Thursday, September 24, 2009

What to serve house guests for breakfast


This past weekend my husband’s brother and his wife flew down from Long Island and were our house guests. They came to take a look at our beautiful western North Carolina mountains to see if it’s a place they might like to live when they retire. If you watched the news over the weekend, you know that the entire southeast was drenched with rain and flooding. We live about a hundred miles north of Atlanta and within a fifteen minute drive of the northwest Georgia border and about the same distance from eastern Tennessee.

When we woke up Monday morning and watched the news from Chattanooga, the weather was so bad they listed the schools that were open rather than the ones that were closed because there were so many more closed than open. Knowing they didn’t want to miss their flight from Chattanooga that stopped briefly in Atlanta (where there was massive flooding) on the way back to New York, I decided to make something quick that we could eat for breakfast before we left for the airport.

I choose Ina Garten’s Breakfast Fruit Crunch which I adopted from her Barefoot Contessa at Home cookbook. I used purchased granola, but Ina made her own and served her fruit crunch in parfait glasses. Since I didn’t have parfait glasses, I substituted martini glasses. I’ve never eaten granola with pineapple, but I found it quite refreshing. Feel free to substitute different fruit combinations, such as apples, pears, bananas and red grapes in the winter. Peaches or nectarines with blueberries, strawberries and kiwi would also be pretty. This recipe is my favorite breakfast for a guest in a hurry.


Breakfast Fruit Crunch
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa at Home by Ina Garten

8 to 10 strawberries, diced
½ cup blueberries
½ cup raspberries
¼ fresh pineapple, diced
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 cups plain Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups purchased granola, preferably flavored with vanilla

Combine the strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, pineapple and lemon zest in a bowl. Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon to the yogurt. If your granola isn’t flavored with vanilla, you might want add a little good vanilla extract, such as Nielsen-Massey’s Madagascar Bourbon, to the yogurt.

In four martini glasses alternately layer half the fruit, then the yogurt and sprinkle with granola. Top with remaining fruit and a few sprinkles of granola and a small dollop of yogurt. If you’re using parfait glasses which Ina used, you’ll be able to have two layers. In that case, alternately layer half the fruit, then half the yogurt and sprinkle with granola. Repeat with the second layer of fruit, yogurt and granola. Serves four.

39 comments:

  1. Yum to everything! Do you have any openings ;)?

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  2. What time do you serve breakfast? They all look fantabulous! My brother lives in Douglasville, GA, just west of ATL and while his house didn't flood, thank goodness, he hasn't be able to get to his office. I'm wishing the rais was over.

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  3. you need to open a B and B, so are they going to move to NC? love the fruit and granola, love the presentation Rebecca

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  4. Sam, all the recipes sound delicious. I especially like the breakfast sausage. it might give Jimmy Dean a healthy run for his money. I hope you are having a wonderful day.

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  5. It's too bad about the flooding - I've been seeing it on the news here too. I feel bad for all the families that are homeless because of it.

    All the this food looks amazing - I am craving breakfast now!

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  6. OMG! We are on the same wavelength. I'm getting ready to post a homemade granola, with yogurt and a fabulous fruit compote that I made. I just bought ground chicken to make my version of sausage almost like this!
    It's so good!

    On a sadder note, I was sorry to see that film coverage of the flooding. Such devastation... reminds me (almost) of Katrina.

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  7. But will the house guests ever go home if you feed them so well?

    I've made a Dutch Baby. giant popover recipe for years, using apples as the fruit. I believe it came from The Vegetarian Epicure. But I love all the berries in your picture.

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  8. Is there any room at the breakfast table for me? Everything looks so fabulous-I can only assume the coffee is piping hot and delicious.

    Every Ina Garten recipe I have ever made has been terrific. I have all of her cookbooks.

    The rain and flooding was terrible in Atlanta. Seems that have been experiencing terrible droughts and then when the rain comes it is a deluge.

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  9. Terrific breakfast ideas! These will be perfect over the upcoming holidays when we will have guests!

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  10. Oh Sam, your fruit crunch sounds so good. I'm not going to wait for company to serve it. I'm going to fix it for myself!

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  11. The fruit crunch is so pretty. Perfect for a company breakfast!

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  12. Quiet a feast - even the quick granola! I love the idea of pineapple and granola, and Greek yogurt is my new favorite topping.

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  13. What fabulous dishes! Very luxurious the breakfasts at your house! I'd love to be your guest ;-p!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  14. Love the pancake popover. When you come from NY and now live in So Florida as I do, you get a lot of house guests especially in the winter - and I love doing interesting breakfasts to start the day. You can also try the fruit salad and yogurt on top of a waffle with some toasted nuts and a drizzle of honey. I also love mixing eggs with spinach in a blender to create 'green' eggs + ham or breakfast burritos using a wrap...etc.! P.S. I also treat myself equally with or without guests!

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  15. When can I sleep over?

    So sad about the floods in the South. Your breakfasts would lift anyone's spirits!

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  16. I love these recipes. Breakfast is my very favorite meal and it's a fun one to do for company,I think.

    Having moved to the NC mountains from Atlanta, we still have a lot of friends in Atlanta. Amazing enough, one couple came through things without damage, while the condo development next door to them had major flooding and most of it was destroyed. very sad.

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  17. your breakfast ideas are spot on! I was just in Nashville last weekend and I guess I managed to miss the flooding even though I didnt miss the rain....

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  18. Yummie, all of them look so good...I you keep this post since I am having some family members staying in our place, will definitely try some of your dishes :-)

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  19. What a great idea for guests - this all looks delicious!

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  20. Mmm... anything in a martini glass is right up my alley. I like mine extra dirty:)

    The crunch looks wonderful - I love Ina's recipes and her show is great!

    My heart is with those in the flooded areas - what a shame.

    Enjoy!
    Leann

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  21. Sam Thanks for the good breakfast ideas.

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  22. Thank goodness you had such great food even though you were stuck! Everything looks so delicious. That's some crazy weather!

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  23. I read that wrong the first time! Glad then that you weren't stuck because of the flooding. :0)

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  24. When we have guests we usually prepare a big brunch the next day. Love what you served them. Delicious!

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  25. You must be very close to my dad's cabin. He lives in Florida, but has an (under used) place which sound like it would be close to you. I wish I could remember the town... oh well. Weirdly I posted a little tribute to my dad tonight on SippitySup. GREG

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  26. I shouldn't have read this first thing in the morning...I am so hungry! Everything looks delicious.

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  27. oh my....what choices ! Thanks for sharing !!!

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  28. Just found you. I'm so excited. What a wonderful blog you have.

    On my top ten most fabulous things in life is women who re-invent themselves, start over, take risks, have fun -- please consider those qualities as a compound single characteristic.

    I'll be visiting you often.

    Merci mille fois.

    Tish

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  29. Sam, that breakfast looks so delicious I am off to the kitchen....and it is way past breakfast time here. I hope you are enjoying the weekend, xv.

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  30. Granola, fruit and yogurt is my favorite breakfast, but that pancake could win me over.

    I'm so very sorry to read about all the flooding problems. I hope the situation improves soon.

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  31. Love both breakfasts, but as a diabetic, I'm a party pooper for both. I have to have protein in the AM to start me off, and very low carbs. Havelock, NC, had 10" of rain in 3 hours on August 12. As I made my way back from Morehead City that day, I got caught in it and wound up totaling my 3-year old car. Luckily I wasn't hurt, except for my pocketbook. It cost over $10,000.

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  32. Hi there. I came across your blog when looking up recipes for Naan. I love it! I have fam in Long Island and am originally from NY myself, not LI though. Only been to SC once last year to Hilton Head and loved it.

    Your cooking looks spectacular!

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  33. You have just convinced me that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I do the fruit parfaits with yoghurt (never with pineapple so must try) and your sausage is outstanding. Hope everyone is drying out and safe down south.

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  34. I would love to be a guest at your home Sam. The chicken sausage really is delicious as well as heart healthy too:D

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  35. Sounds so yummy-I'd like to come stay with you : ) I'm hoping the rain is gone.

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  36. Love granola, but when I learned to do it, I relaized there is a good amount of oil in it ... and I am trying to drop a few pounds. But I have to try this crunchy fruity breakfast.

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  37. Oh Sam, I was in all that rain, and my friends gardens were not doing well at all, and we were sick of it by the time I left two days ago...

    Your breakfast is spot on, and I would like that last photo to pop in front of me...please :)

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  38. I hope things have settled down after the rains. One question, can I be your house guest? Everything looks so good!

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  39. Having a house full of college kids for the weekend. Attending OSU football game. I was at the grocery and was trying to think of breakfast items. I remembered your blog, and of course you have wonderful suggestions. Forgot ice so I am off AGAIN to the store and will pick up a few things to make your breakfast berry yogurt. Thanks!
    Ruthann

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