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Host an Epic Galentine’s Day Brunch

Vanessa

Guy’s, Galentine’s Day is around the corner. That’s right, our favourite made-up holiday is almost here.

If Galentine’s Day is new to you, don’t worry, we’ll bring you up to speed. It’s the holiday created by Amy Poehler’s Leslie Knope, in Parks and Recreation. Here’s how she describes it: “Every Feb. 13, my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home, and we just come and kick it, breakfast-style. Ladies celebrating ladies. It’s like Lilith Fair, minus the angst. Plus frittatas.” And well, people loved the concept so much that it quickly became a real thing. Except we all know that Leslie’s breakfast food of choice is waffles.

So we threw a Galentine’s Day brunch of our own. Not that we need an excuse to celebrate the ladies in our lives. Or an excuse to eat waffles, but when you have a good reason to do both together, well, you don’t pass that up.

For the record, we don’t eat like this all the time. But on Galentine’s Day calories don’t count. So, we made an entire waffle board with all the best accompaniments: bananas, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, pecans, coconut and even some figs for good measure. Yep, it was just as good as it looks. And easy to do when you’re playing host.

We like going out for brunch too, but brunch is also super easy and inexpensive to make at home, even for a group. In Toronto, the best brunch spots can have line-ups, and that’s just not how I want to start my weekend. This waffle board was especially easy because we didn’t actually make the waffles from scratch (you could though, we usually do!) and the biggest splurge was the figs. Our ladies absolutely loved it.

There’s no set rules with a waffle board, it’s really just about following your heart. But here’s what ours looked like:

Waffles (we went with PC Belgian waffles, because they’re not only beautiful but delicious!)
Large serving board or platter
1 banana, sliced
Strawberries, about half a pint, sliced
Blueberries, about a handful
Blackberries, about a handful
Raspberries, about a pint (because they’re the best)
Pecans, about a handful
Coconut flakes, unsweetened, about a handful on the side because it’s not for everyone
5-8 figs (hard splurge)
100% real maple syrup – or you’re doing it wrong!
Icing sugar, mainly for presentation but it does also increase the deliciousness

This is the best part. All you have to do is follow the instructions for the waffles you bought, in our case this meant heating them up in the oven for a couple of minutes. Then arrange them on your platter with the fruit and bingo, you’ve got a sweet, sweet brunch spread for your gal pals.

Rachel was sick today, which was a bummer, so it was just Alyssa and I. And we literally ate all the waffles. Whoever invented waffles is a goddamn genius. The little cubes were meant for collecting syrup so each bite is perfect.

Brunch deserves a good breakfast cocktail. You can never go wrong with a standard mimosa, but we wanted to take our mimosa to the next level. Introducing, the sorbet mimosa. Yes, we grabbed a scoop of cherry sorbet and poured some prosecco overtop. It was delicious. You can grab the recipe here.