Easy Brunch Recipes for Mother's Day -- And Beyond

Brunch is a cherished weekend tradition, and whether it’s enjoyed at a local hotspot or prepared at home, it can take a regular Saturday or Sunday from ho-hum to something special. While we firmly believe you need no excuse to break out the good china and pour the mimosas, celebrating Mother’s Day feels like an especially apt occasion. In that spirit, we’ve rounded up four Scouted brunch recipes that are sure to get your weekend off to a proper start.

RT LODGE’S APPLE CIDER BUNDT CAKE

“This bundt cake is the perfect treat to whip up the night before you have friends over for brunch and makes a great table centerpiece as well,” Caitlyn Cox, executive pastry chef at Volume 7’s RT Lodge in Maryville, Tennessee, says. Here’s her instructions for the easy brunch recipe…

Ingredients:

For Bundt Cake:

• 9 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, divided
• 2 small Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and roughly chopped (about 2 cups)
• 1 1/2 cups fresh apple cider
• 1/2 cup whole milk at room temperature, plus more as needed
• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground mace
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

For Cinnamon Sugar Coating:

• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Instructions:
For Bundt Cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a large Bundt pan with 1 tablespoon butter. In a medium saucepan, bring chopped apple and cider to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until most of the cider has been absorbed and apples are easily smashed with a fork, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove pan from heat, cool 5 minutes, then process in food processor until puréed, 60 to 90 seconds, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed. Measure out 1 cup apple mixture (if you have less than 1 cup apple mixture, add additional milk to reach 1 cup). Stir apple mixture into milk, set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and mace; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the remaining 8 tablespoons butter, sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, about 20 seconds. Add oil and beat until incorporated, about 45 seconds. Decrease mixer speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with apple mixture, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Increase speed to medium and beat mixture just until combined, about 20 seconds. Add vanilla and beat once more, just to combine, about 10 seconds. Scrape batter into prepared pan, smooth surface with a spatula. Bake in a preheated oven until a cake tester inserted in the cake comes out with just a few crumbs, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer cake to a wire cooling rack set inside the baking sheet and cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then invert directly onto the wire cooling rack.

For the Cinnamon Sugar Coating: Combine sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a small bowl. While the cake is still hot, sprinkle it with cinnamon sugar, using fingers to rub it onto the sides. Cool cake completely, about 1 hour, then serve. 

Not interested in whipping up one of these easy brunch recipes yourself? Make a reservation at RT Lodge to enjoy delightful bites like this from the experts. Don’t forget to tell them Scout sent you!