Move Over, Pumpkin Spice: Let’s Talk Fall Brunch
The second September arrives, pumpkin spice starts showing up everywhere.
Coffee? Pumpkin spice. Muffins? Pumpkin spice. Pancakes? Pumpkin spice. Somehow even the candles are getting involved.
I have nothing against pumpkin. There is a time and a place for a good pumpkin dish, but fall has WAY more to bring to the brunch table.
Give me crisp apples. Brown butter. Roasted squash. Fresh sage. Sweet potatoes. Maple. Pears. Toasted pecans. And while we’re at it, put some crispy pork belly underneath a perfectly poached egg and let’s make an apple hollandaise.
Now we’re talking about fall brunch. Fall is one of my favorite seasons to play with familiar dishes because you don’t have to completely reinvent them. Take something everyone already loves, introduce one or two seasonal ingredients, and suddenly it feels brand new. So grab the coffee and invite some friends over. We’re giving brunch a fall makeover.
Pork Belly Benedict with Apple Hollandaise
Let’s start with the dish I would absolutely be ordering.
Eggs Benedict is already pretty hard to beat. You have the toasted English muffin, something a bit salty, a runny poached egg and that hollandaise coming together in one glorious bite.
Now imagine replacing the traditional Canadian bacon with crispy pork belly and giving that hollandaise a little fall personality with apple.
The richness of the pork belly needs something to cut through it, which is exactly where the apple comes in. That little bit of sweetness and acidity brightens the entire dish instead of making it feel overly heavy.
I’d finish it with fresh sage or thyme and plenty of cracked black pepper.
This is the kind of brunch dish that makes people stop talking for a minute after the first bite.
That is always a good sign.
Brown Butter Apple French Toast
If we’re putting apples in the hollandaise, we might as well keep them around for the sweet side of brunch.
Fall French toast needs thick bread. Brioche or challah would be my first choice because both soak up that custard beautifully without immediately falling apart. Then we need apples.
Cook sliced apples until they’re tender but still have a little bite, add cinnamon and just enough brown sugar to get everything caramelized, then introduce brown butter. If you've never browned butter, this is the perfect time to start. As butter cooks, the milk solids begin to toast and develop this wonderful nutty flavor. Spoon those warm apples over the French toast, add toasted pecans and finish with real maple syrup.
Nobody needs pumpkin spice to know it's fall.
Building Your Own Fall Brunch
The best brunch menus have balance.
If everything is rich, cheesy and covered in sauce, you're probably going to need a nap before noon.
Choose one showstopper, then build around it.
If I'm serving that Pork Belly Benedict with Apple Hollandaise, I don't necessarily need three other incredibly rich dishes. Give me some roasted potatoes, a bright fall salad and fresh fruit alongside it.
And please make the coffee strong.
Let Fall Ingredients Do the Work
The reason I love seasonal cooking is that you don't have to work nearly as hard when your ingredients already taste good.
September gives us this wonderful overlap where we still have some beautiful late summer produce while those first unmistakable fall ingredients start appearing. Use them. Grab the apples and (or sub pears). Roast some squash. Start cooking with sage again. Brown some butter. Toast the pecans. Pick up a jug of apple cider. You don't have to completely change the way you cook just because the calendar changed. Take something you already know and give it a little seasonal twist. That's how cooking stays fun.
Brunch Is Better When You Linger
Maybe that's the real reason fall and brunch work so well together. Brunch isn't supposed to be rushed. It's the meal where you pour another cup of coffee, cut one more piece of French toast and somehow find yourself still sitting around the table an hour later. Good food. Good people. No rush. And preferably a Pork Belly Benedict with Apple Hollandaise sitting in front of me.
Not sure where to start? I would love to create a customized brunch experience for you and your friends! Simply click the link below for more information and let’s celebrate fall together!
