How to Throw a Tropical No Cook Brunch

My friend and I recently threw a brunch for some hard-working gals in our church. We wanted them to feel extra special and appreciated. We wanted something that would set a relaxing theme and cue the start of summer vacation. I started planning the theme by doing what I always do-and searched Pinterest for brunch ideas. We were immediately drawn to a tropical theme, and had everything we needed already (besides the food and paper products!) to put it together! This theme would be perfect for a Mother’s Day brunch, a bridal shower, baby shower, or birthday. We did not have a lot of prep time, so we wanted to find foods that we didn’t have to cook or do much prep to. Read on to see how to throw a tropical no cook brunch!

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The Week Before the Brunch

A week or so before the brunch, we shopped for the paper goods. Paper plates, fun straws, and napkins are a great way to set the theme and colorscheme of an event. We found the napkins, straws, and pink scalloped plates at Micheal’s. I don’t like to be matchy-matchy with the paper goods, I prefer to mix and match, using the colors to add to the decor. These worked perfectly for our theme! We also bought these cute milk bottles from Michael’s. We can use these again for beverages at other events, and for vases.

The Day Before the Brunch

The day before the brunch, we each gathered all of the serving pieces we thought would work. We chose which plants to bring from home. The menu was planned, and were pleasantly surprised! We could buy almost everything at Sam’s Club or Costco! We bought all of the food, and two bouquets of flowers. Clementine’s, pineapple, and grapefruit were used for added pops of color to the table, and they can also be eaten!

A great tip the day before an event is to plan out what food you will place on what tray. This saves so much time and stress the day of the event! We wrote out all of the food on sticky notes, and stuck them to each tray and platter. You may have to tweak a little the day of, but it makes things so much easier! We arranged the flowers into vases and containers. Again, doing this the day before saved so much stress! The flowers lasted just fine, as we did it at the end of the day, and brunch was the next morning. We also rinsed all of the fruit and cut it up the night before.

What To Serve for a Tropical No Cook Brunch

When planning a brunch menu ( or any menu for that matter!), it’s important to balance sweets with protein. You also need to consider people’s dietary concerns-will there be any diabetics, gluten-free people, or other food allergies that you need to accommodate? Also consider both the prep time you will have, and the time needed to set everything out. We did as much prep as possible the day before, but setting the food out and making the drinks took longer than we expected! All of the guests had arrived, and I was still making the drinks. Everything looked so beautiful and everyone was so happy to see each other, that I don’t think they minded waiting a little bit. Thankfully, we bought already cooked bacon that just needed warming, and frozen fritattas that only required a few minutes in the microwave!

The Menu for a Tropical No Cook Brunch

• Meat and cheese tray
• Precooked bacon
• Individual fritattas
• Mini croissants
• Mini bagels with assorted cream cheeses (Cream cheeses were purchased at Einstein’s Bagels)
• Yogurt Parfaits
• Fruit
• Macarons
• Chocolate caramels
• Fizzy raspberry lemonade
• Non-alcoholic mimosas

Shopping List

(Click on the links and add them to your Sam’s Club cart!)

• Individual fritattas
• Meat and cheese tray
• Small croissants
• Mini bagels with assorted cream cheeses (Cream cheeses were purchased at Einstein’s Bagels)
• Greek Gods Honey Vanilla yogurt (2 containers were used for 24 servings)
• Grapes
• Watermelon
• Clementines
• Rasperries
• Strawberries
• Blueberries
• Grapefruits
• Pineapple (used for decor, but you could also serve it)
• Hormel Pre-cooked bacon
• Mini individual quiches or frozen frittatas (sold at Sam’s Club or Costco)
• Macarons
• Chocolate caramels
• Orange juice (we used 1 1/2 bottles for 12 8 oz glasses)
• Raspberry lemonade (we used 1 1/2 bottles for 12 8 oz glasses)
• Sprite (we used 1 1/2 2 L bottles for 24 8 oz glasses)
• Bundle of mint

You can also click on the picture and add it to your Sam’s Club cart!

Decor

We used fruit for much of the decor, and plants that we already had. I purchased a bundle of tropical leaves on Amazon for another event, and they went perfectly. We combined white serving dishes with Better Homes and Garden’s new line of outdoor serving pieces. White serving pieces are a staple for anyone who hosts, they are classic and never go out of style! I love the look of the new Better Homes and Garden line, and they are wipeable and perfect by the pool!

Get the Look!

Now you know how to throw a tropical no cook brunch!

Do you need some gift ideas for Mother’s Day? Look no further!