No matter what, do not ask us to pick a favorite holiday — especially when it comes to spring.
From Easter and Passover to Cinco de Mayo and graduations, there’s something to celebrate every few weeks. But one holiday we are partial to is Mother’s Day.
Because Mother’s Day is the ultimate brunch holiday and, well, we love celebrating the special ladies in our lives. This year we’ve partnered with Hangar 1 to toast Mom with their newly launch Hangar 1 Rosé Vodka. Because the minute the weather warms up, it’s full-on rosé season in our book and the only thing better than rosé wine itself is a vodka made with rosé wine.
We here at Salt & Wind Travel are California through and through so we always look for a chance to support Golden State makers, be it local farmers or craft distillers. Hangar 1 is one of those distillers – based in the Bay Area (you should go visit them next time you’re in the area btw!), led by head distiller, Caley Shoemaker, always trying something new — they’re everything we love about the California spirit. So, we couldn’t wait to try this newest creation, their Rosé Vodka made by blending California rosé wine with their handcrafted vodka.
We took their blush-colored vodka as inspiration and ran with it for this, our thoroughly modern Mother’s Day brunch. We don’t know about you, but we’re all about celebrating the modern Mother – you know, your friend who works hard and plays hard all while taking top care of her little ones. And we figured the ultimate Mother’s Day gift would be to give her a brunch where she didn’t have to lift a finger and where she could just sit back and relax with friends and toast the moment.
Here’s a look into our Mother’s Day brunch including the menu, the décor, our signature Hangar 1 Rosé Vodka cocktail, and all the info to do it yourself!
MENU
- Rosé Raspberry Lavender Spritzer Cocktail
- Maple Syrup and Black Pepper Bacon
- Baked Almond Vanilla French Toast
- Charred Asparagus With Ricotta and Almond-Pistachio Dukkah
- Baked Eggs With Creamed Spinach and Smashed Mint Peas
- Mixed Berry Pavlova With Lemon Curd and Mascarpone Whipped CreamÂ
Before we move on, we really have to discuss these recipes because this menu was next level if we do say so ourselves:Â
Rosé Raspberry Lavender Spritzer Cocktail
What do we love about the new Hangar 1 Rosé Vodka? It’s not only an innovative twist on classic vodka but also a gorgeous blush color that’s perfect for spring. It’s balanced flavor (with notes of apple, sweet pea blossoms, and cranberry) means you don’t want to make a cocktail that overshadows it.
Something light and fresh is perfect, like, say, a Sangria, a French 75 or this Rosé Raspberry Lavender Spritzer Cocktail that’s perfect for a brunch setting. You can make the raspberry lavender syrup in advance and then you simply shake the drinks up during the brunch. We suggest setting up a cocktail station at your brunch table because guests love watching the cocktails being made right in front of them!
Maple Syrup and Black Pepper Bacon
You know when your bacon gets a bit of your pancake syrup on it and it’s just so freaking good? That’s what inspired this recipe. You simply cook bacon in the oven like you normally would but, during the last 5 minutes of cooking, brush it with maple syrup and, before serving it, give it a few cranks of freshly ground black pepper.Â
Baked Almond Vanilla French Toast
This Baked Almond Vanilla French Toast is one of the most popular recipes on our site and we get why: it allows you to make French Toast for a crowd without having to stay put at the stove.
Charred Asparagus With Ricotta and Almond-Pistachio Dukkah
Inspired by one of our latest trips to Baja California, Mexico, this Charred Asparagus With Ricotta and Almond-Pistachio Dukkah dish is totally unexpected and a total crowd pleaser. You can char the asparagus and make the Mexican-inspired dukkah (an Egyptian nut and seed blend but made with cumin, oregano, pistachios, and almonds here) a day ahead and then you simply toss the asparagus in lime and olive oil and assemble it all right before serving.
Baked Eggs With Creamed Spinach and Smashed Mint Peas
We find few things more comforting than baked eggs at brunch. For this Baked Eggs With Creamed Spinach and Smashed Mint Peas recipe we recommend making the creamed spinach and smashed peas (without the herbs) a day ahead and then simple placing it all in a skillet and baking it when your guests arrive.
Mixed Berry Pavlova With Lemon Curd and Mascarpone Whipped Cream
The minute we think of Spring and desserts, we think of light, gorgeous desserts like the Aussie class, the Pavlova. Named after the ballerina, Anna Pavlova, the dessert is classically just fruit and meringue layered together. For our Mixed Berry Pavlova With Lemon Curd and Mascarpone Whipped Cream, we add in a light-as-can-be lemon curd, a berry sauce, and Mascarpone whipped cream to make it next level.
TIPS FOR BRUNCH PERFECTION
Now that you’ve got your menu all figured out, here are a few more tips to master your Mother’s Day brunch.
Have a signature drink: An instant way to make a special occasion even more so? To create a signature drink. For our Mother’s Day brunch, we created this Rosé Raspberry Lavender Spritzer Cocktail with Hangar 1 Rosé Vodka. It’s a bit tart, a touch floral, just a tad sweet, and super simple to make. Not to mention that the color is a total showstopper.
If you’re looking for other ideas for using the Hangar 1 Rosé Vodka, check out all these delicious recipes on the Hangar 1 site. And, btw, a few other ways we like using Hangar 1 for brunch is in this Sparkling Sage Grapefruit cocktail or in this Tomatillo Bloody Mary.
Cook a super seasonal menu: The easiest way to make sure your food tastes amazing? Use in-season produce. For spring, our favorite seasonal ingredients are asparagus, peas, berries, and mint – all of which we included in this menu.
Make (almost) everything in advance: A brunch like this is a moment where you don’t want to be slaving away in the kitchen but out enjoying the good weather and even better company. So, make as much as possible in advance. For this menu, you can make all the food a day ahead or the morning of so all you have to focus on is mixing cocktails and being in the moment.Â
Keep the décor eclectic: Rather than stress about all the plates matching and the décor being just so, we say it’s way more interesting to use what you have and mix and match. The key is to keep everything in the same color palette, so everything feels like it goes together even when it doesn’t.Â
And do your own florals: Lately we’ve been all about DIY on the florals for gatherings like this. On our trip to the farmers market for all the produce for this meal, we gathered all the fresh flowers we could find (namely, ranunculus, traditional carnations, proteas, roses, seeded eucalyptus, etc.) and put them together in a low vase so they were on the table but not stealing the spotlight.
Keep it low stress: No matter what you do, don’t take on more than you can handle. A stressed-out host does nothing but make all the partygoers feel stressed too!
Be sure to toast Mom! This day is all about Mom so make sure you sit down and give yourself plenty of time to enjoy the moment and toast Mom.
That’s it: all you need to know to create the most perfect Mother’s Day brunch! Let us know if you have any more tips and, if you make the Hangar 1 Rosé Vodka cocktail or anything else, be sure to share it on social with the hashtag #swsociety.
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Sponsored Content: This post was brought to you by Hangar 1 Vodka but all words and content are our own. Thanks for supporting these sponsors who help keep Salt & Wind up and running.
