Basic Oat Waffles (Gluten-Free)
There's something to be said about spring- how it makes you feel like new beginnings, and getting rid of any and all things that weigh you down.
I've been sifting through every closet, nook, and cranny in my apartment, looking to discard or donate every item that I no longer have use for. Not yet having read the now-famous Marie Kondo book hasn't slowed me down in my whittling down back to basics. I've even been experiencing a total lack of interest in shopping for any trendy clothing, preferring to stick with my classics and investment pieces.
Same goes for what's been going on in my kitchen lately. While I go through spurts of uber-creativity and create unusual flavor combinations with longer lists of ingredients, I've been really enjoying staying simple.
Simple, focusing on quality ingredients, and enjoying the basics of food.
You all know that I love me some breakfast foods, and today I'm sharing a classic, basic waffle recipe that can be made sweet or savory, depending on your toppings. I'm usually a waffle with fruits type of girl, but with these, I'm planning to top with some avocado and an egg one of these days too. Or perhaps a breakfast sandwich...
These waffles are gluten-free, not by force, but simply because I love the taste of oat-based waffles. The ingredients that make up these waffles are wholesome and won't have you sinking into a carb-coma the way that rich, processed waffles at a restaurant might. Light, crisp, and ready to be topped with whatever strikes your fancy, these basic oat waffles win in my book.
I also really hate having to do a million dishes after a meal as simple as breakfast, so the batter is easily made in a blender. While I do separate wet and dry ingredients in my directions below, I've also made these by actually dumping every ingredient in the blender and hitting blend. Turned out just as yummy and delicious! Blender breakfasts are seriously the best- I love making my apple-cinnamon oat pancakes in them too, and now you've got a blender waffle recipe to join it.
Are you ready to waffle? I think so.
On to the recipe we go!
Basic Oat Waffles (Gluten-free, vegan optional)
*makes ~2 small classic 7-inch waffles
*My favorite affordable waffle maker HERE
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
1 cup of raw rolled Oats (certified GF if need be)
1 tsp Baking Powder
Pinch of Salt
Wet Ingredients (try to have them all room temp!)
1 large Egg (use flax egg if vegan)
1/3 cup of Milk (cow, nut, coconut, whatever you like)
2 tbsp Coconut Oil or Butter, melted
*optional if making sweet waffles: 1 tbsp maple syrup + 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Recipe
1. Place all dry ingredients in a blender. Blend until oats are fully ground into oat flour (~20-30 seconds on high speed blender).
2. Whisk together all wet ingredients. (If the refrigerated items haven't been left out to sit in room temperature, you can microwave in 15 second intervals to make sure the fats aren't solidifying).
3. Plug in your waffle maker to heat up. I prefer crisp waffles, so I set to the hottest setting!
4. Pour wet ingredient mixture into blender with dry ingredients. Blend on lower speed until batter is just combined. Let batter sit for 5 minutes to thicken a bit more.
5. Pour waffle mixture into maker and bake until crisp and golden-brown. Transfer onto wire rack to cool so waffles don't get soggy. If making a large batch, you can always throw them in a baking pan in the oven on 200ºF to keep warm.
6. Top waffles with whatever toppings you'd like, and serve!