Scrambled eggs or pancakes might be the first thing many people learn to cook, but beyond these staples, there's a whole world of breakfast recipes that are essential for anyone's repertoire. If you're looking to hone your skills cooking breakfast, conquer these essential dishes that range from savory to sweet. Challah French toast, anyone?
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Wild Mushroom and Goat Cheese Omelets
Master your omelet-making skills and you'll have a last-minute breakfast or dinner under control. This creamy-tangy one, with shiitake mushrooms and delicate fresh pea shoots, would be satisfying any time of day.
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Carla Hall's Buttermilk Biscuits
Every home cook should have a biscuit recipe in his or her arsenal. The trick here is to give the dough two turns when you're rolling it out to ensure you evenly distribute the combination of butter and shortening. This will make the biscuits extra tender and flaky.
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Eggs Florentine with Smoky Mornay Sauce
Poaching eggs is tricky business, but once you perfect the craft, you can put them on everything — from avocado toast to a bed of greens. As for the Mornay sauce, it's a French classic that's great to know how to make, too. Going the distance with this recipe will pay off, in other words, long after you finish breakfast.
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Whole-Wheat Pancakes with Roasted Berries
The key technique here is using a resealable plastic bag to pipe out perfect pancakes — resulting in one less bowl to wash. To make the roasted berries, simply toss them with sugar and pop them in the oven for 10 minutes.
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BLT Fried Egg and Cheese Sandwich
Chef Thomas Keller's scrumptious recipe combines three of the world's most popular sandwiches — bacon, lettuce, and tomato; fried egg; and grilled cheese.
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Broccoli Frittata
If you don't feel like flipping an omelet, make a frittata. But seriously, having a good frittata recipe on hand will make weekend brunch a breeze, whether you're cooking for one or a crowd.
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Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping
These muffins are super simple to make; feel free to swap out the blueberries for other fresh fruit like peaches or raspberries if you prefer. Plus, once you see how easy it is to make crumb topping, you'll want to put it on everything.
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Soft-Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Sablefish and Trout Roe
The crucial egg dish to perfect is a soft and creamy scramble (leave the rubbery eggs at the door). Chef Andrew Carmellini's luxurious eggs are heavenly on their own, and serving them with smoky sable, briny roe, and rich sour cream puts them over the top.
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Challah French Toast
Pillowy challah is the perfect vehicle for French toast. Remember to flip the slices in the egg mixture a few times before cooking.
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Escarole Shakshuka
Eggs poached in a savory sauce are livened up with the addition of silky, sweet escarole and tangy feta. A deliciously bright addition to your breakfast or brunch spread, serve with crusty bread or toast for sopping.
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Classic Belgian Waffles
These light, crispy waffles get their rise from yeast and eggs. Top them with anything from dulce de leche to maple syrup to chocolate sauce.
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Eggs Benny Toast
The secret to this super-simple eggs Benedict? Cornstarch. It stabilizes the emulsion in the hollandaise, helping to prevent the sauce from breaking while it cooks over direct heat. Easier than poaching, gently steaming eggs results in delicately tender whites and smooth, creamy yolks.
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Basic Crêpes
The most difficult part about making crêpes might be waiting for the batter to rest. Once you've tried your hand at flipping them a few times, you'll get the hang of it and want to make these thin pancakes for anyone who comes over.
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Quiche Lorraine
This classic is great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and it'll help you work on various techniques from dough to custard. The sour cream in the recipe imparts an extra silky texture for an impressive spin on the French staple.
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Strawberry-Almond Scones
In the breakfast pastry cannon, scones rank low on the difficulty scale. Start with this recipe and then get creative with flavor variations.
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