Autumn inspired Sunday brunch.....

Who does not like brunch on Sunday....it´s a perfect opportunity to enjoy the last day of the weekend, before new working week will start. The great things about brunch is, that is does not have to start as early as breakfast, you still can sleep in...it is not that formal as dinner and you do not have to worry about getting too late home...and you still can have something of the day afterwards. I am a huge fan of Sunday brunch, especially when you can invite some friends over to your place, friends you have not managed to see for some time already....as we did today.

Today on the blog, some easy and quick brunch recipes with an Autumn touch. Some of them can be prepared in advance the day before.....

Cranberry-Lemon and Parmesan-Basil scones

• 230 g flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons backing powder
• 125 g butter (cut in cubes)
• 60 ml milk
• 1 egg
• dried cranberries + lemon zest
• grated Parmesan cheese + chopped basil leaves

Preheat your oven to 180 C. In a food processor add flour, sugar, backing powder and butter and blitz it for couple of seconds, till all butter is incorporated. Transfer the mixture into a bowl, make a well in the centre and add egg and milk. Mix briefly with a spatula till the dough starts to come together. Divide the dough in half...add to one  half dried chopped cranberries and lemon zest and to another granted Parmesan cheese and chopped basil. Continue mixing everything together for couple of seconds. With your hands form a square and cut 4-5 triangles. Proceed the same with the other dough. Put the scones on the baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, till golden brown. Let them cool at the cooling rack and serve the sweet once with your favourite jam and the savoury once with some butter or cream cheese.

Note: scones are the best the same day they have been done...

Quiche is a perfect dish for brunch...Most of the quiches can be done in advance and do taste even better the day after. Another advantage of the quiche is that it can vary according to your taste and desire (or content of your refrigerator). One of my favourite quiche recipes is the pumpkin quiche which I have been already sharing with you early this year (check HERE) and which was fitting so good to my autumn brunch theme today. Prepare the quiche the day before, let is cool completely, cover it with a wrapping foil and put it in the refrigerator. Warm it up in the preheated oven for ca. 15 min and serve it with some leave salad.

Another unbeatable dish for brunch is banana bread cake, which can be enjoyed plane or with some butter. Usually this cake is prepared in a loaf pan, to give it a bread shape, I however decided to do it in a guglehupf form today and was very pleased with the outcome....

Banana bread with hazelnuts

• 100 g brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1-2 tablespoons honey
• 100 g butter softened
• 250 g flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• juice of half a lemon
• 2 ripe bananas
• hand full of hazelnuts (chopped)

Preheat your oven to 180 C. Grease your guglehupf form with some butter and sprinkle with some chopped hazelnuts. In a big bowl whisk together eggs, sugar and honey, till foamy and light in the colour. Add butter, mix till all combined. Smash bananas with lemon juice and fold it into the egg-butter mixture. Sift in flour and backing powder, mix till all well combined. Finally add the rest of the chopped hazelnuts. Pour the batter into the baking tin and bake for 25-30 minutes till golden brown (make the stick test).

The cake can be done in advanced too. Let it cool completely wrap it in a foil or put it in an airthin container. Sprinkle with some icing sugar, before serving.

Enjoy!