It’s Christmas morning and all your family will shortly be descending on your house for the annual holiday dinner. Trouble is, it’s morning, and you don’t want to make a mess before “the mess” by preparing a huge breakfast for your kids.
Well, have I got the answer for you… The Grazing Breakfast!
Ok, so this isn’t a new concept. That’s being said, it’s one that is fairly easy to pull together, can provide an option for even your pickiest of eaters, and leaves you with very little clean up!
My go to options are all self-serve (unless you have very little ones, who will require a little assistance), and can be mixed and matched for a ‘somewhat’ healthy meal. This is also a great idea if you have drop-ins – or like my family, those grandparents who make the rounds, but don’t give you the head ups as to where you fall on the timeline.
The Line Up:
Hard Boiled Eggs – The day before Christmas I throw a pot of water on the stove and cook up a dozen eggs. These bad boys keep for up to a week in the fridge, so even if they aren’t all eaten, you have grab and go breakfast for a few days.
Fresh Cut Fruit – This is a staple at our house for the holidays. If you are anything like me, between the cookies, cakes, fudge, and whatever else appears at the office or around the house at this time or year, by Christmas morning you are craving something fresh and naturally sweetened. To make things easy on yourself, most grocery stores sell precut fruit. Or to make things easy on your wallet, buy a few easy to prepare fruits – like apples, bananas, and strawberries – and do the cutting yourself.
Deli Meats (and Cheese) - Did you know that you can ask the deli counter to cut your meats to a crazy thickness? This was a marvelous discovery I made one day when I wanted to serve ham with breakfast, but didn’t want to buy one of those half hams. Although the price per pound may be a little more than the prepackaged meats, this is a great option to create some bite size meat and cheese options that you normally expect to see as passed hors d'oeuvres.
Monkey Bread –
Monkey Bread Recipe (Adapted from the Betty Crocker Recipe)
2/3 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
4 cans buttermilk biscuits (I prefer Pillsbury, and they sell a four pack in most stores)
12 tablespoons butter
1 cup well packed brown sugar
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Prepare bunt pan by spraying VERY well with cooking spray – it is very important to coat this well as you do not want any of the gooey goodness to stick!
- Place cinnamon and sugar into a gallon bag and shake until well mixed
- Remove biscuits from packaging and cut into quarters – I find it easiest to take 4-5 at a time, laid on their side, and then cut.
- Add biscuits to the bag of cinnamon-sugar and shake to your hearts content – this is a great task for a child.
- Evenly place the well coated dough bites into the pan, and sprinkle a little extra cinnamon-sugar mixture over the top
- Over medium-high heat, bring butter and brown sugar to boiling in a medium size saucepan – this mixture will be extremely hot and is a burning hazard, but please have the kids out of the room for this one.
- Allow to boil for 1 minute - stirring constantly – then pour over biscuit quarters
- Using oven mitts, place in oven and bake for 35 to 45 minutes
- Let stand for 5 minutes before turning upside down onto a plate
NonProfit DBA by day, wife/mom/baker all the other hours - Stacie is a Washington State native, DC transplant, and lover of all things creative. Owner and head decorator of Enticing Icing Cupcakes, this mommy baker enjoys sharing her secrets to a sweet life. Check out more of her work at www.enticingicingcupcakes.com.
Great ideas for a Christmas buffet breakfast for family!
ReplyDeleteMonkey bread is a staple in my home!! We loooove it!! And my son loves helping to make it!! So yummy!!
ReplyDeleteI've never made monkey bread, but it looks delicious!
ReplyDeleteIt is so easy! Definitely worth a try!
DeleteWhat great ideas! I keep hard boiled eggs and fruit stocked up. I will have to start buying deli meat sliced thick. I will be making the monkey bread soon also. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteive never realized how easy monkey bread is, as im not a baker. the bakery here used to have it , and my kids would eat it up.
ReplyDeleteMy mother started making it at Christmas when I was in college. I looked forward to it every break!
DeleteWe always have a 'grazing' style breakfast for Christmas, and I struggle to come up with ideas that don't need temperature regulation. Thanks for these suggestions!
ReplyDeleteSo funny to read about different family traditions for Christmas dinner. Growing up we always had some form of protein in a casserole (eggs, sausage, bacon etc). My husband's family ALWAYS has Cinnabons from Cinnabon!
ReplyDeleteMy son would love making this. We'll make this on Friday or Saturday since we will finally be getting snow!
ReplyDeleteGreat ideas! I've always had a problem with Christmas breakfast because I never feel like eating with all that cooking to do. But I like the simple ideas! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete