Healthy Heath

Bountiful Brunch August 21, 2011

Weekends are delightful. I love filling them with activities, festivals, and of course a bit of relaxation.

Lafayette, CO has an enormous peach festival each year. Chris’ mom and I went to check it out. I was hoping that it would be a celebration of all things peach, but there were a lot non-peach related booths.

When we first walked in, the festival seemed to be just what I wanted. A huge booth of organic, tree-ripened peaches was the first one we walked by. Next came a tent with peach jams, and a peach and jalapeno glaze. We were off to a good start! As we wandered further into the festival, we passed by the biggest peachy area: the cobbler/pie/smoothie booth. The line was so long there that it didn’t seem worth the wait in the hot sun.

As soon as we passed that area, there were no other peach booths. Lots of pottery, jewelery, crafts and foods were being sold in an incredible number of booths. I just wish that there was more peachy goodness at a peach festival. Lots of fun regardless of the lack of peaches.

Today, Chris and I decided to have a relaxing morning. Waffles and Boulder sausage for brunch! We don’t do breakfast foods very often, so it was definitely a nice treat.

On the top, I decided to put a warmed mango. It’s so easy to make a lovely warm fruit topping for waffles or pancakes, and it just makes a world difference!

1. Start by cutting up your fruit into bite size pieces. I chose mango today, but apple, peach, strawberry or pear would work beautifully as well.
2. Put the fruit into a medium sized pot and add in a splash of water- no more than a few tablespoons.
3. Once the fruit has started to warm up, add in a couple teaspoons of sugar or honey. This will start to make a bit of a syrup with the juices.
4. I like to add in some cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger at this point. You can add in whatever spices you think will go well with your fruit.
5. Once all the spices are mixed in and the juice is a thin syrup consistency, pour it on top of your waffle or pancake. Your tastebuds will thank you!

Add on a little dollop of whipped cream, and you soon will be in breakfast heaven. The warmed fruit mixture takes five minutes to make, and the breakfast will go from good to brilliant in a flash!