Holidays & Occasions Mother's Day Every Recipe You Need for a Beautiful Mother's Day Brunch Buffet Menu By Mary Shannon Wells Mary Shannon Wells Mary Shannon is a Digital Associate Editor and has been on the Southern Living team since 2017. She helps run the brand's social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok, where she's happily behind the scenes. When she's not ruffling feathers with an etiquette poll via Instagram Stories, she's writing content for the website and assisting in various print projects like gift guides and home stories.She grew up in Mobile, Alabama, which she insists is home to the country's first Mardi Gras (not New Orleans) and now lives in Birmingham with her husband and rescue pup Rocky, whose name is unrelated to The University of Tennessee (Roll Tide). Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on April 21, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Southern kids know to appreciate their mothers every day of the year (at least y'all should!), but on Mother's Day, extra-special treatment is in order. Let's be honest: Breakfast in bed is over-rated (and a little unsanitary). How about we give Mom a quiet morning to herself for a change? To really start your mama's day off on the best note, this is the year to serve a Mother's Day brunch buffet. Kick off the festivities with a breadbasket full of sausage balls with a pimiento cheese twist or a platter of deviled eggs in Mom's favorite shade of pink. You know Mama would be upset if you didn't include some fruits or veggies on her Mother's Day brunch buffet menu (she taught you best after all). Showcase fresh spring produce with a colorful strawberry salad or asparagus side dish. Once all the kids have their servings of fruits and veggies, progress your Mother's Day buffet menu onto the big hitters. If Mama prefers a sweet breakfast, you can't go wrong with our Cinnamon Roll Strata. If she usually orders savory, try our Test Kitchen's latest and greatest in breakfast casseroles—a cheesy, sausage-and tomato-filled delight. Send Mama off from her Mother's Day brunch with a slice of something sweet, like our Lemon Loaf Cake, to pair with her cup of decaf. Setting up a fabulous Mother's Day brunch buffet for Mama is a surefire way to land in her good graces. 01 of 21 Pimiento Cheese Sausage Balls Anna Theoktisto/Getty Images Recipe: Pimiento Cheese Sausage Balls It's not a Southern gathering without a basket of sausage balls on the table, and this super-Southern version will be gone before you can blink. This recipe freezes beautifully if you want to prep the sausage balls in advance and pop them in the oven on Mother's Day. 02 of 21 Snickerdoodle Doughnut Hole Muffins Alison Miksch; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Snickerdoodle Doughnut Hole Muffins If Mama prefers a sweet brunch, start with a batch of these easy doughnut hole muffins instead of sausage balls. Novice bakers, don't worry: Though they look like they're from the local bakery, you don't even need yeast to make these tiny pastries. 03 of 21 Beet Pickled Deviled Eggs Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Melissa Gray; Prop Styling: Ginny Branch Recipe: Beet Pickled Deviled Eggs No Southern holiday is complete without a platter of deviled eggs present. For Mother's Day, give your usual recipe a pretty pink makeover that Mama will love with naturally dyed beet pickled eggs. 04 of 21 Chicks in a Blanket Hector Sanchez; Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller Recipe: Chicks in a Blanket Instead of pre-made pigs in a blanket, these chicks in a blanket, made with mini chicken-and-apple sausages, are so easy to put together before Mother's Day brunch. We stirred up our own version of "everything" seasoning, but you can now find ready-to-go "everything" seasoning at the store. 05 of 21 Hash Brown Patties Photographer Victor Protasio, Food Stylist Margaret Dickey, Prop Stylist Prissy Lee Recipe: Hash Brown Patties Individual hash brown patties will keep the buffet line moving more quickly than a scoopable hash brown casserole. If you want to make these ahead of time, prepare as directed, flash freeze the patties, and warm them up in the oven when you're ready to serve. 06 of 21 Fresh Fruit Salad Jen Causey Recipe: Fresh Fruit Salad Mama's rule has always been to include some fruits and veggies on your plate, so don't slack off on her day! This bright fruit salad includes a honey-orange dressing and a bit of fresh mint that sets it apart from store-bought mixed fruit. 07 of 21 Sweet-and-Spicy Sheet Pan Bacon Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Karin Olsen; Food Styling: William Smith Recipe: Sweet-and-Spicy Sheet Pan Bacon Savvy Southern cooks know that your sheet pan is the key to serving bacon to a crowd. The secret behind this flavorful bacon is seasoning it the night before so it can soak in the rub. 08 of 21 Mini Cheese Grits Casseroles Photo: Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Torie Cox; Prop Styling: Heather Chadduck Hillegas Recipe: Mini Cheese Grits Casserole Mini ramekins make serving a crowd so much easier, but you can also prepare this side-dish casserole in a 2-quart baking dish (with an increase in cooking time to 50-55 minutes). Plus, you can prep this recipe in advance the night before Mother's Day. 09 of 21 Ham-and-Cheese Puff Pastries Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Recipe: Ham-and-Cheese Puff Pastries These savory pastries might look professionally made, but they start with store-bought frozen puff pastry sheets and can be chilled or frozen ahead of time to help out a busy host. A sprinkling of chopped fresh thyme on top adds a thoughtful touch. 10 of 21 Spring Salad with Berries and Bacon Johnny Autry; Food and Prop Styling: Charlotte L. Autry Recipe: Spring Salad with Berries and Bacon Test Kitchen pro and Hey Y'all host Ivy Odom developed this colorful salad recipe with spring celebrations in mind. Fresh strawberries are featured in the dressing and as a salad topping, and crispy, smoky bacon is the perfect complement. 11 of 21 Asparagus with Eggs and Prosciutto Greg Dupree; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Christina Daley Recipe: Asparagus with Eggs and Prosciutto This springy side dish is just as beautiful as it is delicious. A simple combination of fresh asparagus, salty prosciutto, and jammy soft-cooked eggs would be delicious on its own, but a quick toss with a homemade maple-Dijon vinaigrette takes the flavors over the top. 12 of 21 Cheesy Tomato-and-Sausage Strata Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Recipe: Cheesy Tomato-and-Sausage Strata If Mom tends to order on the savory side when the family is out to brunch, surprise her with a cheesy, comforting breakfast casserole. Prep it the night before so all you have to do on Mother's Day is pop it in the oven. 13 of 21 Sheet Pan Berry Pancakes with Honey-Butter Syrup Johnny Autry; Prop and Food Styling: Charlotte L. Autry Recipe: Sheet Pan Berry Pancakes with Honey-Butter Syrup Don't spend Mother's Day morning standing at the stovetop flipping flapjacks! This sheet pan pancake recipe is the easiest (and prettiest) way to feed pancakes to a crowd. Fresh strawberries add color and natural sweetness. 14 of 21 Oven-Baked Omelet Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Recipe: Oven-Baked Omelet Instead of making individual omelets, try this omelet for a crowd. Set up an at-home omelet bar for family members to top their own personal portion of this big-batch recipe. 15 of 21 Asparagus-and-Goat Cheese Quiche Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Heather Chadduck Hillegas; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Asparagus-and-Goat Cheese Quiche A fluted tart pan helps dress up this easy quiche that starts with a store-bought crust. Our Test Kitchen recommends medium-size asparagus spears (not too thick or thin) for the filling. 16 of 21 Cinnamon Roll Strata Greg DuPree; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke Recipe: Cinnamon Roll Strata Instead of baking cinnamon rolls from scratch, this shareable casserole starts with frozen yeast roll dough. The real star of the show is the sweet, milky glaze on top. 17 of 21 Big-Batch Bloody Marys Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Mindi Shapiro Levine; Food Styling: Torie Cox Recipe: Big-Batch Bloody Marys Don't spend Mother's Day mixing drinks for the whole family. Instead, serve a make-ahead, big-batch Bloody Mary and let guests add their own toppings. 18 of 21 Elderflower Champagne Cocktail Hector Manuel Sanchez; Styling: Katie Jacobs Recipe: Elderflower Champagne Cocktail If Mom usually orders something sparkling at the bar, this big-batch cocktail is just the ticket for her brunch. "The easiest, quickest trick to dazzle your friends is to freeze things in ice cubes," says Nashville-based stylist Katie Jacobs. Here, she used edible flowers for a springtime touch. 19 of 21 Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Johnny Autry; Food and Prop Styling: Charlotte L. Autry Recipe: Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Every Southern holiday needs a sweet finale, and there's no better dessert for a springtime celebration than this new way to enjoy strawberry shortcake. "Positively delicious," wrote one five-star reviewer. "The lemon zest and strawberries in the shortcake were unusual compared with standard shortcake. The result was a texture more interesting and moist then the dryness of a biscuit-like shortcake." 20 of 21 Lemon Loaf Cake Photography: Caitlin Bensel, Food Styling: Karen Rankin Recipe: Lemon Loaf Cake Nothing pairs better with Mama's post-brunch cup of coffee than a sweet, tangy slice of lemon cake. "I think its better than (the) coffee chain lemon loaf cake that everyone raves about," wrote one five-star reviewer. 21 of 21 Strawberry-Rosé Snack Cake Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke Recipe: Strawberry-Rosé Snack Cake This one-bowl snack cake is the easiest way to get dessert on the table this Mother's Day. Mom can enjoy the leftover rosé with her meal, which sounds like a win-win to us! Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit