Sunday brunch

Picture this; it is early on a Sunday morning, the house is still peaceful. From the comfort of my bed I open one eye and glance at my bedside table clock. It informs me it is just past 7am. Through a gap in the curtains I see large flakes of snow drifting down from a foreboding grey sky. I snuggle deeper into my bed and pull the feathery duvet up around my head, as I settle for a couple more hours dozing. I will then gently wake up to a steaming mug of tea, sipped whilst engrossed in a good book thus setting me up for the last day of my weekend.

Yes, I am dreaming, in reality at just passed 7am I am suddenly roused by a throaty 'daddeee, daddeee' Rod Stewart style. Hubby half rolls, half stumbles out of bed to grab our little E before she wakes P, and try to settle her for a little more sleep. Again wishful thinking, as shortly afterwards P's tousled mop appears at the end of our bed. The day has begun.

We then proceed to negotiate/ wrestle the girls into a number of layers, before enticing them into eating a quick breakfast ready to venture out into the bitter cold at a furious pace, in order to make church on time.

What gets me through this ordeal is the comforting thought of Sunday brunch. Now I know you have all made a cooked breakfast before, but if it has been a while, maybe at some point over the upcoming Easter weekend you could find some time to all sit down together and enjoy this guilty pleasure.

Thick, smoky bacon rashers seared in a smoking hot pan, soft, melt in the mouth scrambled eggs with a drop of milk and a knob of butter, cooked slowly over a medium heat and stirred infrequently so it is almost only turned, rather than lumpy clusters. Accompanied by crisp, toasted crumpets, popped out of the freezer, defrosted in the microwave and toasted off in the oven (or toaster if you really can't wait!). For sheer indulgence, you could also dribble over a little Maple syrup. This was introduced to me by hubby on return from a trip to America. At first I couldn't imagine anything worse than sweet syrup with eggs! But trust me, give it a go and you won't look back.

Of course this has to be washed down by a steaming hot mug of tea made in the teapot with leaves. It really is worth all the extra effort.