I have written in the past about the new Mother’s Day tradition we started a few years ago. We used to go out for brunch until the pandemic hit. When Mother’s Day 2020 arrived during the very early part of the pandemic, we were still in lockdown, and you couldn’t go to a restaurant. That year my son and I worked to recreate the brunch from the place we always took my wife.

In those early days of the pandemic, you had to be creative to help make life feel a bit more normal, and preparing brunch was our way of doing that. Little did we know at the time that it would become a favorite new tradition in our home, and that even when the restaurants opened again, we’d all continue to choose our new at home brunch tradition over the old one.

When June rolled around that year, and the pandemic as it turned out would still be in the early days and going strong, Father’s Day was suddenly upon us. We used to go out for Father’s Day as well, but the new Mother’s Day tradition also turned into a new Father’s Day tradition as my wife and our son teamed up to make brunch for me!

That first year we were a bit more extravagant in our brunches than in the years that followed, and why not? We were stuck at home and had plenty of time to fill with our creativity! That Father’s Day they decided to surprise me by recreating the breakfast from Ohana at Disney’s Polynesian Village.

We’ve had breakfast at many restaurants in Disney World, but the breakfast at Ohana has by far always been our favorite. From the food to the atmosphere to the friendly service, you just can’t go wrong. I like to call their breakfast a “reverse buffet” because they bring everything they’re serving to your table on a beautiful platter. When a strikingly similar platter appeared on the table that first Father’s Day at home, I was truly blown away – my family really knocked it out of the park!

It’s hard to believe that new tradition is now three years old! With three Mother’s Days and three Father’s Days behind us, we still love it just as much as we did in year 1. While we may have simplified our efforts a bit after that first year, we still turn out a fun spread and with so many options on the table, that brunch also serves as afternoon snack and dinner as the day goes on!

One fun new addition this year were these easy egg cups. My wife looked up a few ideas, but then decided to just throw her own idea together and came up with something that was incredibly simple yet loaded with flavor. They were also a time saver as they prepared them the night before and warmed them for the brunch the next morning.

Lori said that the simplicity of the project made it easy for our 7 year old to do most of the work himself by scrambling the eggs and deciding what variations to use. He let his imagination and creativity run wild – the recipe made a dozen egg cups, and he turned them into 6 varieties using ham, cheddar, smoked gouda, mozzarella, and parmesan. He was quite proud of his work and was so excited to tell his food blogger dad about each kind, which he had color coded by the cupcake wrapper.

Lori & Max’s Easy Egg Cups

• 8 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Mix ins of your choice!

Add the eggs, milk and salt to a large bowl and scramble together until well combined.

Line a cupcake pan with cupcake wrappers – they used paper cups, but in learning from this experience, Lori suggests using the foil variety to make them easier to remove when baked. Divide the egg mixture evenly between the cups – there should be enough for 12.

Add your chosen mix ins to each individual cup and then bake in a 350 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes. Test with a toothpick to see if they are done. The egg cups can be served immediately or warmed again if you are preparing them the night before.

I had a wonderful day complete with the best company in the world, delicious food, and an incredible gift, but I think my favorite thing of all is to see the big smiles on the faces of my family as they present their buffet to me. That’s a gift that I can carry in my head and my heart every day. How lucky I am to have people in my life that are so happy and proud to do such amazing things for me!

Until next time, I hope you all have a great weekend!