Banana Nut Waffles

Greetings from Seattle! I'm at a coffee shop staring at Molly Orangette's back (this is true: after seeing her yesterday, I randomly ran into her again today). I'm here, though, for a very important reason. I'm here to tell you about these banana nut waffles that will be perfect for a holiday breakfast this weekend. Some of you may be celebrating Christmas; and if, after unpacking your stockings, you load up on these before tearing into the presents? You're bound to be happy even if your significant other gifts you with a poodle sweater.

Though this waffle batter is time consuming, the good news is you can make it the night before, refrigerate it and when it's time for breakfast, all you have to do is switch on your waffle maker and you're good to go. I found the recipe by doing a "banana nut waffle" search and thought this one on The Domestic Notebook looked good. It was.

Here's the basic idea; you whisk together your dry ingredients (flour, brown sugar, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg):

Then you mix together your wet ingredients (milk, yogurt (I subbed in sour cream and it worked great), butter, 3 egg yolks and vanilla):

Mix that all together then stir it into the dry mixture:

Now, remember those three egg yolks? Well hopefully you saved the whites because now you need to whip those and fold them into your batter (that lightens everything up):

Finally you mash 3 ripe bananas:

And chop up some walnuts (or pecans):

Fold in those bananas and walnuts:

And there you are, your waffle batter.

You cook these just like you'd cook any other waffles; though this time I lined the counter with newspaper so when the batter splooged out (as it always does) it wouldn't make a huge mess.

The finished waffles were crunchy, light, sweet and nutty; comforting and filling on a cool winter's morning:

Happy Holidays, everyone! Hope these waffles make your season even brighter.

Recipe: Banana Nut Waffles

Summary: Hardcore waffles for a special occasion breakfast.

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark, doesn't really matter)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (grate it fresh!)
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt (or sour cream)
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 egg whites
• 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped

Instructions

1. Whisk together the dry ingredients; then, in a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt, butter, egg yolks and vanilla. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir until just combined.
2. In a metal bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. (Make sure to use a clean whisk or the egg whites won't whip up.) Fold the egg whites into the waffle batter. Then fold in the bananas and walnuts.
3. Heat your waffle maker until very hot; spray the insides with cooking spray (or brush with melted butter for better flavor). Ladle in 1/3 to 1/2 cup of waffle batter, close the lid and cook for 5 to 6 minutes until done. Serve up a hot waffle with good maple syrup and then cook up the next one.

Preparation time: 30 minute(s)

Cooking time: 6 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 12

My rating 5 stars:  ★★★★★ 1 review(s)