Breakfast and Brunch

Brown Butter Banana Bread Waffles

January 21, 2015

Brown. Butter. Banana. Bread. Waffles.

Boom.

At least I didn’t try to make it 5 B’s in a row and say Baffles. I’m lame. Ha!

Well, here we are with another Wednesday Waffles post. 3/52 I can’t believe that I’ve only just begun this adventure and it’s already on week three. It’s weird all around.

Plus, I just turned 30. And we are currenty on a cruise. I’m going to say that we are enjoying ourselves emensely although I’m currently writing this on Saturday night before we even depart as wifi on the boat is $$$ so I’m scheduling this post in advance.

Speaking of which, I am HORRIBLE about scheduling posts. I try quite often and I mess up the date, or time, or just don’t schedule it like a dummy. FACEPALM.

Anyway, we are on the cruise having a blast and enjoying the warm weather and sun. And you can enjoy these waffles. Totally the same. ha!

We always have bananas around as Autumn eats them most days but even then some gets ahead of us and get brown and soft. No worries, it’s just perfect for banana bread. Or in this case banana bread waffles.

But not to leave well enough alone, I browned the butter as well. The banana bread recipe I use most often uses melted butter so I just amped this up by browning it and it really makes the waffles fantastic. I just love that rich nutty flavor.

These are waffles that will knock your socks off.

Enjoy these Brown Butter Banana Bread Baffles… with bacon.

Brown Butter Banana Bread Waffles

Makes 12 4″ square waffles

Ingredients

12 ounces butter
3 large very ripe bananas
1/2 Cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Cups flour
1/2 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 Cups milk
chopped pecans, banana slices, butter, and syrup for serving

Process

Make the brown butter following this process. Let cool.
Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
Beat together the bananas and sugar. Once combined add the eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract, beat well.
Add 1/2 of the flour mixture to the banana mixture, gently mix. Add half of the milk and mix to incorporate. Repeat with the remaining flour mixture and milk.
Cook in your waffle iron until golden brown and crisp. Place on a wire rack to cool.
Enjoy with chopped pecans, slices of banana, butter, and syrup.

Birthday Cake Waffles with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

January 14, 2015

Oh baby! Baby!

My birthday is fast approaching. Less than a week away! It’s definitely time to celebrate.

While I normally don’t enjoy celebrating my birthday, but I am going for it this year. I’m turning 30 so I might as well.

We are actually taking off for a cruise as a big birthday thing this weekend. Well, birthday/pre-wedding honeymoon/get the hell out of the cold thing. I can’t friggin’ wait!!

I’m still tossing around the idea of having people over after the cruise to celebrate but truthfully, I’m tired of the work involved for the weather to wreack havoc and wreck it. That has happened more often than not. It’s such a big bummer. I’d love to celebrate with everyone and to make personal pizzas while drinking wine but eh.

Anyway, I made these Birthday Cake Waffles to celebrate my upcoming birthday on this week’s Waffle Wednesday post.

I actually didn’t know what to call this…

Birthday Cake Waffles

Waffled Birthday Cake

Birthday Waffle Cake

Decisions, decisions… some awesome Facebook friends chimed in with their opinions which resulted in Birthday Cake Waffles.

I guess it doesn’t matter what they are called, as long as you make them. It’s just a fun a way to celebrate a birthday with some waffles. You’ll love it!

Birthday Cake Waffles with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

For the waffles

1 15.25 ounce box Yellow Cake Mix (I used Pilsbury)
1 cup water
1/3 cup oil
3 eggs

For the frosting

8 oz reduced fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
4 Tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 Tablespoons milk
3 Cups powdered sugar

Process

Preheat your waffle iron.
Combine the cake mix, eggs, oil, and water in a large bowl. Mix to combine. Some remaining lumps is okay.
Using a round waffle iron, make 5 waffles according to the waffle iron’s manufacturer’s instructions.Set aside to cool on a wire rack to prevent them from getting soggy.
To make the frosting, beat together the butter and the cream cheese. Add the maple syrup and the milk and beat again. Lastly, slowly add in the powdered sugar and beat well to combine.
Once the waffles have completely cooled, lay 1 whole waffle on your serving plate. Spread 1/5th of the frosting over the waffle. Add another waffle on top rotate 45 degrees to misalign the waffles segments as they lay on top of each other. Spread frosting on the waffle. Repeat with the remaining 3 waffles, rotating each one and frosting after each layer. Decorate with sprinkles.

Classic Homemade Waffles

January 7, 2015

After I read Amy Poehler’s Yes Please I started to binge watch Parks and Recreation. I never got into it when it first started. I think my DVR and brain were already too full to take on another show then. Not that I didn’t like it, I just never gave it the time of day. So I’m just a few years late but I’m loving it!

I love the weirdness and quirkiness of all the characters. They are all so strange in their own ways from their relationships, weird mural designs, and anger towards opossums. And poor, poor Jerry! No one understands his awesomeness!!

Plus, it’s about city government, which Price and I are just starting to get involved in, serving on the Conservation Commission and Planning board, respectively. Our monthly meetings won’t compare to their full time jobs in the Parks and Recreation Department but I’m sure there will still be silly moments that will remind me of the show in some way or another.

And Leslie Knope is just such a great character. She is so blindly optimistic that it’s sad and beautiful. I wish that more people in public office were like her so that the world would be filled with more parks and things like that. She just wants for a more, more, more. But her positive, hard-working approach is refreshing and fun. Plus, we share the same birthday! (January 18th!!!!) and we both ‘effing love waffles.

I seriously love waffles. They are crispy on the outside, and light and airy on the inside. They aren’t grossly dense like pancakes. For real, aside from a rare few recipes, half way through your plate of pancakes you start praying for death to come upon you just to get you out of the rest of that situation. But when it comes to waffles you get to enjoy the amazing texture and density, plus there are all those little built in bowls of butter and syrup. A syrup trap!

For the last few years I’ve done some food centric themes that has resulted in some fun and creative recipes. I’ve done NASCAR themed recipes, Amanda and I did Thirsty Thursday post to make a drink recipe every week, and then I just did The Year of Pies when I shared a pie recipe every Friday. And I’m hoping to keep up with a waffle recipe every week this week… Waffle Wednesday.

Price might call off the wedding in June with this insanity, but we’ll see how this goes. Fingers crossed!

I’m starting this adventure with a simple waffle recipe. It’s a classic. It’s a great recipe to satisfy a waffle craving. Nothing too jazzy about it. But you will get amazing waffles. I swear. I have been using this recipe for years because it’s so good and you’ll always have everything you need right at home. It just works with its golden crispy outside and soft, tender inside.

Plus, they freeze so, so well. Just lay them out on a single layer on a baking sheet and put that in your freezer. Once they are all frozen store them in a zip-loc bag or plastic container. I reheat them by putting them on our pizza stone (which always hangs out in our oven), or just directly on the oven rack. I put our broiler on low and after a few minutes I flip them and they are done soon after that. You can also just toast them but I don’t bother bringing out storage.

It’s going to be an adventure making all these waffles. I swear we might go crazy but that it will be fun. And delicious.

Classic Homemade Waffles

Makes 12-14 4″ Square Waffles (Qty will vary per waffle iron)

Ingredients

2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/1 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Process

Preheat waffle iron.
Vigorously whisk the eggs in large bowl until fluffy.
Mix in flour, milk, vegetable oil, sugar, baking powder, salt, and vanilla extract until just smooth.
Spray the preheated waffle iron with a non-stick cooking spray.
Ladle 1/4-1/3 cup of the batter the onto hot waffle iron. Cook until golden brown. Serve hot iwth butter & syrup.

Inspired by All Recipes

Overnight Apple Pie Breakfast Pudding

October 31, 2014

You guys have you seen Daniel Radcliffe rapping?

It has made my life complete.

Seriously, I’ve watched his little performance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at least a dozen times since Wednesday.

Obviously, I’ve loved the Harry Potter books and the movies. I don’t care to share how many times I’ve seen them. And we saw Daniel on Broadway in How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Which was amazing. But this has taken things to a whole new level for me. It’s just so cool.

Anyway, it’s Halloween so I’m here with a Trick AND a Treat.

Normally, I post a pie recipe but I wanted to change things up, a Trick if you will, by posting this breakfast recipe. It’s flavors are based upon apple pie so that is where the Treat part comes in. Clever, no?

Well, it’s super simple and I swear that you will love it. I love that it came together in about 5 minutes and then I just had it do its thing in the fridge overnight. I’ve made overnight oats often because I love how I have breakfast ready for me in the morning. I ate plenty of oatmeal while I was on maternity leave since oats are really healthy, filling, and comforting. I was all about warm comforting goodness in the cold months while I was home… hello, Polar Vortex!!

Some days I have the chance to whip up eggs but more often than not I try to have something already prepped, like overnight oats or large batches of precooked steel cut oats, since spending $5 on a breakfast sandwich while I run into work is just annoying. And dumb. And unhealthy.

So while overnight oats are da bomb, I love how the added chia seeds really changes things up and adds a lot of fun flavor and texture to the recipe. I love how they pump up and get really creamy. Chia pudding- a fav! This breakfast pudding is just a great combo of those 2 things.

Enjoy an Overnight Apple Pie Breakfast Pudding. And go watch HP rap. I swear it will put a smile on your face.

Overnight Apple Pie Breakfast Pudding

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

2 Cups rolled oats
1/4 Cup chia seeds
2 1/2 Cups almond milk
2 apples, diced (I used Macon apples)
1/3 Cup chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Process

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well.
Divide the mixture between 2 vessels. Cover and store in the refrigerator overnight.
Stir prior to enjoying. Warm in the microwave, if you prefer it warm. Can be stored for up to 3 days.

Cranberry French Toast Casserole

October 27, 2014

Our mornings are so rushed with getting up, getting ready, getting Autumn packed up for daycare, Kemper out, and getting our stuff packed up that we often get our breakfasts on the way into work or if there are vendor presentations in the morning I’ll be able to get something like a muffin or some fruit. Those hectic mornings mean that I try to take the time to make a nicer breakfast on the weekends. I still don’t have a lot of time but it’s still great to make a nice scramble, bagel sandwiches, Kodiak Pancakes, or some waffles.

…

Easy Greek Spinach Quiche

February 7, 2014

Inspired by spanakopita, this Easy Greek Spinach Quiche is loaded with spinach and feta. It’s like your taste buds traveled to Greece!

Quiche makes for a wonderful meal you can eat all day long. Enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It’s a versatile meal that is is yummy and adaptable.

…

Whole Wheat Waffles

March 26, 2010

I describe myself as a morning person. I basically am but when I’m going to bed late during the week from watching tv, movies, cleaning, homework (previously) I tend to be less of a morning person than what my true nature is. Sleeping in on the weekends is about 8.30. I love to be out to in the summer gardening or reading a book in our backyard. I just feel that you are missing the best part of the day.

Yesterday was International Waffle Day so that means the best way to ‘celebrate’ is to enjoy some waffles. Well, even with being a morning person I still could not pull myself together to make waffles for breakfast. I also did go out to Shecky’s on Wednesday and it was the first time that Emily and I actually really drank at this event. Plus I really think that waffles are a special occasion breakfast. It goes against my daily yogurt/muesli/ fruit routine. So waffles at dinner would have to work.

I love the Buttermilk Waffles I typically make and I loved the Bacon Chocolate Chip Waffles too. But the first uses a crazy amount of butter, of course that is what makes them amazing! And the second, bacon + chocolate, ‘nuf said. So I decided to try a healthier approach this time. I used King Arthur’s Recipe for Hearty Whole Wheat Waffles.

The waffles were really simple to get together and came out well. They were plain and clearly tasted like whole wheat. I think that adding some cinnamon would really enhance this recipe, but it would depend on the taste you want. Or just serve them with fruit or bacon! Price made himself some bacon that we cooked in the oven on a cooling rack on a cookie sheet. Bacon is bacon but this way the fat drips away and cooks evenly from top and bottom. Plus he was happy with this breakfast for dinner idea since it gave him leftovers for breakfast today. Def nice to have when it’s (briefly) snowing out at the end of March!

Whole Wheat Waffles

Makes eight 8″ waffles

Ingrdients

1 1/2 cups King Arthur whole wheat flour, white whole wheat or traditional
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup melted butter or vegetable oil

Process

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and butter or oil.
Mix together the wet and dry ingredients, stirring just until combined.
Cook the waffles as directed in the instructions that came with your waffle iron.

Source: King Arthur Flour Recipe

Bacon-Chocolate Chip Waffles

January 6, 2010

Yep, that’s right… Bacon Chocolate Chip Waffles! I read about this recipe at Coconut Lime. I knew that I had to make it for our 5 year anniversary (1/2). It’s not that it was going to be complicated or fancy, just new and indulgent. I wanted to step things up from the typical scrambled egg, toast, yogurt, or leftovers (yes, leftovers.. in fact I had left over chicken tika masala on new years day.) So waffles and some Bailey’s would make for a better Saturday morning.

Bacon is a big deal right now. In fact I gifted bacon jam at Christmas. I have not yet tried the jar I kept for us, but I think the whole thing is just hilarious. Bacon in a waffle was quiet ingenious. Plus the chocolate is a perfect complement to it- sweet and salty are always great together. I have had a bacon chocolate bar from Vosges in NYC.

The waffles were simple to make and came out really well. The combination of chocolate and bacon provided a great balance of salty and sweet in the waffle. The bacon added a nice smokeiness to the waffle. I would not expect to enjoy smokey in my waffles but it was great. Even though we clearly knew there was bacon and chocolate in them it was still so surprising when we were eating them. Def out of the ordinary, but def worth a try! My only suggestion to this is to use the mini chocolate chips, and I say that only because my waffle iron did not seem to enjoy closing with the regular chips.

Bacon Chocolate Waffles

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
pinch of salt
2 cups of buttermilk* 2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/4 cup crumbled bacon
1/3 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Process

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl.
Whisk together the egg, oil, vanilla and buttermilk in a small bowl.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir to combine.
Fold in the chocolate chips and crumbled bacon.
Follow the instructions included with your waffle iron to complete the waffles.
*If you don’t have buttermilk on hand you can make your own with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar for every cup of milk and let it sit for 5 minutes

Recipe from Coconut Lime

Buttermilk Waffles

October 3, 2009

We woke up to rain. Lots of rain. Rain pounding down on the skylight over the stairs. Rain does funny things to you. It makes you want to cancel all of your plans just so you can hibernate while watching bad movies and cooking shows. Luckily, Price had a class to go to and I wanted to get to Harvest Fest in Somerville so we were ‘forced’ outside. At least I got to make a comforting breakfast for us… waffles.

Last year my boss Helen gave me the Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. It was a thank you for making all the birthday cakes for our then pod (now I do them for the office). I love the structure of the book as it gives a detailed description of the recipe for an introduction and the recipe amounts are given in several ways from volume and weight measurements. Also, at the end of each recipe there is a section called ‘understanding’ that explains little things about the recipe, like cake flour has less gluten-forming protein than all-purpose flour. There is a pine cone cake (you can see the picture on amazon) that I am dying to try… too cute! Anyway, whenever I want to make waffles now I go to this book for a great buttermilk waffle recipe.

This waffles have a great tangy flavor without overpowering your palate. There is a lot of butter in the recipe so you don’t even have to add anymoreon top. The butter in the batter also helps create a crisp crust. We always make the whole batch and freeze the waffles to save them for a weekday breakfast (as if there is any time) or a dinner.

Buttermilk Waffles

Makes 6-8 8″ Waffles

Ingrdients

1 3/4 cups unsifted cake flour or 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
2 cups of buttermilk*
16 tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Process

Wisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
Beat the eggs and buttermilk together in a small bowl.
Combine the buttermilk and eggs into the flour mixture. Mix lightly with a fork until the flour is moistened. Mix in the melted butter. The batter should be lumpy.
Cook in your waffle iron. A really hot iron will produce a better waffle- nice crisp edges!

Note-You can freeze up to 2 months. When freezing the waffles free them separately and then store or place a piece of parchment paper between each waffle before freezing.

*If you don’t have buttermilk on hand you can make your own with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar for every cup of milk and let it sit for 5 minutes