21 Essential Brunch Recipes Everyone Should Know

Waffles, Eggs Benedict, and So Much More

By
Cathy Jacobs
Cathy Jacobs
Cathy Jacobs
A freelance journalist and avid home cook, Cathy Jacobs has more than 10 years of food writing experience, with a focus on curating approachable menus and recipe collections.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 09/22/20
Basic French Toast

The Spruce

Making brunch can be a big, celebratory occasion or a simple family breakfast with hearty comfort food. Master these essential brunch ideas for a crowd and you'll be prepared for either, with delicious pancakes, waffles, foolproof bacon, eggs, quick-bread, and fancied-up toast recipes up your sleeve. These versatile recipes can easily be adapted, made in advance, and enhanced with the ideas included, whether you're feeding a crowd, or just want to make weekend breakfast more special.

  • 01 of 21

    Spinach Frittata With Bacon and Cheddar

    Spinach Frittata With Bacon and Cheddar

    The Spruce / Maxwell Cozzi

    Once you learn the method for making a spinach frittata, you can load up this versatile Italian-style omelet with your favorite veggies, herbs, cheeses, and savory ingredients, to enjoy for brunch, everyday breakfast, or even a light lunch or dinner.

  • 02 of 21

    Easy Pancake Recipe

    Simple pancakes

    The Spruce

    Everyone needs to know a foolproof easy pancake recipe. Follow this essential step-by-step guide for perfect flapjacks every time—no mix required—and add all the fruit, chocolate chips, syrups, and spices your heart (and stomach) desire.

  • 03 of 21

    The Ultimate Avocado Toast

    avocado toasts on a plate

    The Spruce / Cara Cormack

    Avocado toast has evolved from a trend to brunch mainstay. The combination of flavors and textures in the ultimate avocado toast is fantastic with crispy whole grain bread, and creamy mashed avocado tweaked with lemon juice, sea salt, and optional red pepper flakes or a drizzle of Sriracha.

  • 04 of 21

    Classic Eggs Benedict

    Homemade hollandaise sauce

    The Spruce

    Classic eggs Benedict is the ultimate bistro comfort food. This recipe walks you through how to perfectly poach eggs and build an irresistible hollandaise sauce for your bennies. Layered on toasted English muffins with salty ham, the ingredients combine into a fabulous brunch treat that's sure to earn you rave reviews.

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  • 05 of 21

    Classic Belgian-Style Waffles

    Belgian Waffles recipe

    The Spruce 

    Thick, fluffy, and soft on the inside, with a perfectly crispy exterior, these quick and easy classic Belgian-style waffles deliver on everything we want in a traditional homemade breakfast. They also freeze well for reheating in the toaster on rushed mornings.

  • 06 of 21

    Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese, and Capers Bagel

    Open faced smoked salmon bagel recipe

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

    Enjoy a deli-style weekend brunch without getting out of your pajamas with this easy recipe for everyone's favorite bagel and smoked salmon plate. This open-faced smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel is a great breakfast or brunch offering. Most grocery stores sell pre-sliced smoked salmon and cream cheese, which makes this recipe a snap to put together and even easier to serve.

  • 07 of 21

    Perfect Scrambled Eggs

    Perfect scrambled eggs recipe

    The Spruce / Julia Estrada

    Want to know the secrets to make perfect scrambled eggs every time? Learn everything you need to know for a fluffy, light scramble—from what to add to the eggs to the best temperature for scrambling, plus tips on the proper cooking technique.

  • 08 of 21

    Basic French Toast

    Basic French Toast

    The Spruce

    Classic and delicious basic French toast is a popular brunch treat and a great way to use up stale bread. Or go all out with eggy brioche or challah. Add vanilla extract and cinnamon for sweetness and spice if you like or replace the milk with half-and-half or heavy cream for extra richness.

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  • 09 of 21

    5-Minute French Omelette

    Perfect quick omelet

    The Spruce / Ahlam Raffii

    With just a single recipe, you can become an omelet master. Find the essential ingredients and tips for cooking a perfect 5-minute French omelette. Once you get the hang of it, you can tweak this versatile brunch favorite with sautéed veggies, cheese, bacon or ham, to create gorgeous omelets for entertaining guests.

  • 10 of 21

    Buttermilk Biscuits

    buttermilk biscuits on a plate

    The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney 

    Buttermilk biscuits are flaky, soft, buttery, and perfect. They come hot out of the oven and are just begging to be slathered in butter! You can whip up the biscuits in no time and simply serve them with scrambled eggs, bacon, and sausage.

  • 11 of 21

    Sourdough Pancakes

    Sourdough Pancakes

    Leah Maroney

    There's no shortage of pancake ideas when it comes to brunch, but have you ever had sourdough pancakes? These sourdough pancakes offer just the right mix of sweetness and tang, all with a tender, chewy bite. They require overnight prep, but the final product is well worth it. After you try this recipe, we're betting you'll add it to your stable of favorites.

  • 12 of 21

    Dutch Baby Pancake

    Dutch Baby Pancakes

     Kristina Vanni

    Simple and impressive, this recipe for Dutch baby pancake requires just mixing a few ingredients together and baking the batter in one pan, but results in a dish you'll be proud to serve. The puffed-up pancake has a nice crispy edge with a creamy custard center, making the perfect landscape to dust with powdered sugar and fill with fresh berries.

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  • 13 of 21

    Baked Ham and Egg Cups

    Baked Ham and Egg Cups

    The Spruce / Molly Watson

    Cute little baked ham and egg cups look adorable on your buffet table and make a popular hand-held breakfast bite for kids. They're easily baked in muffin tins with a sprinkle of shredded cheese and chopped green onion for extra flavor.

  • 14 of 21

    Banana Nut Bread

    banana nut bread

    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

    If you have three ripe bananas, you can bake this easy, delicious loaf of banana bread. Don't let the simple list of ingredients fool you—the flavors are well-balanced and the bread is wonderfully moist. This recipe is for a banana nut bread with pecans, but you can use walnuts or skip the nuts altogether. Or consider adding chocolate chips for a bit of extra sweetness.

  • 15 of 21

    Oven-Cooked Bacon

    Oven cooked bacon

    The Spruce

    Everyone loves bacon, but do you know the best way to cook it? Learn the secret to making bacon perfectly at home (hint: it starts with a cold oven) and brunch suddenly gets that much better. With this oven-cooked bacon, you'll never go back to a messy skillet again.

  • 16 of 21

    Sweet Potato Hash

    Sweet potato hash recipe

    The Spruce / Ulyana Verbytska

    Hash is an essential one-dish, one-pan breakfast and brunch dish. It's a classic diner dish that can be made with potatoes, veggies, meat like corned beef or sausage, and is often topped with eggs. This sweet potato hash is easy to make and can be a main dish or a hearty side.

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  • 17 of 21

    Coffee Cake With Brown Sugar and Cinnamon Streusel Topping

    Coffee Cake With Brown Sugar and Cinnamon Streusel Topping

    The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck

    Enjoy this brown sugar and cinnamon-spiced coffee cake with a crunchy streusel topping for brunch, holiday breakfasts, or anytime with your morning cup of joe. It comes together quickly with pantry ingredients and has a fabulously moist, dense texture.

  • 18 of 21

    Sweet or Savory Basic French Crêpes

    Basic Crepe Recipe

    The Spruce

    Thin and delicate, classic French crêpes are incredibly versatile and surprisingly easy to make once you master the flip. For sweet crêpes that beg for jelly or Nutella, add vanilla and sugar. For savory fillings, add some chopped fresh herbs to the batter. Everyone will love these sweet or savory basic French crêpes.

  • 19 of 21

    Cheese Quiche

    Easiest cheese quiche

    The Spruce

    Cheese quiche is yet another quintessential brunch dish that's easy to customize. It makes a winning light entree and is a handy way to use up vegetables from the fridge if you decide to add them.

  • 20 of 21

    Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Savory Breakfast Muffins

    Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Savory Breakfast Muffins

    The Spruce / Christine Ma

    Savory breakfast muffins are time-savers for busy families because you can make them ahead for a quick breakfast on the go or serving at weekend brunch. These savory snacks with sausage, egg, spinach, and cheddar cheese have all the flavors you crave, and will freeze well.

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  • 21 of 21

    The Best Bloody Mary

    Bloody Mary Cocktail

    The Spruce / S&C Design Studios

    The bloody mary is an icon in the cocktail world. Created in the 1920s, few drinks can beat the savory-spiced taste of a made-from-scratch bloody mary. This vodka-spiked tomato cocktail developed into a favorite brunch drink and became well-known as a hangover remedy.