MORNING GLORIES EGGS, CRAB CAKES, MUFFINS AND MORE BRIGHTEN A RELAXING BRUNCH.

Byline: Natalie Haughton Food Editor

Brunch is a great end-of-summer leisure activity. It's a way to catch up with family and friends before schools starts and the busy fall season begins. And of course, good food has to be on the menu.

For brunch inspirations with a modern twist, we've turned to Saddle Peak Lodge in Calabasas (which serves a dynamite Sunday brunch on the patio in Malibu Canyon) and a new cookbook from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., ``Breakfasts & Brunches: Over 175 New Recipes from the World's Premier Culinary College'' (Lebhar-Friedman Books; $35).

``Brunches are a really good catch-all kind of meal,'' says David Kamen, associate professor of culinary arts at the college. Depending on individual preferences, you can dine on a collection of breakfast or lunch fare - or a combination of the two.

``Beyond that, it is a great way to entertain because brunches can typically offer something to satisfy everybody and typically less expensively than a dinner party.''

A lot of different styles of food are possible - salads, hot sandwiches and what Kamen refers to as lower-impact entrees, which don't require as much preparation time or effort as dinner entrees. That includes dishes like frittatas, updated quiches (add ingredients like caramelized onions or grated Asiago cheese and lobster pieces to make them chic), cheese blintzes with mixed berry sauce and orange and cherry bread and butter pudding or other stratas.

At Saddle Peak Lodge, menu selections run the gamut from the ever-popular favorites, eggs Benedict and buffalo burger, to newer selections introduced by Mark Murillo, executive chef, who took over the helm a year ago (he was sous chef there for three years prior). Among them are french toast with bananas and pecan butter and crab cakes with poached eggs, two creations he shares today, along with a pulled pork sandwich, a Caesar salad with grilled pheasant breast, a salmon citrus salad and a BLT with avocado on wheat bread.

``For me personally, brunch is my favorite service,'' says Murillo, adding that typically, 185 or so brunch meals are served every Sunday at the restaurant. `It's an escape from the hustle and bustle of the week,'' notes Gerhard Tratter, managing director, Saddle Peak Lodge, where you can decompress for several hours and enjoy the cool, comfortable setting.

``I feel energized to do brunch and used to cook it at home every so often,'' adds Murillo. But it was Filipino style food - like Filipino sausage, corned beef hash, lumpias, spam and eggs, fried eggs over steamed or fried rice or mung bean soup - while he was growing up in Diamond Bar.

``Many of the things in the cookbook are somewhat outside the box,'' says Kamen - like a couscous salad with curried vegetables, a green lentil salad, a lima bean spread and ginger- sesame stir-fried scallops with lo mein noodles.

Serving brunch buffet style is easiest on the hostess and most appealing to guests, as they can select the foods that fit specific diet needs, notes Kamen. You can include a salad or two, a fruit platter, a savory entree or two, sides like Canadian bacon, ham, salmon, shrimp or sausages and a basket of pastries (store-bought or homemade) - but choose items that will hold well and don't require last-minute cooking for best eating quality.

Some but not all items can be prepared a day or two in advance.

``I'm a big fan of making baked goods on the day you use them,'' adds Kamen. If you're pressed for time, rely on store-bought items like muffins, scones, puff pastry and prepared pie dough instead of making your own.

You can slice bread for french toast early the day of the brunch and keep it in a plastic food bag, says Murillo. The pecan butter can also be prepared a couple of days in advance and refrigerated.

While the crab cakes can be assembled and formed early the day of serving and refrigerated, coat with the panko-flour mixture just before sauteing. Make the tomato sauce two or three days in advance and keep refrigerated, if desired. Reheat in a microwave just before serving.

Natalie Haughton, [phone]

natalie.haughton(at)dailynews.com

FRENCH TOAST WITH BANANAS, PECAN BUTTER AND MAPLE SYRUP

2 (1-pound) loaves unsliced egg bread (Saddle Peak uses a 1 1/2-pound brioche bread loaf from La Brea Bakery, but it's not readily available to consumers; we used egg bread, a good substitute.)

4 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Several dashes ground nutmeg (a little more than 1/8 teaspoon)

1 1/3 cups half-and-half

2 tablespoons butter

Banana Topping (recipe follows)

Pecan butter (unsalted butter mixed with toasted, finely chopped pecans and a few drops molasses), optional

Warm maple syrup

Trim ends off bread loaves. Cut remaining bread into 15 (3/4-inch) thick slices (you'll only need part of a second loaf of bread, so use remainder for eating or cooking another dish).

In a medium bowl, with a wire whisk, whisk together eggs until well mixed. Whisk in sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and half-and-half until thoroughly blended.

Heat a nonstick griddle over medium-high heat until hot. Add 2 teaspoons butter and melt. Dip bread slices in egg mixture, turning to coat evenly. Place 3 or 4 slices on griddle at a time, depending on size, and cook until golden brown on each side, turning only once. Remove to platter and keep warm. Repeat with remaining butter, bread and egg mixture, until all french toast is cooked.

To serve, place 3 french toast slices, overlapping, on each serving plate and top with 1/5 of Banana Topping. Garnish with a scoop of pecan butter and serve immediately. Pass warm maple syrup. Makes 5 servings.

Adapted from a recipe shared by Mark Murillo, executive chef, Saddle Peak Lodge, Calabasas.

BANANA TOPPING

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoon brown sugar

5 large bananas, peeled and sliced diagonally into 1/2- to 3/4-inch pieces.

In a large skillet, cook butter and brown sugar over medium heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves, 1 to 2 minutes. Add bananas to skillet and continue to cook over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes, turning to coat bananas with syrup until slightly softened but not mushy. Use immediately to top french toast. Makes enough for 5 servings.

CRAB CAKES WITH POACHED EGGS AND TOMATO SAUCE

(On the cover)

1 tablespoon finely diced red onion

2 tablespoons finely diced celery

2 tablespoons finely diced red bell pepper

1 pound lump crab meat (See Note)

1 egg

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Cayenne pepper to taste

1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard

1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable OR canola oil OR a combination of half oil and half butter

8 poached eggs (To poach eggs, break four at a time into a medium skillet of boiling water with a couple of tablespoons champagne vinegar in it and a dash of salt. Eggs should be totally submerged in water. Reduce heat, cover and cook until desired doneness - from 2 to 3 or 4 minutes, watching carefully. Repeat to cook all eggs.)

Tomato Sauce (recipe follows)

Frisee (drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, a squeeze of fresh lemon and salt and pepper) and opal basil pieces for garnish In a mixing bowl, combine red onion, celery, red pepper, crab, egg, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper and mustard. Mix well. Mix bread crumbs with flour in a shallow dish or bowl.

Form crab mixture into 4 thick cakes. Coat all over with bread crumb-flour mixture. In a large skillet, heat oil until hot. Add crab cakes and cook on each side until golden brown.

Meanwhile poach eggs. Cut each crab cake lengthwise in half and open so you have 2 half moons. Place 2 half moons, slightly apart, on each serving plate. Place 2 poached eggs on top. Drizzle warm Tomato Sauce all around crab cakes on plate and a little over top, if desired. Top with frisee and opal basil. Serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

NOTE: The restaurant uses peekytoe crab. We used a 1-pound can Phillips brand pasteurized crab (purchase in the refrigerator section of markets; store unopened in the refrigerator until using), rinsed and well drained and sprinkled with a little fresh lemon juice.

Adapted from a recipe shared by Mark Murillo, executive chef, Saddle Peak Lodge, Calabasas.

TOMATO SAUCE

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced OR pressed

1/4 to 1/2 small jalapeno, seeds and veins removed, minced

5 Roma tomatoes, quartered

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

3 to 4 basil leaves, chopped

1/4 to 1/2 canned chipotle chile (available in adobo sauce in a can in Latino and selected specialty markets) OR 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chile pepper (a spice available in a jar from McCormick)

1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream 

A few drops liquid smoke (to taste)

Salt and pepper

In a medium saucepan, heat oil until hot. Add red onions, garlic and jalapeno and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent. Add tomatoes, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, basil and chipotle chile and heat to boiling. Reduce heat to medium or medium-high, cover and cook 7 minutes. Remove cover and continue cooking over medium heat 3 minutes more. Turn into food processor fitted with a metal blade and process 1 to 2 minutes until as evenly pureed as possible (texture will not be smooth). Add cream, remaining 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar and liquid smoke and process until well mixed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. Makes about 1 1/3 cups.

RASPBERRY MUFFINS WITH PECAN STREUSEL 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled

1 large egg, beaten

1 cup fresh OR frozen raspberries

3/4 cup Pecan Streusel

Prepare muffin tins by spraying lightly with cooking spray or lining with muffin liners.

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together into a mixing bowl. Make a well in center of flour mixture.

In a separate bowl, blend milk, butter and egg. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and stir by hand just until batter is evenly moistened. Fold in 1/2 cup raspberries.

Fill prepared muffin tins about 3/4 full. Gently tap filled tins to release any air bubbles. Divide remaining 1/2 cup raspberries among muffins and sprinkle tops with Pecan Streusel. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven 25 to 30 minutes, until a skewer inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool muffins in pan about 10 minutes before removing. Muffins can be served warm, or transfer to a cooling rack to finish cooling before storing in an airtight container. Muffins can be frozen up to 6 weeks. Makes 12 muffins.

PECAN STREUSEL: In a small bowl, combine 2/3 cup chopped toasted pecans, 2/3 cup packed brown sugar, 2/3 cup all-purpose flour and 5 tablespoons melted butter. Mix with a fork until mixture resembles moist crumbs. Use as directed in recipe. Makes 2 cups.

From ``Breakfasts and Brunches: Over 175 New Recipes from the World's Premier College,'' by the Culinary Institute of America.

CARAMELIZED ONION QUICHE 

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 1/2 cups thinly sliced yellow onions

3/4 cups heavy whipping cream

3/4 cup milk

3 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/4 cups grated provolone cheese

1 (9-inch) prebaked pie crust

Heat olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add onions and saute, stirring frequently until golden and very soft (caramelized), about 15 minutes. Remove onions from pan with a slotted spoon and reserve.

Whisk together cream, milk, eggs, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir reserved onions and 1 cup cheese into egg mixture. Pour egg mixture evenly into pie crust. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup cheese evenly over top of quiche.

Set quiche pan on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven 40 to 45 minutes, until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. If pie crust begins to overbrown, cover edges with strips of foil or pie shields. Let quiche rest at least 20 minutes before cutting. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature. Makes 1 (9-inch) quiche.

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Brunch

Slow down and savor the moment

(2 -- color) FRENCH TOAST WITH BANANAS, PECAN BUTTER AND MAPLE SYRUP

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

(3 -- color) RASPBERRY MUFFINS WITH PECAN STREUSEL

Photo by Ben Fink, from ``Breakfast and Brunches,'' Lebhar-Friedman Books