Brunch season: A make-ahead menu that's perfect for a leisurely spring morning - Recipe

Sunset, March, 2002 by Charity Ferreira

Spring's burgeoning warm weather brings opportunities for entertaining outdoors early in the day: It's the perfect time of year to have friends over for brunch. This menu takes advantage of some of the season's best fresh produce, enlivening it with vibrant flavor--roasted asparagus topped with a caper-studded chopped egg salad, melons marinated with lime juice and mint, strawberries paired with a creamy yogurt panna cotta. The meal's centerpiece is a cinnamonscented chicken and egg filo pie (rendering moot the question of which came first). Most of the dishes can be prepared ahead of time and just assembled or baked in the morning, to keep brunch a relaxed, easy affair.

Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Roll-ups

PREP TIME: About 30 minutes, plus at least 1 hour to chill

NOTES: You can buy soft lahvosh or flatbread in oval or rectangular pieces at many well-stocked supermarkets and in markets that carry Middle Eastern ingredients.

MAKES: 16 roll-ups; about 8 servings

2 pieces soft lahvosh or flatbread (about 13 by 18 in. each)

1 carton (8 oz.) whipped cream cheese

2 tablespoons chopped parsley Salt and pepper

12 ounces thin-sliced smoked salmon

1 English cucumber (about 8 oz.), rinsed and very thinly sliced

3/4 cup very thinly sliced red onion (about 4 oz.)

1. Place one piece of lahvosh on a sheet of plastic wrap. With a flexible spatula or a knife, spread about 1/2 cup cream cheese in a thin, even layer over entire surface of bread. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon parsley, then lightly with salt and pepper. Arrange half the smoked salmon slices on top, leaving a 1-inch border along short ends of lahvosh. Arrange half the cucumber and onion slices evenly over salmon.

2. Beginning at a short end, roll lahvosh as tightly as possible, taking care not to push filling forward as you go. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Repeat to fill, roll, and wrap second lahvosh. Chill rolls for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.

3. Unwrap rolls and trim off about 1 inch from each end (save to eat later). Gut each roll into eight equal pieces and arrange on a platter.

Per roll-up: 208 cal., 48% (99 cal.) from fat; 12 g protein; 11 g fat (7 g sat.); 13 g carbo (1.1 g fiber); 999 mg sodium; 38 mg chol.

Spiced Chicken Filo Pie

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 2 1/2 hours

NOTES: Have the chicken cut up at the meat market. As you work with filo, cover the sheets you're not using with plastic wrap to keep them from drying out. You can prepare through step 4 up to 1 day ahead; wrap nuts airtight and store at room temperature, and chill chicken and egg mixtures separately. The pie can be assembled (step 5) up to 2 hours ahead; wrap airtight and chill.

MAKES: 8 servings

1/2 cup almonds

1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

1 chicken (about 4 lb.), neck and giblets removed, cut into 8 pieces (see notes)

6 cups fat-skimmed chicken broth

1 onion (8 oz.), peeled and chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

About 1/4 teaspoon salt

About 1/8 teaspoon pepper

6 large eggs

6 tablespoons butter, melted

1 package (1 lb.) filo dough, thawed (see notes)

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1. Place almonds in a 10-inch baking pan. Bake in a 350[degrees] regular or convection oven until golden beneath skins, about 10 minutes. Let cool. In a food processor, pulse almonds with 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon and the granulated sugar until coarsely chopped (or coarsely chop with a knife).

2. Rinse chicken. In a 5- to 6-quart pot, combine chicken, broth, onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and cloves. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat, cover, and simmer until chicken is tender when pierced, about 45 minutes.

3. Pour chicken mixture through a strainer set over a large bowl; return strained broth to pan. With your fingers, remove skin from chicken and pull meat from bones; discard skin and bones. Shred chicken into bite-size pieces. Mix chicken and strained onion in a bowl and moisten with about 2 tablespoons broth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let cool; if desired, cover and chill up to 1 day.

4. Bring broth in pan to a simmer over medium-high heat; reduce heat to maintain simmer. In a bowl, beat eggs to blend with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add eggs to broth; stir gently until set, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour through a strainer into another bowl; reserve broth for other uses. Let eggs cool.

5. Lightly brush the inside of a shallow 3- to 3 1/2-quart casserole or baking dish with melted butter. Place one 13- by 17-inch sheet of filo in dish so that it covers the bottom and sides of casserole and hangs over the edge slightly. Brush sheet lightly with butter. Repeat to layer and butter three more sheets. Sprinkle half the almond mixture evenly over filo in bottom of casserole; spread chicken mixture over nuts. Cut four sheets of filo in half crosswise to make eight 8 1/2-by 13-inch rectangles. One at a time, brush four half-sheets with butter and layer them over chicken. Sprinkle remaining half of the almond mixture over filo and arrange egg mixture evenly over nuts. Fold in overhanging edges of filo and top with four more buttered half-sheets, tucking any overhanging edges into sides of casserole. Brush top layer with butter.