Bags, Brunch, & Bubbly

I’m having a Champagne Brunch on Sunday. It’s actually a hostess party for Miche Bags, and I threw the champagne and brunch part in there to try and get people to come. I’ve been so busy lately, I hardly gave any thought until last night to what I would be serving.

Anyone who knows me knows how unusual that is. Normally I would have a fully blown out project plan, including a budget, task lists, and execution timeline.

Once I made the mistake of complaining to Marcus that he wasn’t sticking to my party plan because he was trying to put out decorations before the linens were down, which was clearly not the correct order. He just looked at all my papers, and then he looked at me and said, “You are such a loser.” OK. I’ll concede that it was a bit much, so I’ve toned it down a little since then, and I keep my charts to myself.

But this time, all planning has gone completely out the window. All I have to guide me is 2 pages of handwritten recipes I jotted down because I was using the i-pad and couldn’t print.

I’ll be lucky if I get anything on the table by Sunday morning, but here are my last minute plans for my brunch.

I’m going to start with a big fruit salad. Can’t go wrong with fruit! Then I will make these Quiche Scones from my favorite baking blog, Brown Eyed Baker.

Next up, these pretty little coffee cakes, also from Brown Eyed Baker.

I’m also going to try making Granola. I’ve wanted to do this for awhile, but when I looked at recipes, it seemed like a lot of expensive ingredients. For this party, I decided to try to find a recipe that sounded good, but that had a bit more simplicity to it. Here’s what I landed on from Cooking for Seven.

Ingredients:

•          4 cups (400 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats

•          1 cup (50 grams) shredded or chipped coconut

•          1 cup nuts of choice, chopped coarse

•          1/4 teaspoon sea salt

•          1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or coconut oil

•          1/4 cup honey

•          1/4 cup maple syrup

•          1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

•          1 cup dried fruits (cranberries, cherries, apricots, raisins, etc.) optional

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 300° F and place rack in center of oven. Either grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2) In a large bowl combine the rolled oats, coconut, nuts, and salt.

3) In a small saucepan set over medium low heat, melt the butter. Remove from heat. Stir in the honey, maple syrup, and vanilla. Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients and toss together, making sure all the dry ingredients are coated with the butter mixture.

4) Spread onto the prepared baking sheet and bake in preheated oven for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown, stirring every five minutes. Do not over bake.

5) Place on a wire rack to cool. You will notice that the granola is still sticky when you remove it from the oven but it will become crisp and dry as it cools. Once the granola has completely cooled stir in your choice of dried fruits if desired. Store in an airtight container or plastic bag. It will keep for several weeks.

Makes about five cups of Granola

Now for the best part, the champagne!  I’m going to serve a wonderful (read cheap) almond champagne for mimosas.  It’s great alone, but with fruit juices in it, mmmm!  You’ll be hard pressed to find a better mimosa.  I will have orange juice, of course, and other juices to mix in, but I can’t say what yet.

That’s it.  That’s the plan.  Hopefully I’ll remember to take some pictures and share the results.  

I hope some of you will be there!