What's for Breakfast? Blueberries Make the Sale

Toast, pancakes, muffins, eggs... every breakfast menu has to have them. But the breakfast offerings that diners remember, the ones they return for, have a signature twist. That’s where blueberries come in. They revitalize those dishes we know well and make them hard to resist. Would you like a blueberry bran muffin with your eggs, sir?

Breakfast and brunch provide myriad opportunities for upselling with blueberries. High-quality berries are available year round so you can menu them in every season. Blueberries add visual appeal, a healthy aura and a craveability that seals the deal.

"In muffins and other baked goods, fresh and frozen blueberries can easily sink to the bottom and also tend to explode when they get hot," Chef Samuel says. "This, however, can be avoided by substituting sugar-infused blueberries because they remain suspended in the batter during baking and maintain a more structured texture than their fresh or frozen counterparts."

Review your breakfast and brunch offerings to see where blueberries might add some spark. A few thoughts:

Fruit salad: Same ole? Add fresh blueberries for lively color and juicy crunch.

Fluffy blueberry-ricotta pancakes: Fold in egg whites for extra lightness, portion out batter on the griddle, then dot with fresh or (unthawed) frozen blueberries before turning. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with warm maple syrup.

Blueberry maple syrup: Heat blueberries in maple syrup until they pop; thicken lightly with cornstarch whisked in cold water.

Blueberry yogurt parfait: A great choice for customers on the run. Assemble in clear, recyclable cups so diners can see the layers: granola, vanilla yogurt, blueberries. Repeat. Mix it up by adding chopped peach plus coconut to the blueberries. Instead of granola, try crisp cereal or crushed graham crackers.

Blueberry oatmeal: Replace the raisins with dried blueberries. Or top hot oatmeal with a colorful blueberry-fruit salad.

Blueberry granola bars: For coffee-bar customers, make grab-and-go granola bars with rolled oats, walnuts, whole-wheat flour, honey and frozen blueberries.

Blueberry streusel coffee cake: Add fresh, frozen or sugar-infused dried blueberries to a favorite coffee-cake recipe. Top with almond streusel.

Blueberry French-toast sandwich: Prepare a sandwich with sourdough bread, cream cheese and blueberries. Dip in egg and pan-fry like French toast.

Blueberry bread pudding: Repurpose day-old bread in a breakfast pudding with frozen blueberries, milk, eggs and bit of sugar. Drop in cream cheese cubes for extra creaminess.

Blueberry oatmeal muffins: Make super-wholesome muffins with quick-cooking oats and fresh, frozen or sugar-infused dried blueberries.

Mini blueberry scones: A two-bite version of the traditional scone, using packaged biscuit mix. Could these be the signature touch in your breakfast breadbasket?

Blueberry-walnut muesli: Satisfy your health-conscious guests with a variation of this Swiss breakfast specialty featuring rolled oats and wheat germ softened in milk or yogurt. Stir in brown sugar, toasted nuts, dried blueberries and grated apple.

Featured Recipe:
Watch Chef Scott Samuel demonstrate Blueberry-Ricotta-Orange Crêpe with Vanilla Blueberry Sauce, a breakfast or brunch item with a filling that offers a lighter touch than typical blueberry blintzes.

Featured Recipe:
Chef Scott Samuel demonstrates Blueberry Cornmeal Muffin with Orange Glaze, a perfect use for sugar-infused blueberries.