Special occasion breakfast generally takes two different directions. It can be a cornucopia of savoury dishes with the spotlight on eggs and cured meat or a dessert loaded with all things creamy, sweet, and rich. My allegiance swings between the two depending on my cravings but savoury generally wins out.
I was not terribly thrilled about making Peach Melba for this week’s French Fridays with Dorie. The classic ice cream sundae with poached peaches and raspberry coulis is mighty luscious but I prefer my ice cream plain. Okay, a waffle cone is alright too with maraschino cherry but I draw the line there. So I naturally gravitated towards the breakfast potential of this dessert.
By simply replacing scoops of vanilla ice cream with creamy Greek yogurt, I found myself planning for a fancy brunch party in my head. In season yellow peaches were poached in a light syrup infused with mint, lemon zest, vanilla bean, and a swig of crème de framboise. A fresh raspberry coulis burst with the bright tart notes of summer. For a bit of crunch, I tucked in a few spoonful of my favourite olive oil maple granola. This breakfast parfait was most eye catching in its vibrant hues of yellow, red, and white.
The last couple of days I was in a granola making frenzy. Once again, I committed myself to cooking for 20 hungry skaters in the pit crew area at the F1 race track in Montreal for our 24h relay race. Homemade granola was a hit last year so obviously they are returning to the menu next weekend. It is something I can easily make in advance for ease of planning. In addition to my Banana Maple low fat granola, I also made a batch of Cocoa Hazelnut granola with dark chocolate chips and dried sour cherries. Oh decadence!
Today marks a milestone for the French Fridays with Dorie group. Recipe number One Hundred! Group hug! No more words need to be said. Why don’t you join us for the fun?
