The recent cold snap has hit us in Williamsburg, though not so badly as our family in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Indiana (stay warm you guys!).  The lower temperature has meant staying indoors more than normal, which calls for some creative play.

Enter waffle making!

Joe loves to help in the kitchen.  I’ve never had him (or Jack) out of there when I’m cooking.  It’s nigh impossible.  Where I am, there they want to be.  I once tried rigging up baby gates to have some separation (“Do you really need to follow me everywhere?!”) but our current kitchen won’t allow for that.  I make sure that the fridge and oven have safety latches, keep all cleaning supplies out of the bottom cupboards and only store things down there that I don’t mind them getting into, but other than that the kitchen is a family territory.

Yesterday morning I went online and researched waffle recipes.  I had ground flaxseed and coconut oil in the pantry that I recently purchased from Vitacost along with rice milk chilling in the fridge.  I found a few recipes that I liked and morphed them into one.  Joe helped with measuring flour and baking powder, helped count tablespoons of coconut oil, poured the rice milk, and (gently and slowly!) stirred the mixture together.

Waffles are great to make because (a) you can make healthy versions, (b) there are usually a few minutes between pouring the batter in the iron and the waffle being done which gives time for things like cleaning up, getting kids in highchairs for lunch, etc., (c) it’s easy to make a bunch for freezer breakfasts, and (d) you can eat them for just about any meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert!).

Oh goodness, I’m starting to sound like Leslie Knope from Parks and Recreation.

image via

The waffles were a big hit.  I put peanut butter on top of Joe’s and he gladly ate them for lunch.

Okay, maybe “gladly” is an understatement – more like ecstatically 🙂

Jack loved ’em, too.

Happy tummies.  Happy kids.  Happy mom.  You’re welcome.

Here’s the recipe that I came up with.  I had a bag of frozen blueberries in the freezer so I added a few of those, too.  I’m sure you could use fresh blueberries or leave them out entirely – whatever suits your needs and preferences.

Banana Flaxseed Waffles with Wholewheat Flour (makes 5 – 6 waffles)

1 ripe banana, mashed with a fork

2 C rice milk (or other milk)

2 T ground flaxseed

6 T very hot water

4 T coconut oil, melted

1/2 C wholewheat flour

1 1/2 C unbleached all-purpose flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 – 3/4 C blueberries, fresh or frozen (optional)

In small bowl, combine ground flaxseed and hot water.  Set aside.

In medium bowl, combine ripe banana and rice milk (if you don’t want any banana lumps, pour banana-milk mixture in blender and pulse for a few seconds).  Add coconut oil and flaxseed mixture.  Stir to combine (if your milk is cold, the coconut oil may harden somewhat – this is fine).

In another medium bowl, combine flours, baking powder, and salt.  Stir together till fully incorporated, then add to wet ingredients and mix well.  If adding blueberries, stir these in last.

Spray waffle iron with non-stick cooking spray or brush with some extra melted coconut oil.  Pour batter into waffle iron according to your machine’s instructions and bake.  I like a crispy crust, so I always set my waffle iron to well-done 🙂

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