Build a better brunch

Whether it's Mother's Day, Father's Day, or a romantic breakfast in bed, sometimes you want to make a brunch that's really special. And nothing says you care like choosing wholesome, good-for-you and good-for-the-planet ingredients.

Let's start with that morning classic, the incredible, edible egg.

We hope the chicken who laid the little orb on your plate spent her life clucking around on a sunny farm, pecking at worms, and chasing merry chicks. But the reality of modern agribusiness isn't so pretty.

According to the Humane Society of the United States, most egg-laying hens in America are confined to cages with only 67 square inches of space per bird. These crowded battery cages are stacked on top of each other, and the chickens can't walk around or even spread their wings.

This is why many groups advocate for "cage-free eggs," sometimes called "free range" or "free farmed." But as the Green Guide notes, none of these terms are regulated or verified by a third party.

Only the term "USDA organic" is verified, and this confirms is that the chickens were fed organic feed, not given antibiotics, and were given access to the outdoors. But USDA regulations consider five minutes of open-air access each day to be sufficient -- and "access" simply means that a door is available and the chickens can use it. Nobody forces them to go outside, plus the "outside" may simply be a bare patch of ground.

And cage-free birds are not necessarily raised in a cruelty-free environment. Most cage-free hens have part of their beaks removed to limit stress-induced aggression. They live less than two years, which is less than half the normal lifespan.

Plus, it's just not that easy to find cage-free eggs, as the New York Times and others have reported. The idea has become trendy, so Whole Foods, corporate cafes (yeah, Yahoo!'s included), universities, Ben & Jerry's, and even Burger King are flocking to free-farmed yolks.

But only a reported 5 percent of American eggs are either cage-free or organic (that's up 2 percent in the past three years). And the prices are sky-high -- around $2 more per dozen, or so USA Today estimates.

If you can find genuinely free-range eggs from a small farmer, such as at your local farmers' market, some folks swear that the taste is better and the eggs are worth the price. But if you're in the city or 'burbs with only a big-name grocery store, well, it's hard to say if the cage-free label makes much difference.

A better bet to improve breakfast is organic fruit. Who doesn't love a beautiful bowl of fresh fruit in the morning, or maybe some chopped fruit topping a pancake or waffles? Just make sure you're not serving up pesticides with those sweets of the earth.

The not-for-profit Environmental Working Group has a handy list of fruits and veggies ranked by how clean they are. The results of nearly 51,000 pesticide tests on produce between 2000 and 2005 were analyzed to create this guide. You can get a printable PDF to keep in your wallet and take to the store.

This guide lists the dirty dozen fruits -- these are typically so contaminated, you should always buy the USDA-certified organic versions, which are clean. Common breakfast fruits on the list include peaches, apples, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, grapes, and pears.

The list of the 12 cleanest fruits -- ones you don't need to buy organic because they're usually safe -- also features some morning faves. Look for ordinary pineapples, mango, kiwi, and bananas.

Add a pot of fair-trade coffee, and you've got a brunch to make your mom, dad, your sweetie, and even Mother Earth proud.