You've got the flowers and the playlist, but what are you going to eat? Takeout—after months and months of cardboard boxes and foil-wrapped foods—just isn't going to cut it for a romantic weekend meal.
But we have a delicious proposal: Why not cook a special brunch at home? We asked a few local chefs behind some of the Bay Area's best loved brunches to help us with the menu.
Here you'll find recipes—heavenly scrambled eggs, sourdough waffles with a cult following, a bagel sando to drive you wild, and sweet-as-can-be carrot cake pancakes—from Foreign Cinema, Merchant Roots, Daily Driver, and Standard Fare...plus, a bloody mary recipe and tips on how to make the perfect mimosa from Mendocino's Harbor House Inn.
Ready, set, brunch—and don't forget to tag us in your pics on Instagram.
Secret Recipe: Foreign Cinema's Heavenly Scrambled Eggs With Meyer Lemon Salsa
San Francisco brunch connoisseurs are well acquainted with Foreign Cinema's chef/co-owner Gayle Pirie's seasonal Heavenly Scramble. Citrus is in right now, so Pirie is making her eggs with a bright Meyer lemon salsa.
"Seek out Meyer lemons in season—they provide a depth of fragrance, sweetness, as well as sour, the precise reasons why we use the entire Meyer lemon for this recipe, the skin, pith, flesh," Pirie says.
Set the ambience with Roman Holiday on the TV and pretend you're brunching on the Mission's most iconic patio.
For the Meyer Lemon Salsa:
(You will have extra salsa to store and refrigerate for use on grilled steak, roast chicken, roasted vegetables or as a bright condiment for sandwiches.)
Makes 1 cup
1 small shallot, peeled, minced
1½ tablespoons of Champagne vinegar
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 bunch Italian flat leaf parsley, leaves picked, washed, dried
2 tablespoons brined capers, rinsed, chopped
1 small Meyer lemon, rinsed, patted dry
Combine shallot, vinegar, salt and let macerate for 10 minutes (to soften and lightly pickle shallots.) Chop parsley leaves to medium fine texture.
Combine with shallots, capers. Slice the Meyer lemon into thin circular disks skins, pith, and all, removing seeds, as they appear, chop lemon slices into irregular pieces, about ¼ inch thick. Add lemon to parsley mixture and stir in olive oil to create "salsa-esque" consistency. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons more olive if needed to create a glossy texture. Taste for salt, and adjust if needed. Allow salsa to sit for 30 minutes.
For the scrambled eggs:
5 whole eggs, preferably pastured raised
2 tablespoons crème fraiche
4 tablespoons grated Comte cheese (optional)
2 tablespoons grated Fontina cheese (optional)
Pinch of kosher salt to taste
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 3-ounce piece of Reggiano Parmesan
1 1/3 cups pure olive oil, or more if needed
In a small bowl beat the eggs with a fork with the crème fraiche, cheeses if using, and salt. Beat together until thoroughly mixed, about 1 to 2 minutes.
Over medium heat, melt the butter in a non-stick 9-inch Teflon or egg pan. When the butter bubbles, add the egg mixture. Gently stir with a wooden spoon folding the egg curds onto themselves in an eight formation until the eggs thicken, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low, continue to cook until eggs are tender, creamy, medium rare, about 2 minutes. For firmer eggs, cook another 30 seconds, or more, depending on desired consistency.
Serve eggs immediately on warm plates and spoon lemon salsa over eggs. Use a micro plane to garnish eggs with freshly grated Reggiano Parmesan for a "shower" effect.
// 2534 Mission St. (Mission), foreigncinema.com
Secret Recipe: Outerlands' Dutch Pancakes
Outerlands may have a new chef at the helm, Brenda Landa, but we'll be a monkey's uncle if they take this perennial fluffy, golden favorite off the restaurant roster of brunch recipes.
Ingredients
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup milk
3 eggs
Pinch of salt
1 Tablespoon of butter
Preheat a cast iron pan (deep skillet) to 450 degrees in the oven. Place ingredients in a mixing bowl and blend ingredients until smooth. Add another egg if batter has too many clumps.
Remove pan from oven, add seasoned butter to pan and melt evenly around the surface and sides, coating the whole interior. Add mixture to pan then bake for 20 minutes or until proofed and golden brown. Remove from pan and top with anything from fresh fruit and powdered sugar to savory herbs and cured meats.
// 4001 Judah St. (Outer Sunset), outerlandssf.com
Secret Recipe: Nightbird's Quail Eggs with Fried Leeks + Hollandaise
( Marija Vida)
How about an elevated take on eggs Benedict?
Chef Kim Alter trades chicken eggs for quail in this appetizer-turned-brunch-dish. Brown butter in the Hollandaise sauce gives the sauce a nutty, warm aroma and flavor, while crispy fried leeks and melty egg yolk mingle for a bonanza of textures.
Ingredients
1 pack quail eggs (normally, 10 each)
1 large leek
1 cup brown butter
1/2 cup white wine
1 shallot, sliced
1 sprig tarragon
3 egg yolks
Salt to taste
Fleur de sel
2 cups rice oil (or other high-heat vegetable oil for frying)
Optional: Toasted bread of your choice
Clean and slice leeks into long strips (chiffonade). Place in bowl and pour hot water over them. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Drain and dry. Heat oil to around 375-400 degrees. Fry until golden brown and crispy, then take out and place on a napkin to soak up excess oil. Season with salt.
Bring a small pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Have a timer ready and place quail eggs in boiling water. Cook for 2 minutes and 15 seconds. Place directly in an ice bath. Peel eggs when cool enough to handle. Place in a warm spot.
Sweat shallot down in a little bit of oil and add tarragon. After a couple minutes add in white wine and reduce by half. Strain. Place reduced wine in a blender and add 3 egg yolks. Blend for about a minute. Slowly start dribbling the brown butter into the blender. Make sure to pour slowly so the Hollandaise emulsifies properly. Once it has a thick consistency, season with salt to taste.
Place a pinch of fried leeks with a quail egg in the middle and put a pinch of fleur de sel on top. Dollop the hollandaise on top. Serve warm on some beautiful toasted bread or on its own.
// 330 Gough St. (Hayes Valley), nightbirdrestaurant.com
Secret Recipe: Merchant Roots' Carrot Cake Pancakes
(Courtesy of Merchant Roots)
Merchant Roots' chef Ryan Shelton has quite the brilliant imagination, but he's also a technique-driven fine dining chef. This means he has an incredible gift for turning low-key comfort foods into innovative, tasting menu–worthy fare. For 7x7, Shelton mingled two of our favorite cakes, carrot cake and pancakes, for a decadent brunch dish with a trio of optional toppings.
Ingredients
For the pancakes:
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup molasses sugar
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cup shredded raw carrot
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup milk (approx)
1/2 tsp baking soda
Mix together all the dry ingredients except the baking soda. Separately, mix all the wet ingredients except the milk. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, whisking until smooth. Allow the mixture to rest in the refrigerator overnight.
The next day, mix in the baking soda and just enough milk to create a pourable batter.
Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat. Keeping pan oiled or buttered lightly, pour quarter-cup scoops of batter into the pan. Cook until browned and cooked through, flipping once.
For the ricotta and cream cheese stuffing:
1 cup cream cheese
1 cup whole milk ricotta
2 eggs
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 lemon, juiced
Mix all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Spread the mixture one to two inches thick in a small casserole dish, then cover with foil. Set the casserole in a larger casserole or baking pan and add one-half to one inch of hot water to the larger baking pan. Bake at 350F until just set in the center, about 30 minutes. Chill completely, or overnight before serving.
For the carrot butter:
4 ounces salted butter
1/3 cup boiled carrot (until the texture is very soft)
Blend carrot in food processor, add butter, and blend until smooth.
For the apple maple butterscotch:
1 cup good quality maple syrup
1 cup apple juice
3 tablespoons butter
Lemon juice, as needed
Combine the maple syrup and apple juice in a small saucepan and reduce over medium heat until halved (about one cup should remain). Separately, brown the butter over medium heat. Combine butter and syrup; add a dash of lemon juice for a light tang.
Serve two pancakes with two small scoops of cream cheese stuffing and one dollop of carrot butter; drizzle with apple maple butterscotch and garnish with raw baby carrot curls.
// Merchant Roots is currently open for takeout and outdoor dining with reservations; 1148 Mission St. (SoMa), merchantroots.com
Secret Recipe: Foreign Cinema's Persian Bloody Mary
Sumac packs the punch in Foreign Cinema's signature bloody mary. (Courtesy of Foreign Cinema)
"Sumac, a botanical spice grown in sub tropic climates, is common to Middle Eastern, North African, and Asian cooking, and finds its way into our cooking for its citrus tang and gorgeous rosy purple hue," say Foreign Cinema chef Gayle Pirie. "For our popular Persian Bloody Mary, sumac is mixed with kosher salt for the glass rims to temper the saline crunch with exalted pungent pop. Prepare the base mix ahead and add the vodka when ready to serve to ensure more time with friends."
Serves 8
Ingredients
10 cups tomato juice
¾ cup fresh lime juice
½ cup fresh lemon juice
⅓ cup sherry vinegar
¼ cup Madras curry powder
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon sumac
1 tablespoon kosher salt
16 ounces vodka
Ice cubes, for serving
8 lime wedges, for garnish
In a pitcher, stir together the tomato, lime, and lemon juices with the vinegar, curry powder, turmeric, sea salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use, up to a day ahead.
For the salt rim, stir together the sumac and kosher salt in a shallow plate or saucer.
To serve, stir the vodka into the juice mixture until evenly mixed. Moisten the rims of 8-ounce tall glasses by running a clean, damp cloth around the rims, then dip the rims into the sumac-salt mixture. Fill the glasses with ice cubes. Pour the vodka mixture into the glasses and garnish each with a lime wedge. Drop a small pile of the pickles into the glasses, if using, and serve.
// 2534 Mission St. (Mission), foreigncinema.com.
