Bacon + eggs + cheese + biscuits = brunch [RECIPE]

Brunch is one of my favorite meals of the day. And when you can brunch with a group of friends – it’s even better. This past weekend, my friends and I created a Facebook event and invited everyone to bring a dish. The hardest thing was to find a place large enough to accommodate us. We chose the picnic benches bear Trails Cafe in Griffith Park. This way, folks could buy a hot cup of coffee or go hiking afterwards. The event was a success! Friends from LA and OC gathered around an entire picnic table chock full of food from Porto’s Bakery, Susina’s Bakery, and homemade goodness.

I typically bake something sweet but this time around, I decided to bake something savory. I found a recipe for Bacon-Cheese-Pull-Aparts (see end of blog post). It combined all the flavors I love for brunch so I couldn’t resist. Also, it only has six ingredients:

1. Egg
2. Milk
3. Cheese
4. Bacon
5. Pillsbury Grands dough
6. Green onion

When you mix the contents in a bowl, do it gently so you don’t flatten the biscuit dough. TIP: Use a wooden spoon because it’s more gentle on the dough than a metal spatula. Follow the directions and put it in a glass baking dish that has been greased — I used butter and flour.

I baked my dish about 28 minutes – I closely watched it to make sure the tops were golden brown. Plus, I knew it was ready because my house smelled like brunch (bacon, eggs, and cheese).

The dish is best served right out of the oven. My dish was warm when it got to the potluck but quickly cooled because of the commute. I would definitely make this again!

RECIPE: Bacon-Cheese-Pull-Aparts

From Angels Flight to blueberry heaven

Brunch is one of my favorite meals. Alas, it’s a meal I haven’t partaken in for a while because of my schedule. But in June, I had a friend visit me from Minnesota – I had to be sure to take him to the best sites of Los Angeles to show him it’s not a soulless concrete jungle but in actuality a vibrant sprawling city with friendly people and lots of culture… that serves up a quality brunch. I had to show him all this in less than 24 hours!

Friday night was all about downtown LA – drinks at the Edison, sushi in Little Tokyo’s Hama, Giant Robot’s screening of Yo Gabba Gabba in the plaza. But what downtown LA experience would it be without a ride on Angels Flight? Angels Flight is the bright orange funicular that takes you up (or down) Bunker Hill built in 1901. It will only cost you 25 cents to go back in time for 30 seconds.

Here’s the view looking down.

And here’s the photo looking up…

The next day we started off with brunch at Food on Pico Blvd. It’s a place I’ve driven by a dozen times but it’s always closed when I want to go in – not this time!

It’s a casual place where I can definitely see myself reading a book or my paper as I nurse my cup of tea. It’s only a few years old and has a really friendly vibe inside. For my first trip, I trusted the server and ordered the ricotta pancakes with blueberries and sauteed peaches – she guaranteed me that I’d be back to eat again and she’s right. It was tasty and not too sweet. There was a light peachy fragrance mixed in with the subtle scent of blueberry and maple syrup. The pancakes were fluffy and had that nice griddle-like crunch on the edge that I love. Yes, I will be back for more! Take a look at my meal…

My friend had the huevos rancheros which were served with edible flowers and equally delicious as my pancakes.

The trip ended with a stop at the Museum of Jurassic Technology, shopping at Giant Robot, and snacks at Royal/T. The perfect ending to the tour were the cupcakes at Royal/T that were baked at Hotcakes (they were featured on the Food Network). I got the chocolate cupcake with cream cheese frosting and my friend got the cookies n cream one. All in all, not a bad ending for a 24-hour tour of Los Angeles. What can I say? I love showing my friends the best of my city.