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Hello from Mother Land, where, every year, my husband asks what I want to do for that holiday. You know the one. It creeps up between Easter and Memorial Day, and we moms often get shepherded to overpriced brunches that are — how do I say this nicely — not very good?
What we really want for Mother’s Day is a chill vibe with our mom friends and mom fam (you know: your mom friends who are practically family). We want to keep it simple: tasty food, beautiful flowers, a sunny day (okay, fine, you can’t plan everything), and a lovely display of drinks. What we don’t want: a ton of fuss. But there’s a hack for that, too. Read on for our best tips on how to give your mom the Mother’s Day brunch of her dreams.
Floral Vibes
To start, just give her all the flowers, from hyacinths to tulips. If you happen to have bud vases lying around, you can save on massive floral arrangements by ordering one or two cool bouquets and splitting them into smaller displays. Put them in noticeable spots around the house and make them into vignettes. A bud vase by the entryway to your home makes a great greeting for guests, and bud vases collected throughout your food spread are an easy way to add a little color and whimsy to a spring display.
All Aboard Bellini Station
Make it a proper brunch with an easy — and easy-to-love — Bellini bar. Set up a make-your-own-drinks station on your kitchen island or a small table. Put out glassware (Champagne glasses are great, but don’t be afraid to mix and match), an ice bucket full of sparkling wines, and fruit juices (I like the Goya guava nectar). Order some frozen fruit and let it defrost slightly in a bowl just before guests arrive so that they can use it as a substitute for ice and a bespoke garnish for their drinks. Peaches, blueberries, and strawberries are all complementary flavors for this classic Italian brunch cocktail.
Classic Apps
Two dishes that will never go out of style: pigs-in-blankets and shrimp cocktail. Order store-bought shrimp cocktail — it arrives frozen and requires just a quick defrost. Most shrimp cocktails come with their own sauce. Still, you can up the ante by preparing your own quick and delicious version.
Ingredients
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons horseradish
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
⅛ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
A dash of Tabasco
Combine ingredients in a small bowl. Once well combined, set it aside to chill and serve with the shrimp. And the pigs-in-blankets? All you need are crescent rolls and cocktail franks. You can wrap these babies up the night before people come over and pop them in the freezer (each triangle can be cut in thirds to cover three hot dogs). Brush them with butter before baking them in the oven at 375 degrees for 12 to 14 minutes, or until just brown on the bottom. Serve with yellow mustard, et voila: a star is born.
Banh Mi Our Guest
Who doesn’t favor a main course spread that’s equal parts delicious and easy to manage? This banh mi board is an entertaining win. Rotisserie chicken works well as the base for this make-your-own meal (order it from your favorite grocery store). Demi baguettes, pre-sliced for guests, are the perfect vessel for eating. Other accouterments include cilantro, Sriracha, a pickled vegetable mix, and a red-eye gravy (see recipes below).
Compose everything on a large board so guests can make their sandwiches as they please. There’s nothing more fun than customization — except, maybe, a brunch main that requires almost no work from you, the host.
Pickled Vegetable Mix
1 cup water, very hot
½ cup rice wine vinegar
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt
Approximately 2 pounds of julienned carrots, daikon, and cucumber, packed into a quart container or other airtight container.
In a medium-sized bowl, combine hot water, granulated sugar, and salt, stirring until dissolved. Add the vinegar and continue stirring to combine. Pour the mixture over the packed vegetables. Cover the vegetables and place in the refrigerator. Set aside for a minimum of two hours before using.
Red-Eye Gravy
1 cup mayonnaise (either standard or Kewpie will work)
¼ cup espresso
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon Sriracha, or to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste
In a large bowl, stir together mayonnaise, vinegar, salt, Sriracha, and ground black pepper until well combined. Slowly pour in espresso, stirring rigorously as you pour. If the mayonnaise appears to curdle slightly, that’s okay. Just keep stirring until it comes together. The final mixture should be slightly tan in color and looser than a traditional mayonnaise. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Sweet ’n’ Caffeinated
Lean into brunch with a dessert that marries the best thing about morning (coffee) with the best thing about the emerging warmer weather (ice cream). By ordering your favorite vanilla ice cream or gelato on DoorDash, you can make it doubly hassle-free. Brew up a large batch of coffee and keep it hot in a carafe. Five to 10 minutes before you’re ready to serve dessert, take the ice cream out so that it’s just soft enough to scoop. Scoop ice cream into some cute cups or bowls, pour the coffee on top, and dust it all with a little cinnamon to take it up another notch. You’ll have guests saying this was the best Mother’s Day brunch in recent memory.
PHOTO CREDIT:
Photography: Paul Quitoriano
Art Direction: Sarah Ceniceros Gomez
