Breakfast

Maple bacon donut is an American invention that is commonly served for breakfast or as a dessert. The simple meal consists of a donut that is glazed with maple syrup and topped with a few slices of bacon. Today, there are various versions of this unusual breakfast item throughout the United States, and it is especially popular in Nebraska, California, and Oregon.

Maple Bacon Donut

Maqshush is a traditional Arabian dessert and breakfast dish made from wheat flour, ghee, and honey, molasses, or sugar. It's commonly enjoyed in Saudi households during breakfast and also on cold and rainy days. The dish consists of small wheat flour nuggets generously mixed with ghee and sweeteners for a sweet and rich flavor. Maqshush symbolizes tradition and comfort, bringing families together around the breakfast table. It is considered Saudi Arabia's national dessert due to its deep cultural significance, popularity, and wide availability of ingredients. In essence, Maqshush embodies the simplicity and warmth of Saudi culture, providing a sweet and comforting start to the day.

Maqshush

Italy

A soft, slightly sweet oval bun split lengthways and filled to overflowing with whipped cream: the maritozzo is Rome's breakfast pastry, eaten standing at the bar with a cappuccino and a napkin ready. The dough is enriched with olive oil or butter, eggs and a little honey or sugar, and the older Roman version, the maritozzo quaresimale, carried raisins, pine nuts and candied orange peel and no cream at all; it was one of the few sweets permitted during Lent. The name is a diminutive of marito, husband, from the custom of a suitor giving one to his intended, sometimes with a ring hidden inside. The cream-filled version took over the city's pastry counters in the twentieth century and has spread, in the last decade, to bakeries well beyond Lazio, often in miniature or with flavoured creams.

The bun is a slow dough. Flour, eggs, sugar or honey, fat, a little milk and yeast are kneaded to a smooth, elastic mass, left to rise, shaped into ovals about the size of a fist and proved again until they are puffed and light, then baked at a moderate heat until golden and brushed with a sugar syrup for shine while still hot. The crumb should be fine and soft, closer to brioche than to bread, and the crust thin. Once cooled, each bun is cut almost through along its length, opened like a book and filled with panna montata, cream whipped with a little sugar until it holds firm, then smoothed flat across the opening with a spatula so the top is a clean white plane. In Rome the cream is plain and the only decoration is a dusting of icing sugar.

Score the bun before the cream. It should be fresh that morning, soft enough to compress and spring back, lightly sweet and faintly scented with citrus or honey; a dry, crumbly or bready bun is the usual failure. The cream should be real whipped cream, cold, firm but not grainy, and sweetened with restraint so the bun still registers. The ratio matters: cream roughly equal in volume to the bread, filled right to the edges. Mark down stabilised cream that tastes of nothing, cream applied an hour earlier that has begun to weep into the crumb, a bun that tears when bitten, and chocolate or pistachio versions judged as if they were the classic. It is finished in four or five bites, and the standard is set by the pastry bars of Rome's Trastevere and Prati.

Maritozzo

India

Indian masala omelet is a traditional egg-based dish originating from South India. The dish is made with a combination of eggs, onions, green chili peppers, coriander, chili powder, and turmeric powder. The eggs are whisked with the other ingredients, and the mix is then cooked on both sides in a pan until the omelet becomes slightly crisp on the edges. This spicy omelet is traditionally served for breakfast and it's recommended to eat it with pav (bread). If desired, it can be rolled in hot chapati flatbread. The dish is also often prepared and sold at street stalls in the area, and some vendors add ingredients such as tomatoes, coriander leaves, and cheese to the omelet.

Masala omelet

Mas huni is a traditional breakfast. It's made with a combination of tuna, onions, shredded coconut, and hot chili peppers. The ingredients are simply mixed in a bowl and seasoned with salt and pepper. The dish is traditionally served with huni roshi, a Maldivian flatbread that's used to scoop up the food. Sweetened hot tea is often served on the side as a typical accompaniment to mas huni. Ideally, mas huni should be served cold, while the roshi flatbread should be freshly baked and warm.

Mas huni

Masoub is a Yemeni dessert that is popular throughout the Arabian peninsula. In its basic form, the dish consists of mashed bananas and bread that are usually enriched with butter, cream, spices, honey, and dates. Masoub is traditionally served on large plates, and it is meant to be enjoyed as a communal meal. It is often served as a breakfast dish, and usually comes garnished with cream, condensed milk, nuts, or honey.

Masoub

Masroshi is a traditional snack consisting of stuffed and fried dough. The dough is made with flour, oil, warm water, and salt, while the filling includes smoked tuna, grated coconut, hot peppers, onions, garlic, ginger, minced curry leaves, and lime. The dough is rolled into a ball, flattened, covered with the filling, closed, and rolled into a ball that's flattened before being fried in a pan. Masroshi is cooked until it becomes golden brown, and it should be flipped every few minutes so that both sides are evenly cooked. The dish can be served for breakfast or eaten in the afternoon or evening as a snack, ideally paired with a cup of tea.

Masroshi

Matzah brei or matzo brei is a traditional Jewish dish. It's made with a combination of matzo flatbread and eggs. Both are fried together, then served an eaten for breakfast during Passover. The matzo is torn into pieces, often softened with milk or water, combined with beaten eggs, then fried in butter or oil. Although the dish is often savory, it can also be prepared in a sweet version with cinnamon, fruit, and honey. The sweet versions are typically topped with applesauce, whipped cream, yogurt, sour cream, or fruit jams. The savory versions are sometimes enriched with the addition of sauerkraut or onions, along with seasonings.

Matzah brei

Mbaazi za nazi is a specialty of Kenya's Coastal region, consisting of pigeon peas (mbaazi) cooked in coconut milk. When the milk evaporates, the dish is ready to be consumed. It can be additionally flavored with hot peppers, turmeric, garlic, cumin, and onions. This flavorful dish is popular in the area because pigeon peas are quite inexpensive and nutritious, so mbaazi za nazi is a great way to get the whole family fed. Typically served for breakfast, mbaazi za nazi is often paired with mahamri or hot chapatis.

Mbaazi za nazi

Mealie greachie is a traditional peasant dish originating from Northern Ireland. Also known as toasted oatmeal, the dish is usually made with a combination of rolled oats, onions, butter, and Irish bacon. The bacon is browned in a skillet, removed, wrapped in foil, and set aside. The onions are fried in butter until soft, and then mixed with the oatmeal. The mixture is cooked until the oatmeal has browned. Once done, the toasted oatmeal is served with the reserved warm bacon. In the past, mealie greachie was eaten by farm laborers at harvest time for dinner.

Mealie Greachie

These soft crescent rolls are regarded as the Argentinian take on traditional French croissants. Even though they are very similar to the French variety, medialunas are slightly more moist, smaller, and a bit sweeter. There are two traditional types of medialunas; the larger version made with butter, and the smaller version made with lard. Both varieties are usually prepared plain, with a rum-and-sugar glaze on top. They are traditionally eaten for breakfast, ideally accompanied by a cup of strong coffee with milk, or as an afternoon snack served with yerba mate, a traditional Argentinian herbal tea. Argentinians prefer to eat them with sweet condiments, jellies, dulce de leche, or chocolate spreads. Even though they are easily prepared at home, medialunas can also be bought in panaderias&ndash;traditional bakeries found throughout Argentina.

Medialunas

Medu vada is an Indian snack that is visually similar to a doughnut, consisting of a deep-fried batter made from black lentils and seasonings such as fenugreek, cumin, pepper, chili, and ginger. The fritters are often served for breakfast with coconut chutney and sambar on the side. It is believed that medu vada was invented in the city of Maddur, located in the region that is today known as Karnataka.

Medu vada

Eggs cooked slowly into a base of tomatoes and green peppers in a small two-handled pan, and served in that pan with bread: menemen is the hot dish of the Turkish breakfast table. The name is shared with a town near İzmir, though the dish is eaten from Edirne to Van and the link to the place is asserted more often than it is documented. Its closest neighbours are shakshuka, where the eggs are poached whole and the sauce is spiced with cumin and paprika, and the Basque pipérade, which uses sweet peppers and often ham. Menemen keeps the seasoning to salt, black pepper and sometimes pul biber, and the eggs are broken up, so the result is somewhere between a loose scramble and a stew. Whether onion belongs in it is a national argument; roughly half the country says it does.

The peppers go in first. Sivri biber, the long thin green ones, are sliced and sweated in butter or olive oil until soft, then grated or finely chopped tomatoes follow and cook down until the raw water has gone and the fat starts to show at the edges, usually ten to fifteen minutes. Only then are the eggs added, straight into the pan, and stirred gently over low heat. The target is eggs that have set into soft ribbons through the sauce, not a firm omelette and not a tomato soup with threads of white in it. A sahanda pan of copper or thin steel is traditional because it heats fast and comes to the table. Kaşar or beyaz peynir melted in at the end, or slices of sucuk fried first, are common additions; so is a spoon of biber salçası, though in İzmir that would be considered interference.

A good menemen is served the minute it stops moving, and it should still be glossy and slightly wet when the bread goes in, because the bread is the cutlery. Mark down eggs that have tightened into dry curds, tomatoes that still taste raw or acidic, and a thin, watery pan where the two never came together. The pepper should be present as a vegetable, not just as colour. Pre-made tomato sauce spooned over an omelette is a different dish and a common shortcut in hotel buffets. Decide where you stand on onion before you score it: a version with soğan is sweeter and softer, a version without is sharper and more about the egg. Both are correct in their own kitchens.

Menemen

Türkiye

Red lentils simmered with onion, carrot and sometimes potato until they collapse, blended smooth, and served with lemon wedges, a drizzle of butter coloured with red pepper, and bread: mercimek çorbası is the soup on every Turkish lokanta menu, the one ordered before a kebab, at breakfast after a night out, and at home when someone is ill. It is the most common soup in the country and the one most often made badly, because it is cheap and assumed to be simple. The southern version, ezogelin, adds bulgur, rice, mint and tomato paste and keeps some texture; the plain mercimek is the western and central standard, pale orange and velvet-smooth. Every region and most kitchens have a version, and the differences come down to the fat, the thickness and whether the lemon is squeezed in the pot or at the table.

Finely chopped onion is sweetened in butter or oil, sometimes with a spoon of flour cooked in to give body, then red lentils, rinsed, go in with diced carrot and potato if used, and water or stock, roughly five parts liquid to one of lentils. It simmers for twenty-five to thirty-five minutes, skimmed, until everything is soft, then it is blended until completely smooth and thinned to a pouring consistency; it should coat a spoon but not stand up on it. Seasoning is salt and black pepper, cumin in many kitchens, and the soup is finished at the table with the three things that make it: a squeeze of lemon, a spoon of butter heated with pul biber or sweet paprika poured over the surface, and dried mint rubbed between the fingers. Croutons or crispy fried bread are common in restaurants. The soup thickens as it stands and is loosened with water when reheated.

Taste it before the lemon: it should already have flavour, of lentil and onion and butter, with the salt right; a bland base that depends entirely on the lemon and the pepper butter has been made with water and no care. It should be smooth, with no graininess or skins, and the colour should be a warm orange, not grey or brown. The butter should arrive hot on top, red with pepper, not stirred in beforehand and lost. Mark down a soup that is thin and watery, one that has been held so long it has set into a paste, a flour-heavy version that tastes of roux, a scorched bottom-of-the-pot note, and a bowl served lukewarm. Lemon should be fresh and offered as a wedge, not pre-squeezed. A good mercimek çorbası costs almost nothing to make, which is why a bad one is inexcusable.

Mercimek çorbası

Mettbr&ouml;tchen is a type of sandwich consisting of a fresh br&ouml;tchen (a German bread roll) and mett (raw pork mince). The bread roll is sliced, then topped with a layer of mett, which is usually seasoned with salt and pepper and garnished with slices of raw onions on top. This sandwich is a typical breakfast item in Germany, and it is typically enjoyed in northern parts of the country. Interestingly, Mettwoch is a German custom of savoring mettbr&ouml;tchen on Mittwoch (Wednesday).

Mettbrötchen

United States

Midwestern orange rolls are a cherished pastry from the American Midwest, often enjoyed for breakfast or dessert. These rolls are similar to cinnamon rolls but feature a distinct orange flavor. The dough is soft and sweet, made with ingredients like flour, sugar, yeast, milk, eggs, and butter. Instead of a cinnamon filling, the rolls contain a mixture of sugar, butter, and orange zest, providing a fresh, citrusy taste. The dough is rolled out, spread with the orange filling, rolled up, and sliced into individual rolls. After baking, they are typically topped with an orange-flavored glaze made from powdered sugar, orange juice, and zest, enhancing their bright flavor. Midwestern orange rolls are a staple at holiday breakfasts, family gatherings, and special occasions in the Midwest, offering a refreshing alternative to traditional cinnamon rolls. Orange rolls are also very popular in Alabama.

Midwestern orange rolls

Spain

Migas canas is a traditional dish originating from C&oacute;rdoba. This version of migas is made with stale bread, milk, salt, olive oil, garlic, and ground cinnamon. The bread is cut into cubes, sprinkled with milk and water, and left to become spongy. It&rsquo;s then fried in oil with garlic until well browned and sprinkled with cinnamon, if desired. When served on a plate, a hole is usually made in the center, and milk is poured into the hole. This version of migas was usually served for breakfast to local shepherds in rural farmsteads.

Migas canas

Milk toast is an American breakfast staple consisting of slices of buttered, toasted bread that is either dipped or covered in hot milk. There are many varieties, so raisins, maple syrup, cinnamon, salt, or pepper might be added to the dish in order to improve its flavors. It is believed that milk toast was created sometimes during the late 19th century, when it was considered a typical comfort food dish as it is easily digestible.

Milk Toast

China

Min chiang kueh is a traditional pancake that's consumed in China and Singapore, with similar version in Malaysia (apam balik). These thick pancakes are filled with a combination of crushed peanuts and sugar. The batter is usually prepared with a combination of plain and rice flour, coconut milk, eggs, sugar, yeast, baking soda, and a pinch of salt. Once prepared, the pancake is topped with peanuts and sugar, then folded in half and served. Other fillings are also available, such as red bean paste and shredded coconut. The pancake is served for breakfast, always piping hot, and it can be found at most hawker centers. It's believed that these pancakes originate from Fujian, China.

Min chiang kueh

Misal is a specialty dish of the Indian state of Maharashtra, its name literally translated to a mixture of everything, so the ingredients vary from cook to cook. However, a combination of these ingredients is the most common in a typical misal: curd, moth bean or pea curry, gravy, spiced potatoes, and garnishings such as onions, coriander, and tomatoes. It is mandatory for a true misal to be spicy, while the base needs to be crunchy. Visually, it should look like a work of art, with lots of colors - typically red, brown, orange, and green. The earliest mention of the dish appeared around the early 20th century. Since it is highly nutritious, easy to prepare, and relatively inexpensive, it remains one of the most popular meals in Maharashtra.