Quick Smart: Brunch
Ray McVinnie
I am definitely a morning person (though I can’t speak to anyone until I’ve had the caffeine delivery of a small pot of coffee) so I enjoy organising brunch. I don’t expect anyone else to contribute in any way apart from pouring the Champagne and being hungry. Brunch is a gentle way to ease yourself into the day and the food should reflect that.
It is not breakfast so I want slightly more challenging flavours than a fry-up or a plate of muesli. I generally prefer a savoury first meal of the day but there are plenty of options, both savoury and sweet.Take your pick from these ideas.
Make a large pan of scrambled eggs and add some chopped coriander, thinly sliced spicy chorizo sausages, and fried onions. Serve wrapped in warm flour tortillas with a dash of Tabasco.
Savour the colonial East and make an omelette with plenty of fried chopped garlic, thinly sliced spring onions and coriander stalks. Serve sliced on steamed sticky rice with sweet chilli sauce.
Nothing beats a large white platter spread with smoked salmon, especially if you sprinkle it with salmon caviar and serve with lemon wedges for squeezing and fresh-off-the-griddle unsweetened, wholemeal flour pikelets and sour cream. It also looks stunning.
Who can resist a platter piled high with scones made by stirring into the dough lots of chopped prosciutto, shaved parmesan and pitted black olives (not the cheap Spanish ones)? For an extra dash, serve with creamed anchovy and parsley butter.
Very smart is mozzarella in carozza – sandwiches made with white bread and filled with buffalo mozzarella, dipped in egg, fried in olive oil and served with home-made tomato sauce.
For brunch or any time, I am always happy to eat a classic Caesar salad of cos lettuce, garlic croûtons, anchovy paste whipped with vinaigrette and a couple of egg yolks, shaved Italian parmesan and a single black olive wrapped in an anchovy fillet, with optional crisp bacon on the side.
Slice veal bratwurst sausages and pan-fry with diced boiled peeled potatoes, finely chopped garlic, chopped parsley and capers. Serve with fried eggs.
On a rustic platter arrange piles of thinly sliced gravlax, sliced smoked roe, pickled herrings, flaked boneless smoked fish, chopped boiled eggs, finely chopped red onion, capers, chopped fresh dill and lemon wedges for squeezing. Serve with rye bread and pumpernickel.
My idea of a good brunch is hot soft boiled eggs, baked or barbecued, sliced, olive oil-brushed eggplant splashed with a little white wine vinegar, Greek yoghurt spread on a plate, dribbled with extra virgin olive oil and scattered with toasted sesame seeds, a pile of wild rocket and plenty of warm flatbread. Complete the picture with a pot of tea stuffed with plenty of fresh peppermint leaves.
For a superior version of baked beans, warm up drained, canned, large butter beans in home-made tomato sauce, with big chunks of panfried ham off the bone which have been sweetened with a little maple syrup. Serve with hunks of warm sourdough bread.
A spanakopita or Greek spinach pie is dead easy to whip up. Line a large tart tin with 5 layers of filo pastry brushed with melted butter (I don’t even trim the edges – they just hang over the sides), add plenty of thawed, squeezed frozen spinach, crumbled feta, a little nutmeg and a handful of finely grated parmesan and pour over several beaten eggs. Season and bake until well done. Serve warm.
Fry lots of chopped onions and garlic until soft, then add minced lamb and a little ground cinnamon. Contine to fry until the lamb is dry and crumbly, then season well and serve on warm flatbread with a dollop of yoghurt and sliced tomatoes and cucumbers.
Choose a wide roasting pan, fill with lots of diced peeled pumpkin, potatoes, kumara, seeded, cored red capsicums, whole vine-ripened tomatoes, sliced red onions, chopped garlic, chopped bacon, green olives and chipolata sausag 
Photography by Kieran Scott
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