Waffle Night

The children all like waffles.  When the entire house enjoys eating something, it is a must in my meal planning routine.  However, making waffles one at a time for 6 hungry children (not to count mom and dad!) was a daunting and time consuming task.  I scoured the internet, local department, and big box stores.  This is what I wanted:

Doesn't that look lovely?  Just like the pro's use!

Wouldn't it be nice to make 6 waffles at once?  One for each of my hungry little baby birds each time the timer dinged?  But....and a HUGE but here...the price was $120 plus shipping.  That's just a bit out of my price range.  So, I improvised.

We stopped at the local Target and picked up two more small waffle makers for $10 a piece.  Now that is definitely within the budget!  This is what the kitchen looks like when I've got them all fired up.

Yes, there are 3 waffle makers spread out across the counter.  As long as I remember to set the timers for each of them, it works like a charm!

I usually make a triple or quadruple batch and put the extras in the freezer for breakfast.  They thaw in the microwave for 15 seconds and then reheat in the toaster oven.  Half of the children like them with peanut butter and the other half like them with just a bit of syrup.  I recently switched to all natural maple syrup which is quite pricey.  To keep that cost down, I'm in charge of drizzling the syrup.  Pure maple syrup is much sweeter than the high fructose corn syrup version we had been using, so a little bit goes a long way.

Here's my favorite recipe for waffles.

Light 'N Crisp Waffles
2 egg yolks
2 cups flour
2 cups milk
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/3 cup oil
1 Tbsp vanilla
1 Tbsp ground flax seed
2 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Preheat waffle maker.  Put all ingredients except egg whites in a large mixing bowl.  Beat on low until moistened.  Increase to medium, mix until smooth.  By hand, gently fold in beaten egg whites.  Pour 1/2 cup batter over hot grids.  Close waffle maker, bake until steam no longer escapes.
 
God Bless!

Heather :-)