Vegan Waffles, not as hard as you think

I figure the best way to kick off this blog is with waffles.
Previous to this it had been 8 years since my vegan boyfriend had eaten a waffle. 8 YEARS!
Of course as soon as Squidgy heard such a thing he knew we had to help.



Ingredients:
2 cups Flour*
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
2 tsp Sugar
2 cups milk alternative (I used soymilk)
2 Tbsp Ground Flax seed + 3Tbsp Water + 2 Tbsp oil**
1 Tbsp melted vegan margarine

spray oil for the waffle iron

*You can use whole wheat flour if you would like to, but additional liquid might be needed. Also, try not to stir the mix too much as WW flour has a lot of gluten and it will make the waffles tough.
**this is a standard recipe for 2 flax "eggs". You may omit the oil if you'd like, but I feel it helps add to the eggyness. Its my favorite egg replacement to use in baking as it adds omega 3s and a nutty flavor, plus mimics the effects of egg very well.

Before you start, get your waffle iron heating. You want to make sure its at full heat before putting anything in it and remember to keep the iron closed as much as possible.

Step 1:

Mix up flax "eggs" in a smallish bowl.

Step 2:

In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt.

Step 3:

Add the milk and sugar (not shown) to the flax eggs and mix.

I kept the butter separate only because the butter was hot and I didn't want it to make the flax eggs funny, which I'm not even sure would happen. You can choose to add the butter in with the milk mixture and I'm sure it will be fine.

Step 4:

Pour the wet into the dry. Give me a dirty look because I grabbed a spoonula instead of a whisk.

Step 5:

Whisk together, but try to keep mixing to a minimum. If you over mix the glutens in the flour tighten up and then your waffles are tough. I try to stir just until it comes together and there are no big lumps of anything. You want the batter slightly thicker than pancake batter (unless you're one for thick pancakes, then I'd say about the same) but not so thick that it wont spread. If it seems too thick just add a little bit of milk or water (only add a Tbsp at a time. You can always add more but you can't take it out.)

Step 6:
Spray your waffle iron with just a light coating of oil. The amount of batter you use depends on your waffle iron. I have a Belgian waffle iron so it takes me a lot of batter. The best part about waffles is if you use too little, its not a problem. Try to avoid over filling the iron though or else you get that drippy mess thing happening and thats no fun to clean up.

I totally blanked out and forgot to take pictures of the actual cooking of the waffles, I'm sorry.

IMPORTANT!
Once you put the waffle batter in and close the lid, LEAVE IT ALONE. Don't poke it, don't lift the lid, dont fiddle with it. Some waffle irons have a little light that goes on when its hot and ready and that then goes off when the waffle is finished. If your waffle iron doesn't have that, look for steam escaping from the sides of the iron. Once the steam stops, the waffle is done.



Crunchy outside, eggy soft inside? woohoo!

My waffles might seem pale, but thats because I took them out a little early so I could freeze them.
YES YOU CAN MAKE YOUR OWN FREEZER WAFFLES! I only make waffles every once in a while so when I do I make extra and freeze them. Just cool them on a rack or a baking sheet and when they're totally room temperature (THIS IS IMPORTANT! If you put them in the freezer while still hot, the steam will form condensation and ice happens and then freezerburn blah blah yuck) then stick them in a plastic zippy bag and throw them in the freezer. Pop it in the toaster later and BOOM WAFFLES ANYTIME!

I apologize for the photo quality, its a new (to me) camera and I'm still figuring out its ways. Not to mention the lighting in my kitchen is awful.

Anyone have suggestions on how to make fluorescent lighting less atrocious?