The Parkers: "Food without ambiance isn't really food now is it?"

"Food without ambiance isn't really food now is it?"

I love brunch. It's the happiest meal at the perfect time of day. This past weekend with the girls, we had one brunch in and one brunch out. I tried two new recipes out on Saturday and they turned out quite well! We had mini frittatas and pumpkin muffins. This was my third pumpkin recipe to try out this fall, and it was my most favorite!

Our brunch at home

mini frittatas! adapted from Giada De Laurentiis' recipe

cooking spray

8 large eggs

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 tsp ground pepper

1/4 tsp salt

4 oz thinly sliced ham, chopped

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan

2 TB chopped green onion

Spray 12 muffin tins with cooking spray. Whisk the eggs, milk, pepper, and salt in a large bowl to blend well. Stir in the ham, cheese, and green onions. Fill prepared muffin cups almost to the top with the egg mixture. Bake until the egg mixture puffs and is just set in the center, about 15-20 minutes (I didn't watch the time, so I'm not exactly sure how long they cooked). Using a rubber spatula, loosen the frittatas from the muffin cups and slide onto platter. Serve immediately.

pumpkin muffins- [recipe from Smitten Kitchen]

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

1 tsp pumpkin-pie spice

1 1/4 cups plus 1 TB sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 350°. Put liners in muffin cups. Whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until smooth, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined. Stir together cinnamon and remaining 1 TB sugar in another bowl. Divide batter among muffin cups, then sprinkle tops with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake until puffed and golden brown, about 25-30 minutes.

The next day we had brunch at Park Cafe, a European influenced Southern bistro in downtown Duluth. It is a charming little restaurant with a fabulous atmosphere. Deciding what to order was a challenge... Bananas fosters french toast, sweet potato pancakes, crab cake benedict, shrimp and grits- Everything looked amazing. And it tasted amazing.

fried green tomatoes with brie, candied pecans, and bacon balsamic emulsion