Fat-free vanilla waffles

All the cookie testing I’ve been doing for Isa & Terry has caught up with me.  It’s also been raining nonstop here for the past few days so my runs have been unsatisfyingly slippery or nonexistant.  So, I’ve been trying to cut back on the fat and sugar.  However, grey rainy mornings demand a comforting, warm breakfast with which to start the day off right.  Luckily I remembered Susan had posted a recipe for fat-free vanilla or blueberry waffles, which seemed perfect for today!

Fat-free vanilla waffles

The verdict? They’re so delicious! Warm, slightly chewy, and just a little sweet, the aroma of the vanilla bean is heavenly and make my kitchen smell like a bakery while they cooked. I simply cannot believe that these waffles have no oil in them. I did use just a bit of spray canola oil on my waffle iron, because it is temperamental at best even when there is oil in my waffles. They came out perfectly, not super crispy but I found them to be just fine! If you like a crispier waffle, follow Susan’s advice and pop them in the toaster for a minute or two before eating. We topped ours with a bit of Earth Balance, maple syrup, frozen blueberries, and sliced banana. Half of a farmer’s market grapefruit and a hot cup of Blue Bottle coffee completed the meal.

I did end up making two small changes:

-I use a whole vanilla bean instead of a half, since mine have been around for quite a while and smell like they’re losing some of their potency

-I used Ener-G Egg Replacer instead of potato starch, since I didn’t have any, but the first ingredient listed on the side of the box is…you guessed it…potato starch!  I had read an LJ entry somewhere about someone who did this swap with a different recipe and it worked out fine. Seemed to work just fine for me as well!

And if that’s not enough waffley goodness for you, here’s a peek at last Sunday’s breakfast: lemon corn waffles from Vegan with a Vengeance by Isa Chandra-Moskowitz, with strawberry sauce on top. My parents’ citrus trees are laden with fruit and these wonderfully citrusy waffles hit the spot!

Lemon corn waffles with strawberry sauce

 

Waffle weekend

On cold gray rainy weekend mornings, nothing tastes better than a hot mug of coffee and light, airy, belly-warming waffles!

The company I work for is doing a Christmas Eve breakfast on Wednesday, and since many ‘traditional’ breakfast items are made with eggs or dairy, I decided to make a couple batches of waffles this weekend so I could freeze the leftovers and bring them to work.

I started Saturday with these waffles from BitterSweet.  I love these because they produce delicious, golden waffles with only 2 tablespoons of oil!  I added 1/2 cup of frozen blueberries and 1/2 cup of frozen cranberries, and topped them with sliced banana for an antioxidant rich start to my morning.

Blueberry-Cranberry Waffles

Today, I finally perfected my first original waffle recipe for ‘Bacon’-Scallion Waffles!  You’ll find the recipe below.  They’re a savory change from sweet or fruity waffles, and my boyfrend’s favorite!

Bacon-Scallion Waffles

Bacon-Scallion Waffles

Makes 12-14 waffles

3 Tbs ground flaxseed

1/2 cup water

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 Tbs baking powder

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper (preferably coarse ground)

3 Tbs canola oil

2 cups non-dairy milk

3/4 tsp liquid smoke

2-3 scallions, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup vegan bacon bits (such as Bac’uns

Pre-heat your waffle iron.  In a small bowl, combine flax seed and water and whisk together until thickened, and set aside.  In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, brown sugar, salt, and black pepper.  Add the oil, non-dairy milk and liquid smoke to the flax seed/water mixture and whisk together.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and stir until just combine.  Fold in the scallions and vegan bacon bits.  Oil waffle iron and make waffles according to manufacturer’s instructions.

Tips for Making Delicious Waffles

*Oil the shit out of your waffle iron.  If the waffle recipe has more than 1/4 of  oil you don’t need to worry about it as much, but less than that and you run the risk of ending up with waffle stuck to both sides of your iron and a delayed brekkers.  This is where a can of spray oil comes in handy.

*To keep waffles warm while waiting for the rest to cook, heat an oven to 200 F degrees and place waffes on a pan or oven-safe plate

*If you’re mixing frozen fruit into waffle batter, wait to take the fruit out of the freezer until the last possible second; the more the fruit defrosts, the more they’ll color the batter once they’re mixed in.

 

A waffle a day

Guilty as charged!  I’ve been really bad about waffle-making as well as waffle-blog-updating, but now that all my tests are done and the grad school application process is behind me, I should be posting regularly!

Lemon Corn Waffles with Blueberry Sauce from Vegan with a Vengeance

 

A waffley update

Wow, sorry it’s taken so long to get a second post on here!  My life’s been a little hectic lately, and definitely occupied with Vegan MoFo over at The Sisters Vegan. I wanted to say that no, I have not perished, and I promise this blog will get more interesting soon, now that my weekends are (for the most part) back to normal. For now, a lovely waffley breakfasty photo…

Banana nut waffles with bananas and frozen blueberries (from Veganomicon)

 

Welcome

Hi!  Welcome to Awful Waffle.  I’m Megan Ellen, your fantastic hostess, and I invite you to traverse along with me on my journey to Waffle Nirvana.  I have another blog, The Sisters Vegan that I maintain with my fabulous sister and partner in crime Kelly.

I’ve loved waffles since I was a kid (embarrassing photo-proof forthcoming), and I’ve recently started experimenting with waffle recipes on my own.

My plans for this blog include waffle recipes of my own making, reviews of waffle recipes, and maybe some waffle trivia.  Everything on this blog will of course be vegan.  (If you’re curious about veganism or don’t know what being vegan is, I encourage you to take a moment to check out http://vegforlife.org.)  Mostly, it will be me rambling about food.  I’m not out to make a cookbook or anything, I’m just here to have fun and learn a few things along the way.

I hope you enjoy your time here!

Waffles I from Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Bacon-scallion waffles

Hashbrown waffles - 1st try