Five slow weekend breakfasts, mostly from the pantry

Weekday breakfast is about speed. Weekend breakfast is the one meal of the week nobody is rushing, and it deserves a little more. The good news is that most of it can live in the cupboard and the freezer, so a slow Saturday does not need a Saturday-morning shop.

1. Buttermilk pancakes with maple syrup

A good buttermilk pancake mix takes the measuring out of it: add water or milk and an egg, as the pack says, and rest the batter for five minutes so the pancakes rise. Cook them on a medium pan, flipping once bubbles form and pop on the surface. Warm the pure maple syrup for a few seconds before pouring; it spreads further, so you use less.

Make it yours: scatter blueberries or sliced banana onto each pancake right after pouring the batter.

2. Crisp waffles for a crowd

If there is a waffle iron at the back of a cupboard, this is its weekend. Original waffle mix makes a lighter waffle if you let the batter stand for ten minutes. Keep finished waffles crisp in a 200°F (95°C) oven, on a rack rather than a plate, until everyone sits down. Leftovers freeze well and go straight into the toaster on Monday.

3. A yogurt bowl that feels like a treat

Spoon plain greek yogurt into a wide bowl, add a handful of honey almond granola for crunch and a few sliced strawberries. Plain yogurt lets you decide the sweetness: a drizzle of maple syrup or a spoon of strawberry fruit spread is enough. It takes two minutes and still looks like a café breakfast.

4. Eggs on sourdough toast

Thick slices from a sourdough boule toast better than thin sandwich bread: crisp outside, chewy in the middle. While they toast, cook large grade a eggs the way you like them. For soft scrambled eggs, whisk with a pinch of salt and stir slowly over low heat, taking the pan off while they still look slightly wet; they finish cooking on the plate. Butter the toast, pile the eggs on top, and add sliced tomato or a few spinach leaves.

5. A freezer smoothie

Blend a cup of frozen berry blend with a ripe banana and a cup of original oat milk. Frozen fruit makes it thick and cold without ice. A spoon of oats or granola makes it more filling. This is also the best home for bananas that went too ripe during the week.

The weekend breakfast shelf

Keep these in, and any of the five is possible without planning:

• Pancake mix and waffle mix
• Maple syrup and a fruit spread
• Granola and oats
• Frozen berries
• Eggs, yogurt, milk or oat milk, and a loaf of good bread

Fresh bread and eggs are the only things that need buying in the week. Everything else waits patiently for a slow morning.