Waffles

I love the public library. Love it! One of my favorite things is to peruse the cookbook aisles for something yummy, and I always find lots. This causes 2 problems, of course. One, I end up having a lot to carry. In fact, I once left with so many cookbooks, I was asked if I were a "cooking freak." Hmm, I guess so... Two, I want to buy every cookbook I check out because they're usually fantastic. One such book I found and now own is The Vegetarian Family Cookbook by Nava Atlas.

One of my favorite recipes from this book (oh, and there are plenty!) is for Basic Yogurt Pancakes. The batter is simple, healthy, and tasty and can be used for pancakes or waffles. I love to make this on lazy weekend mornings for Adrian and me, and it's always fun to bring out the waffle iron :-)

Basic Yogurt Pancakes

2 cups whole-wheat flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds (optional)

1 1/2 cups low-fat yogurt or soy yogurt

1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups low-fat milk or rice milk

2 tablespoons nonhydrogenated margarine (for the griddle)

Toppings: pure maple syrup, fruit preserves, fruit sauce, etc.

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and flaxseeds in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the yogurt and milk. Stir with a whisk until the batter is just smooth; it should have an easy-to-pour consistency, but not too thin. Add more milk as needed. Don't overbeat.

2. Heat a nonstick griddle or large nonstick skillet that has been lightly coated with some of the margarine. Ladle on the batter to form 3 to 4 inch pancakes. Cook on both sides over medium heat until golden brown. 

My Notes:

*For pancakes, feel free to add in berries, chocolate chips, bananas, cinnamon, nuts, etc.

*Although the flaxseeds are not necessary, I highly recommend them. They add in some omega-3s and fiber and don't change the taste of the pancakes at all. You can usually find ground flaxseeds on the baking aisle at the supermarket.

*I usually add around 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to my batter for extra flavor, or you could use vanilla yogurt.

*For waffles, the recipe says to only use 1 cup of milk. However, I had to add at least 1/4 cup more milk for the waffle batter to be the right consistency. This may only be true for soymilk, though. Also, you won't need the margarine. I usually use some kind of cooking spray (haha, usually olive oil) for my waffle iron.

Mmm, naked waffles

Topped with fruit, my favorite

I took a shortcut here. These are just frozen berries that I defrosted. Adrian likes syrup, but I find it too sweet for me in the morning. These are also good with jam. 

Too many waffles!

Since there are only 2 of us, I think I usually halve the recipe. I think I forgot this time. We ended up with 12 waffles total! Luckily these can be frozen and saved for later, non-lazy mornings...

Oh! I successfully made tofu this week per the recommendations and recipe from Jenny. I'll post about it soon :-)