Homemade pimiento cheese, grits waffles with peach-bourbon syrup, and buttermilk biscuits are just a few offerings on this bountiful southern style brunch board.
Holy smokes, will you look at that?! I am obsessed with beautifully styled, bountiful brunch boards in general, but this one is special. Making this Ultimate Southern Brunch Board was pretty much my dream come true. As a born and raised southern girl I can tell you this. Everything here reflects the place where I’m from. My East Tennessee home is within the Appalachian Mountains, where food traditions have deep roots. And ‘there’s always room for one more at the table’ is practically our family motto.
I wish I could invite every single person reading this over for a taste of this feast. But for now, the best I can do is share some of my favorite heirloom recipes. Some of which already live here on the blog. First up – my favorite pimiento cheese recipe, which is a combination of Southern Living’s and The Lee Bros. recipes.
Pimiento cheese serves us well as a sandwich spread, appetizer, or beside a pile of pickled okra on this brunch board. Forget the pre-shredded stuff. The secret to really great pimiento cheese is a block of extra-sharp cheddar.
Simple is best!
The best pimiento spread has few ingredients. A box grater and an 8 oz. block of extra sharp won’t take long to break down into feathery shreds. Add the cheese to a bowl, along with some jarred pimiento patted dry on paper towels. Add a little cream cheese, JFG mayo (or other, if you must) and a coarse grind of black pepper. Stir it up and enjoy!
You’ll find the recipe in greater detail at the end of this blog post.
Next – eggs. What would brunch be without eggs? You can’t go wrong with boiled eggs from the deli section at the supermarket (no peeling!). A few folded up crepe/omelet-style eggs can be neatly tucked in here and there.
Buttermilk is a magic ingredient!
Tangy buttermilk biscuits can be made into sandwiches with salty country ham (it’s like the Appalachian version of prosciutto) or spread with another southern favorite – tomato jam. If you find yourself with a bumper tomato harvest this year, make jam!
Buttermilk Grits Waffles is another favorite that has buttermilk tang and uses up leftover grits as an ingredient. I usually don’t have any leftover grits when I make them, so my first step is whipping up instant grits, which takes just 5 minutes.
In addition to maple syrup, peach-bourbon syrup is a must for waffles. Make it with fresh peaches for the tastiest results. You can find out how to make it in the Grits Waffles recipe notes.
Most importantly? Cornbread. Get my all-time favorite buttermilk cornbread recipe right here. Southern cornbread is unsweet, but that just makes it more perfect to stuff with butter and drizzle with sorghum or honey. My grandmother would crumble cornbread into beaten eggs for a hearty scramble. It’s good, especially with lots of freshly ground black pepper.
Get the whole run-down of everything seen here in the list below. The recipes are linked, along with some things you can pick up at the store or easily throw together, like a pot of grits!
- Homemade Pimiento Cheese with crackers (recipe is at the bottom of this blog post)
- Southern Buttermilk Biscuits
- Southern Cornbread with honey or sorghum syrup
- Buttermilk Grits Waffles (with Peach-Bourbon Sauce in recipe notes)
- Cherry Tomato Jam
- Boiled eggs and scrambled (crepe/omelet style) eggs
- Country ham, bacon, and sausage links
- Pickled okra
- Maple syrup
- Grits with butter and black pepper
- Salted butter, for serving on biscuits, cornbread, and waffles
Homemade Pimiento Cheese
Ingredients
- 8 oz. block extra-sharp cheddar cheese
- 3 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
- 4 oz. jar pimento peppers patted dry on paper towels
- 3 tablespoons JFG mayonnaise or other high-quality store-bought mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Grate the cheese on the large holes of a box grater.
- Place the grated cheddar in a large mixing bowl. Pull apart the cream cheese and scatter over the cheddar along with the pimentos, and mayo. Add Worcestershire and a few grinds of black pepper. Using a spatula, mix the ingredients together until well incorporated. The mixture will be thick. Add more black pepper to taste. Add salt if desired, but I never need to because the cheddar adds enough salt for my taste.
- Transfer the pimento cheese to a jar or plastic lidded container. Store the pimiento cheese in the refrigerator. This will keep in the refrigerator for 1 week.
This is the best pimento cheese! The fresh sharp cheddar cheese really makes it, and the right mayonnaise (tangy, not sweet) is a must. Better than anything store bought!