Welcome to my favorite breakfast. I love waffles. I love how they fill the whole house with their unmistakable aroma. I love how pretty they look stacked on a plate. I love how easy they are to make (I read the paper while I wait for each one). I especially love how many flavors you can create from them.
My most recent favorite: pumpkin waffles loaded with spice and topped with fluffy, sweet vanilla whipped cream. Just thinking about them makes me want to run to my kitchen and start making a batch.

They taste so delicately sweet, so light, and so luscious that you’ll want to feel guilty. But you can’t. This bliss is made with “Super Food” pumpkin, healthy whole grains, and lots of joyful spices to make your heart happy.

Made with fresh ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves, these spicy waffles will beckon you to settle in for a while. Savor the morning, and the flavors, as you linger with family or friends. Sit back. Close your eyes. And wait for heaven to blanket you in soft, splendid bites of perhaps the best. waffles. ever!

Pumpkin Waffles with Vanilla Whipped Cream

Ingredients:
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup oat bran
½ cup chopped walnuts
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup pumpkin puree
4 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon spiced rum
¼ cup canola oil

Vanilla Whipped Cream
1 cup organic heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons granulated sugar

Additional ingredients:
Grade B organic maple syrup

Farmers’ Market Fare: Walnuts, eggs
Local California ingredients: buttermilk, cream
Non-local supermarket ingredients: flours, oat bran, sugar, spices, salt, baking powder and soda, pumpkin puree (unless you can your own), vanilla extract, rum, maple syrup

Preheat waffle iron. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Place a large, metal bowl in the freezer (to be used later to make vanilla whipped cream).

In a large bowl, combine the flour and the following 11 dry ingredients (ending with baking soda). Stir with a whisk to combine. Form a well in the center and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla extract, rum, and canola oil with a whisk.

Add the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture. Stir with the whisk until combined. The batter will be thick.

Lightly spray your waffle iron with nonstick spray. Pour about 2/3 cup of the waffle batter onto the waffle iron. Close the lid and cook the waffle according to the instructions in your waffle iron. When each waffle has baked until golden, place it directly on the oven rack in a single layer in your preheated oven.

Remove metal bowl from freezer. Pour heavy whipping cream into the bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream on medium speed for about 1 minute, or until soft peaks begin to form. Add the vanilla extract and sugar. Resume beating on medium speed until firm peaks form.

When all the waffles are ready, serve them with a dollop of whipped cream on top and maple syrup on the side. Try not to die from over-enjoyment.

If you have leftover waffles, take them out of the oven and allow them to cool on a wire rack in a single layer. (If you stack them, they’ll turn soggy.) Store in an airtight container in the fridge. You can also store leftover whipped cream in a jar in the fridge for later use.

Makes about 9 fluffy waffles.

Labels: breakfast, California ingredients, farmers market ingredients, pumpkin waffle recipe, pumpkin waffles, Sacramento recipe, vanilla whipped cream, waffle recipe, waffles, whipped cream recipe

Strawberries and chocolate are almost mandatory ingredients to help celebrate Valentine’s Day. Chocolate has an historical reputation as an aphrodisiac. Because it contains small amounts of caffeine and plenty of sugar, chocolate certainly helps get your blood pumping. The strawberry itself was a symbol of Venus, the goddess of love, in ancient Rome. 

Whatever their magical qualities, you can be sure everyone adores the combined flavors of these romantic treats. Here’s a delightful Valentine’s Day dessert fit for Venus herself. Serve one chocolate waffle piled with strawberry sauce and whipped cream as dessert to share from a single plate, or divide the sections and serve one to each person on a tiny plate. You’ll have plenty leftover to serve up romance for breakfast the next day.

Chocolate Waffles with Chunky Strawberry Sauce

Ingredients:
4 cups chopped strawberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon corn starch
¼ cup water
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup oat bran
1/3 cup almond meal
1/3 cup Dutch cocoa powder
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup sugar
½ cup chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon instant coffee grounds
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1 ½ cups buttermilk
¼ cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup heavy organic whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons sugar

Farm fresh: strawberries, walnuts, almond meal (grind whole almonds in a food processor), eggs
Locally-sourced from California: buttermilk, cream
Grocery-store (non-local): sugar, corn starch, flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, coffee, baking powder & soda, salt, canola oil, vanilla extract, oat bran

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Plug in and preheat waffle iron. Place a medium, metal mixing bowl in the freezer (you’ll use this later to make whipped cream).

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, and water. Stir occasionally, bringing mixture to a boil. Turn heat down to low and cook another two minutes. Turn off heat and set aside to cool. It will thicken as it cools.

In a large mixing bowl combine all dry ingredients (beginning with the flour and ending with the salt). Whisk together.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Pour about 2/3 cup waffle batter onto waffle iron and bake according to the instructions in your waffle iron. When each waffle is done, set it directly on the oven rack. Do not overlap the waffles, or they will become soggy.

Make the whipped cream: Remove metal bowl from freezer. Pour heavy whipping cream into the bowl. Using an electric mixer beat the cream on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Add the vanilla extract and sugar. Resume beating on medium speed until firm (not stiff) peaks form.

Serve waffles with strawberry sauce and a big scoop of whipped cream and love!

Makes about 8 waffles.

Labels: chocolate waffle recipe, farmers market recipe, strawberry, strawberry sauce, strawberry sauce recipe, Valentine's Day breakfast, Valentine's Day dessert, waffle recipe, whipped cream recipe