“I’m making waffles for lunch. Would you and the kids like to have some?”

I basically knew the answer before my sister replied. Who in their right mind would refuse waffles for lunch?

My sister (who lives in the upstairs portion of our house with her hubby and kiddos) graciously offered to watch my little girl while I cooked. It’s a bit difficult to take photos while your toddler is wiggling your tripod. I whipped up a batch as quickly as I could (it takes a little time when you’re documenting each step) and called my sister and her kids downstairs to taste my creation.

We quickly devoured most of waffles. When I asked the kids if they liked them, they readily agreed.

This Gingerbread Waffle recipe, brought to us by the lovely Emily, is basically an excuse to eat dessert for breakfast (or any meal of the day). And I’m very much okay with that. But they aren’t sickeningly sweet. There’s plenty of wiggle room to customize the sweetness with syrup or powdered sugar.

Let me show you how I made them!

 
 
 

Look at these lovely ingredients: brown sugar (I used Sucanat), eggs, buttermilk (I used milk mixed with vinegar), molasses, butter, flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt.

 
 
 

Begin by separating your eggs.

 
 
 

Mix the brown sugar and egg yolks together until smooth. Mine wasn’t very smooth since I used Sucanat.

 
 
 

Pour in the molasses …

 
 
 

Then the buttermilk …

 
 
 

… and finish off with the (melted) butter.

 
 
 

Stir it all together until it’s well combined.

 
 
 

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients and set aside.

 
 
 

Beat your egg whites until stiff peaks form. I’m pretty sure I went a little too far. I would suggest stopping on the softer side of stiff.

 
 
 

Gently stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.

 
 
 

Softly fold the egg whites into the batter.

 
 
 

Preheat your waffle iron. Scoop about a third of a cup of batter onto each section (the amount of batter needed will depend on the size of your waffle maker).

 
 
 

Cook according to the manufacturer’s instructions. It took about 2 1/2 minutes to cook mine.

 
 
 

Serve hot with butter (duh) and maple syrup and/or a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

Notes:
1. If there was one thing (slightly) lacking in these waffles, it was the texture. I’m pretty sure it was because I beat the egg whites too long. I would definitely suggest erring on the softer side.
2. The texture and the taste actually improved as these sat. I reheated my waffles in a toaster.
3. I think whipped cream would be a lovely addition. I’m kicking myself for not thinking of it sooner. Oh well, guess I’ll have to make another batch.

Many thanks to Emily for sharing this recipe with us. I have been following her blog, One Lovely Life, for quite some time. There she shares more recipes and bits of her family life. Make sure you check it out!

 
 

Printable Recipe

 
 
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Erica Kastner has always been one of our most cherished members of the Tasty Kitchen community. She shares her wonderful recipes and amazing food photography on her blog, Buttered Side Up, and she also writes about crafts and posts more of her beautiful photography in her personal blog, Simple Days. There really isn’t much that this amazing young wife and mother can’t do, and we’re thrilled she does some of it here.

 

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