A Restful Brunch for a Long & Lazy Weekend

1 April 2022

Photo: [Link]

Good news: a much-needed long weekend is just around the corner!

This third week of April observes Easter: one of the biggest cultural holidays for the Christians, and a sweet Friday off for everyone else. Either way, a great opportunity for some quality family time!

And there’s always room for brunch or afternoon tea on weekends like this. Whether celebrating the holiday with cheerful services or late morning snoozes, reserve some time for a wholesome Easter brunch—but this year, let’s do it without the busy reservation calls and traffic-stuck trips to cafes! Recreate a delicious Easter-themed brunch table at home with this menu, made healthy and hassle-free with Borges cooking oils, vinegars, and fresh olives in hand.

Light Dishes for Small Bites

Heavy meals may not be as appealing an option for a laid back weekend morning, especially when eaten during brunch hours (typically 11am to about 3pm). Long, complicated recipes and a messy kitchen to tidy up afterwards are definitely not something you’d want to deal with on such weekends, either. Plus, being too full from brunch could leave you struggling to meet regular dinner time—a big no-no for biorhythms!

Introducing two recipes to enjoy as appetizers or light meals that won’t mess with the restful mood:

Egg Salad Tea Sandwiches [1]

Photo: [Link]

It isn’t Easter without the eggs! Apart from their match with the Easter theme, eggs make a great nutritious meal with decent contents of vitamins, protein, and healthy fats. They also help control healthy cholesterol levels while leaving us filled up throughout the day [2].

In this tea sandwich recipe, the eggs are hard-boiled before being mashed into a bite-sized sandwich filling—a healthier way of cooking eggs that preserves their nutritional benefits by keeping the yolk intact and non-oxidised [3]. This recipe also swaps out mayonnaise with a leaner plant-based alternative: Extra Virgin Olive Oil!

Ingredients (8 sandwiches):

2 large eggs, hard-boiled and chilled

1 Tbsp. Borges Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Tbsp. plain yogurt

1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

1 tsp. dill, chopped

1 tsp. fresh parsley, chopped

Sea salt, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

4 slices bread

Instructions:

Mash boiled eggs, Borges Extra Virgin Olive Oil , yogurt, and mustard together with a fork.
Stir in chopped dill, parsley, salt, and pepper.
On 2 slices of bread, spread the egg salad evenly and top with the remaining 2 slices of bread.
To serve in bite-sizes, remove the crusts and slice the sandwiches twice, diagonally, making 4 triangular tea sandwiches from each large sandwich.

All-Day Breakfast and Brunch Dishes

Are you the type to order hearty burgers and pastas in breakfast cafes, or enjoy savoury high teas over lighter afternoon teas? If so, you’ll find this section super interesting. It’s a treat for those of us planning on Easter lunches or dinners, too! These two dishes work great for any type of meal throughout the day.

Family-Friendly Pasta Primavera [6]

Photo: [Link]

April is a great chance to bring as much fresh, in-season vegetables onto the table as possible! Balance the carb from pasta with the fibres and minerals packed into squash, zucchini, and tomatoes. This pasta primavera is also a great way to get the children familiar with veggies. Feel free to make it vegetarian or vegan by substituting the cheese out.

Ingredients (4 servings):

225g Borges Durum Wheat Fusilli or Penne

¼ cup Borges Classic Olive Oil

½ Tbsp. minced garlic

½ cup asparagus, chopped

½ yellow squash, chopped

½ zucchini, chopped

1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, or vegan cheese

Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

In a large pot of water, cook the Borges Durum Wheat Pasta of choice until tender.
In a skillet, heat Borges Classic Olive Oil over medium heat. Add garlic, asparagus, squash, zucchini, and tomatoes, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Turn the heat down to low. Add in red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Drain pasta and add to the skillet. Stir until the pasta is evenly coated in the sauce.
Upon serving, top with Parmesan cheese, basil, and additional salt and pepper.

Tortilla de Patatas with Green Olives [7]

Photo: [Link]

Also called Spanish tortilla or Spanish omelette, this potato-layered egg dish captures the essence of Spanish cuisine: simplicity and swiftness. Since the recipe is fairly simple, make sure to use the highest quality ingredients for best flavour. Use fresh, large eggs and smooth-surfaced potatoes. Also use olive oil that can deliver the full olive aroma without losing its benefits in the heat: Borges Extra Light Olive Oil is a variety made exactly to do so. The highlight is the Borges Green Olives, freshly picked and manufactured from Spain!

Ingredients (6 servings):

¼ cup Borges Extra Light Olive Oil

1 medium yellow onion

1 ½ tsp. salt

680g red potatoes, sliced

½ tsp. freshly ground pepper

8 large eggs

½ cup Borges Sliced Green Olives, chopped

110g Manchego cheese

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
In an oven-safe skillet, heat 2 Tbsp. Borges Extra Light Olive Oil over medium heat and cook the onion with ½ tsp. salt, until soft and translucent. Set aside.
In the same skillet, heat 2 Tbsp. oil and cook the potatoes in an even layer. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes begin to soften.
Combine the cooked potatoes with the reserved onions. Stir in beaten eggs and Borges Sliced Green Olives.
Wipe the skillet clean. Heat the remaining oil over medium heat and add half of the potato-onion-egg mixture, smoothing the surface with the back of a spoon to even out the ingredients. Top with Manchego cheese, then cover with the remaining potato-egg mixture.
Cook for 10 minutes on the stovetop, then transfer the skillet into the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the eggs are set. Adjust the oven to broil and cook until the top is lightly browned, about 3 minutes.
Serve hot in wedges.