Mickey Mouse (Trademarked) Waffles!

Yes, you can use this recipe for any kind of waffle--not just Mickey-shaped ones. (And yes, Mickey is probably trademarked). But after getting a Mickey Mouse waffle iron for Christmas I just had to test it out!

Again, the Internet gave me recipe options since I didn't have a normal waffle recipe memorized. With no buttermilk, I just searched other ingredients until I came across a recipe on Tasteofhome.com for "Fluffy Waffles." Sounded good to me!

Since I never have dairy milk around the house, I used lite coconut milk instead, halved the recipe (doing the best I could to "halve" an egg) and stuck with my go-to whole wheat pastry flour. I didn't bother with the Cinnamon Cream syrup in the original recipe either since 1) I can't digest cream, and 2) I love my waffles with pure maple syrup or soy whipped cream if I top them at all.

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 and 1/2 eggs, separated (use two yolks and just don't pour in all the whites)
1 cup lite coconut milk
1/8 cup (2 Tablespoons) canola oil plus extra for greasing

Directions

1.) Plug in your waffle maker and grease with canola oil (using a pastry brush or a paper towel) until it is evenly coated. Allow the waffle iron to come to full heat.

2.) In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt, stirring lightly to combine. In another bowl, combine the egg yolks, coconut milk, and oil. Slowly add the wet and dry ingredients together in the larger bowl and stir until just combined.

3.) Stir the egg whites briefly in another bowl or cup, then add them in to the batter and stir everything just to combine. Once your waffle iron is at full heat, use an ice cream scoop or other large spoon to drop the batter onto the lower plate of the iron and allow to spread to all corners (or ears) of the mold.

4.) Close the waffle iron and allow to cook approximately 4-5 minutes, depending on the intensity of your iron. Mine came out pretty nicely at 5 minutes, though the first one was a little off, as per usual with waffles and pancakes. Serve with butter and maple syrup, and be sure to eat while still crisp!

These waffles can also be stored in the freezer to toast later in a toaster (challenging but possible if you stick them in twice, once on the face side and once for the ears). Or you can toast them in the oven set to about 250 degrees for a few minutes until warm again.

Yay for fun, delicious, holiday-time breakfasts!

Whole Grain Waffle Goodness

Breakfast is, personally, my favorite meal of the day. Pancakes, waffles, French toast, oatmeal, granola, cereal, yogurt parfaits, and eggs in so many different styles! Notice how the first six things on that list are all grains? Yes, as much as I try to curb it, I can't give up my love affair with carbs. To try to eat healthy, however, I generally have the same thing for breakfast every day: 1/2 cup flaxseed cereal mixed with 1/4 cup of another whole grain cereal for some variety, 1/2 cup almond milk, a Tablespoon of nut butter, and coffee--black. I like it. I've gotten used to it. But...it's not pancakes, waffles, French toast, oatmeal or granola. So for a treat, this home cook might occasionally forego her regular bowl of cereal to make something just a little more, well, cooked.

Today I'd been in a great mood all morning, looking forward to a fun weekend ahead. When my mom mentioned she was craving waffles but we were out of her regular frozen fare, it sounded like the perfect opportunity to continue the good mood, treat ourselves, and experiment with a new recipe! Both of us are healthy eaters, so she immediately started searching Allrecipes.com for a whole grain waffle recipe while I prepped the waffle iron we'd bought months ago, but never took out of the box....

Whole grain waffles?? some people might be thinking. Those same people are probably picturing cardboard brown slabs of flavorless carbs and wondering why I'd "waste" my "treat" on that. Um, did they see my tempting photos above and below? Yes, those are all whole grain waffles. Yes, whole grains can be delicious! While many lucky people already know this fact, others do often need a little convincing. Delivering on a whole grain breakfast is one perfect way of showing them the truth, and this newly-tested Whole Grain Waffle recipe may be just the recipe to do it with!

Adapted from this recipe by Allrecipes cook named "What a Dish!" (which received glowing 5-star reviews already), I made a few substitutions of my own to suit my mom's and my own stomach: almond milk in place of skim, all whole wheat pastry flour, and a secret ingredient of malted milk powder in place of sugar. The resulting recipe yielded about six and a half waffles in our waffle iron, perfect for topping with your favorite fruit, maple syrup, or (my choice) a little soy whipped cream!

Ingredients:


2 eggs
1 and 3/4 cups unsweetened almond milk
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour, sifted
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
1/4 cup wheat germ
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 Tablespoon malted milk powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:


1.) Crack the eggs into a large bowl and beat with a fork. Add almond milk, oil, applesauce, and vanilla, and mix thoroughly.


2.) Add in the whole wheat pastry flour, flaxseed meal, wheat germ, baking powder, malted milk powder, and salt, stirring after each addition.


3.) Preheat your waffle iron and brush lightly with canola oil (Using non-stick cooking spray instead is a little healthier and a little easier to coat with, but I found the waffles still kept sticking that way).


4.) Pour about 1/2 cup of batter into the center of the waffle iron and spread around until it fills in all the cracks. Cook approximately 2-5 minutes depending on your setting and desired level of "doneness." Remove with plastic or silicone tongs when the waffle appears crispy and golden brown.

The resulting waffles are crisp on the outside (as long as you don't take too long to eat them), fluffy on the inside, and have such an amazing flavor, you'd never believe they're actually good for you! If you can't find flaxseed meal or malted milk, you can substitute with oats and sugar. But for me, this recipe really took the cake! Er, rather, inspired me to treat myself more often with one simple thought: "in the morning...I'm making WAFFLES."