while you enjoy your first cup of coffee.

After the gifts are opened, you can sit down to a sumptuous Christmas breakfast the whole family will love.

My Grandma’s Banana Bread (Muffins)

2 large or 3 small ripe bananas (the riper the better – black is good)
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 Tsp. baking powder
3/4 Tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup vegetable shortening (Crisco)*
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 Tsp. real vanilla extract

1. Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. Add liquid ingredients (eggs, vanilla, and shortening) one at a time incorporating the ingredients together as you go.
3. Add the bananas and mix until combined, but don’t over mix.
4. Fill muffin tins three quarters full and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20-30 minutes, or bake into bread and cook for 50 minutes to 1 hour.

Optional: Add fresh blueberries or chocolate chips. Spread blueberry or raspberry jam on top of sliced warm muffins. (My favorite is raspberry, peach, champagne from Stonewall Kitchen.)

*You may substitute the vegetable shortening with 7/8 of a cup vegetable or canola oil, 1 cup butter, or 1 cup of applesauce. Please note that this may change the taste and texture of the recipe.

Kimberly Merritt – I am a mother of 3 and wife to a pretty great guy. I’m an avid reader and I plan to spend my retirement years in the library. You could attach these labels to me as well: traditionalist, dreamer, worrier, foodie, recovering perfectionist.

I am fortunate to do several things I love–sometimes all at once. I make my living as a writer/instructor/stylist. I’m a former designer who now teaches professional classes in interior decorating, and I get to write about all things home for magazines and all over the web. I’m available to style shoots, write copy, and just go on and on about motherhood, family, food–all the good stuff. And I’m addicted to my blog, Beautiful Living.

When I’m not tapping away at my computer keyboard, I’m letting the dogs out, letting them in, and trying to juggle motherhood, family, work, and play time just like everyone else.