Below you will find the story of Jenny; how she took a broken heart around the holidays and turned it into a Christmas Brunch where she now serves others. The switch from guest to host, and the pivot from one who participates to one who serves, allowed Jenny to reclaim the holidays. Keep reading for her host-friendly Christmas Brunch menu and her delicious overnight baked french toast recipe. May they help you to remember being with your people is more important than whose table you are at. ~Gwendolyn

Special Guest Post by Jenny Vanderberg

I was nine when my parents divorced, and while the details of the event are kind of blurry now at the ripe age of 38, the way it shaped the holiday seasons of my childhood is not. Before they split, Christmas had been simple; when my parents went their separate ways, our Christmas traditions pulled apart as well. All of a sudden, the Christmas season became one big marathon rushing from house to house without so much as a water break between. I can’t recall a single meal we ate or gift we unwrapped during those years; just the face of one, forlorn looking parent at the door as we drove away. I always ended up in tears, and the experience cast a shadow over the holiday that I could never really shake.  

When I married into a large Italian family, who made it a point to gather together every year for Christmas, we added a few more houses onto the already loaded Christmas rotation and I felt like a piece of carry-on luggage stuffed to the gills. I was going to blow, and it wasn’t going to be pretty.  Over a bottle of wine, my husband and I sat down to figure out a way to reclaim Christmas: for our extended families, our own little family, and my sanity.

And that’s how we came to host Christmas brunch for the last 15 years and holding.  I know that some might not think that hosting would actually be a way to alleviate the rush of the Christmas season, but hear me out.  By inviting any and all family members of our combined families, we immediately eliminated our driving time.  This was especially crucial when we had children at home.  We were able to create the timeline thus cultivating a sense of calm and control on a day that can often feel chaotic. 

For example, we host an open-house style brunch from 9-noon.  We know to anticipate guests for those three hours, and then we have a cut off time for our children to play with new toys, and for us to rest with a cup of much needed coffee in silence.  We were able to create an inclusive environment and put the onus of participation on others, instead of feeling as though we were disappointing people at every turn.  And we landed on a menu that we could do all of the prep work for the night (or nights, plural) beforehand, leaving us the space to actually enjoy Christmas Day with our families, rather than spend it in the kitchen. 

We keep the categories of the menu the same every year to perpetuate a sense of tradition and ritual so indicative of the season, but we change ingredients from time to time to keep things fresh.  Our basic menu is:

• Overnight Almond French Toast with Challah bread (recipe below!)

• Brown Sugar and Spiced Bacon

• Frittata

• Mimosas (grapefruit and orange juice with a frozen cranberry)

• French Press Coffee

We’ve made variations on the frittatas: spinach and feta, roasted red pepper and mozzarella, ham and gruyere; it’s entirely up to you and your guests’ tastes. It’s so much simpler to throw some eggs, cheese and veggies in a pan and stick it in the fridge overnight to be baked off the next morning that to make eggs to order or omelettes and we love having the protein option in there to offset the jewel of the table that everyone looks forward to: Overnight French Toast.  There is absolutely nothing as satisfying as popping a pan in the oven you’ve prepared the night before filled with buttery, eggy bread and a creamy custard to puff up while you’re opening gifts.  Sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and tempered with a little almond and vanilla extract, it smells exactly how we imagined Christmas should; before we made the choice to bring the party home.  Just like the frittata, you can modify the overnight french toast to your liking; don’t like almond extract? Use a little lemon and vanilla instead. Add some orange zest to the custard.  Feeling adventurous? Try a little rose water or orange blossom and toasted pistachios. Do you have a cousin who makes their own Bailey’s Irish Cream each year? Throw some in.  It’s nearly impossible to foil, and it’s always the first thing to go. 

It’s been over a decade that we made the switch from being guests to being hosts, and every year I am now the one who waits at the door for the guests to arrive- in my pajamas! It’s brunch, after all. My house is filled with the warm smells and sounds of an unrushed, appreciated gift of a holiday at home, and my table already laid with the brunch that could ( and will!) feed an army that took me less than an hour to prepare the night before.  Everyone is welcome, no one is left behind and I get the Christmas I’ve always wanted full of the people and the food I love.

Jenny’s Christmas Brunch Overnight French Toast

Ingredients

1 loaf of challah bread, cut in 1 inch slices

3 cups whole milk (if looking for a richer custard use 2 cups whole, 1 cup ½ and ½ )

3 whole eggs, 1 egg yolk

3.5 TB sugar

½ tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

Optional Fillings 

3 TBS of Baileys or Frangelico

Chopped nuts

Raisins

Dried fruits

Orange zest

Steps 

1. Grease a 9x13 baking pan with salted butter 

2. Arrange bread slices tight together

3. Whisk eggs, milk, sugar and choice of flavorings and pour over bread slices. 

4. Top with cinnamon sugar and sliced almonds

5. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.

6. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes, or until golden brown and puffed up

7. Cut into squares and serve with maple syrup, powdered sugar, or our families fan favorite, whipped cream.

Serves 6 as the main dish; 10-12 as part of the menu.