Brekkie Bites

Satisfying breakfast recipes to get your day off to the best start, inspired by countries and cultures from around the globe…

One should not attend even the end of the world without a good breakfast.”– ROBERT A. HEINLEIN

AÇAÍ BOWL - BRAZIL

Preparation time: 10 minutes | Serves: 1

Drinks and Fruit: Açaí Bowl (Brazil)

Photography: Haarala Hamilton

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 (100g) pack frozen açaí pulp, cut into pieces

• 1 frozen banana, peeled and sliced

• 1 tablespoon honey or agave

• 2 tablespoons coconut water, almond milk, orange juice, or your choice of nut milk, juice, or water

• 4 tablespoons granola (optional)

• 2 tablespoons shredded coconut (optional)

• Fresh sliced fruit, such as banana slices, mango and berries, for serving (optional)

METHOD:

In a blender, combine the açaí, frozen banana, honey and coconut water. Blend until smooth. Pour the smoothie into a bowl and, if using, top with granola, shredded coconut and sliced fruit.

DID YOU KNOW?

In the 1970s, açaí pulp was freshly-squeezed by migrants of the Amazonian delta to Northern Brazilian cities. In the 1980s, JiuJitsu master, Carlos Gracie, froze the pulp (for a longer shelf-life) and added it to the training diet of the fighters in his gyms. In Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, the frozen pulp was sweetened and served like ice cream. Across Brazil, Hawaii and Southern California, açaí is now served in a bowl topped with granola, coconut and fresh fruit, often in beautifully-arranged patterns.

PANCAKES WITH BUTTER AND HONEY - MOROCCO

Preparation time: 15 minutes, plus 2 hours resting time | Cooking time: 40 minutes | Makes: 8 pancakes

Pancakes: Pancakes with Butter and Honey (Morocco).

Photography: Haarala Hamilton

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups (470 ml) warm water

• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast

• 2 teaspoons sugar

• 1 cup (165g) semolina flour

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose (plain) flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

• 2 eggs Butter, for serving Honey for serving

METHOD:

In a bowl, combine the warm water, yeast, and pinch of sugar.

Set the mixture aside until the yeast is frothy, about 10 minutes. If the yeast doesn’t froth, check the expiration date. You may have to start over with fresher yeast.

In a blender, combine the yeast mixture, both flours, baking powder, 2 teaspoons sugar, salt, and eggs. Blend until frothy.

Let it sit until bubbles form on the surface of the batter, for at least two hours.

Gently stir the mixture to incorporate the bubbles into the batter.

Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Pour in 1/4 cup of batter. Bubbles on the surface of the pancake should begin to appear immediately.

Cook until the pancake is opaque and the batter has cooked through, for four minutes. Do not flip.

Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining batter. Serve with butter and honey.

DID YOU KNOW?

This Moroccan pancake, called baghrir, is similar to an English muffin or crumpet. It is defined by the many holes that form on its surface. Cooked on one side only, these plush pancakes are topped with butter and honey and eaten for breakfast or as a snack. In the south of Morocco, baghrir is served with amlou, a mixture of ground almonds, argan oil, honey, and sugar.

CORN FRITTERS WITH LOX AND POACHED EGGS - AUSTRALIA

Preparation time: 10 minutes | Cooking time: 20 minutes | Makes: 4 fritters

Stuffed and Fried: Corn Fritters with Lox and Poached Eggs (Australia).

Photography: Haarala Hamilton

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 egg

• 1/2 cup (120 ml) full-fat milk

• 2/3 cup (85g)

• all-purpose (plain) flour

• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 cup (145g) corn kernels, fresh or canned and drained

• Salt and freshly-ground pepper

• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 4 poached eggs

• 4 slices of lox (smoked salmon)

METHOD:

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg and milk. Slowly add the flour and baking powder and whisk until smooth. Stir in the corn and season with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Test if the oil is ready to fry by adding a small drop of batter into the oil. If it sizzles, it’s ready.

Spoon about 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the batter into the oil to form two fritters at a time.

Lightly fry on both sides until golden, about two minutes per side. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Repeat with the remaining batter. Serve the corn fritters topped with lox and poached eggs.

GO HERE:

Australian restaurateur and food-lover, Bill Granger, opened his first restaurant, Granger & Co, in Sydney in 1993. It quickly became famous for the best scrambled eggs and ricotta hotcakes in town (check out our front cover), served at a communal table. In 2011, he opened his first London café, in Notting Hill. He now owns 18 eateries across London, Sydney, Seoul, Honolulu, and Japan. grangerandco.com

I guess it always comes back to that first, all-important meal of the day - breakfast. One of my earliest memories of taking it into my own hands was making breakfast-in-bed for my parents when I was about nine years old. I remember painstakingly cutting up fresh fruit and attempting to make pancakes. There was probably some toast with Vegemite, too.”– BILL GRANGER

Recipes taken from Breakfast: The Cookbook by Emily Elyse Miller, published by Phaidon, May 17, 2019 phaidon.com