Pumpkin Cream Cheese Waffle

HAPPY WAFFLE WEDNESDAY!!

Yes, that required all caps. Do you know how long it’s been since I last celebrated Waffle Wednesday??

Okay, so technically I ate a waffle for breakfast last Wednesday, but it was long gone before I realized what day of the week it was. They tend to all blur together these days.

But this morning I made sure to document it for you and I’ve got a winner of a “recipe” to share. This was really, really good. And I am a waffle snob.

Many of you probably already know that I am morally opposed to canned pumpkin. You guys. It’s a mashed vegetable in a can. It’s processed, it’s in a can, it’s “icky” factor is off the charts due to texture and scent.

But, you can’t deny that it’s good in some things. My favourite being the pumpkin cream cheese muffins we used to sell at Starbucks when I worked there. I’ve already made a healthier version of those, so when I found myself with leftover pumpkin in the fridge this morning, I knew it was time to make a waffle out of it.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Waffle

Serves: 1 single lady

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp ground flaxseed
• 2 packets stevia (equal to 4 tsp sugar)
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup pure pumpkin puree
• 1 egg
• 6 tbsp club soda (use more or less to your liking)
• 2 tbsp cream cheese

Directions:

Mix your first five dry ingredients together first, then stir in the wet ones down to the club soda. Mash the cream cheese into the batter using a fork, just enough so there are small chunks throughout.

The batter makes enough for one very large Belgian waffle (with some spillage on the sides) or two smaller Belgian waffles. Pictured above is the large one because I’m too impatient to wait for two. I also let my waffles cook close to 10 minutes for extra crispiness on the outside, but it’s even more important to do for the pumpkin ones!

I also tried to make it on the healthier side after the mass amounts of KitKats and Coffee Crunch I consumed over Halloween.

I was feeling pretty crappy yesterday when my dad came into my bedroom to see how I was doing. I told him I had a tummy ache from eating too much chocolate and he burst into laughter. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m a 25-year-old who still needs her dad to take the candy away from her, or the fact it’s such a trivial complaint given the whole cancer thing, ha.

Anyways, off to carpe diem and shit!

Wednesday Waffling

Happy Waffle Wednesday!

Are you shocked? I know I am. After two weeks of no chemo, I woke up and found myself actually wanting a sweet treat for breakfast. Apparently, chemo can decrease your sodium stores, which explains my insatiable cravings for savoury and salty foods as of late.

I attempted vegan waffles using a flax egg, a dash of coconut flour and soy flour, and some sunflower seed butter mixed in. Vegan waffles are still not my forte, and I’m not entirely happy with the texture of these. The taste though was spot on.

Plus the syrup + raspberry jam dipping mixture was, the um, “jam”! I always dip. No soggy waffles allowed.

Anywho, I’ve been doing a little more cooking this week. Usually I am way too tired and fatigued to stand around the kitchen, but my off-week from chemo always allows me a little more energy.

I attempted Mama Pea‘s tofu nuggets from her new book. They turned out fantastic! I was too lazy to press my tofu, but they would have been even better had I done that.

Paired with some “Asian coleslaw” using cabbage and carrots from my CSA box, chopped dried apricots and cashews, and 2 tbsp each of rice vinegar, sesame seed oil, and Bragg’s liquid aminos.

You know what was even better? Combining these two things for lunch the next day.

Chilled tofu nuggets cut into cubes over coleslaw? Uh-mazing.

These will get made for a salad topper again in the future!!

Don’t tell Mama Pea, but I also breaded some chicken using the recipe. And then smothered it in plum sauce. That was dang good too.

Today is C-Day, aka chemotherapy day. I’m at the hospital allll day getting poked, prodded, and poisons injected into my body. I’ve been dealing with a receding hairline since my hair started falling out last week, but I suspect this third treatment will be the one that makes it all fall out.

I’m also getting a chest x-ray, which has me all kinds of nervous. But at least I get to come home after and do something along these lines…

Let’s just hope Buddy the boxer doesn’t hog the bed.

The Best Buttermilk Waffles

I am about to share with you my favourite waffle recipe to date.

Like many great recipes, it started with buttermilk. I almost always have buttermilk in the fridge. A love of waffles, biscuits, and quick breads will do that to you.

I groggily rolled over Saturday morning, reached for my new iPhone, and opened one of my favourite apps.

I typed “Buttermilk Waffles” into the Epicurious app and began reading through the recipes that came up.

I ended up basing these waffles off these Belgian Buttermilk Waffles with Glazed Bananas because they were so highly rated with so many reviews. 

But you know me, I had to make my own changes!

Here’s what I used:

1 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unflavoured soy protein powder (as a flour replacement)

2 packets stevia powder  

1 tbsp baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup buttermilk (it’s all that was left)

1 cup almond milk

2 large eggs

2 tbsp melted coconut oil

 

I skipped the glazed bananas for my own topping.

• 1/2 tbsp almond butter
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 3 tbsp sugar-free syrup
• cinnamon

All whisked up and poured over top with blueberries. 

The end result was phenomenal. Mind you, these are not my usual lower-calorie waffles. But it seems the best tasting things usually aren’t ;)

The recipe made four waffles, which meant I had three leftover for weekday breakfasts!

All my life I have dreamed of having a four-toast toaster. Now I have one and can put it to use with waffles. I like to divide my waffle up into quarters and pop them in there to reheat from frozen in the mornings.

Now, my weekend waffle was a little on the decadent side. But for my weekday, I kept it simple with sugar-free syrup heated with some blueberries.

Still ridiculously amazing after being frozen then toasted.

Best. Waffles. Ever.

Not to mention, toasting them makes the kitchen smell like the weekend, even on a weekday. It puts me in a great mood to start off the day. A great breakfast will do that to you. Why do you think I love Waffle Wednesday so much?