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Saturday, April 21, 2012

Banana Nut Bread Waffles

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I'm good at a lot of things, but relaxing is not one of them. I like the idea of relaxing and I spend many of my days wishing I had more time to relax, but the fact of the matter is, my extremely type-A, scheduled, achievement-driven personality tends to get in the way. I am who I am and most of the time I relish at the opportunities I have to be busy and involved in so many different things. Sometimes, however, I need to put aside all responsibilities for a few hours, forget the to-do lists, and just be.
Thankfully, I have people in my life to ensure this happens, at least occasionally! A few weekends ago, friends Paige and Zach were in town visiting for the first time since they moved away last June (you might recall we headed East to visit them in October...). Normally on a Saturday morning I get up, head out for a run and spend much of my day in the kitchen or on my computer, staying on top of cooking and blog work before the weekday demands of work and school take over. This Saturday, however, was quite different, and quite glorious.
On a whim we decided to stay in for brunch and I quickly made note of what ingredients I had. Within minutes I was whipping up some savory scones, collard greens with bacon, some sliced fruit, and these waffles. Okay, so maybe this part of the morning wasn't relaxing, but I was with good company who kept me entertained AND washed my dishes--win!

These waffles came together easily and impressed all five of us who leisurely chowed down on them while sitting around the table on our back patio (in our pajamas, I might add). I even managed to please Zach, who isn't a fan of banana OR nuts. These waffles were more cakey than crispy (think pancake texture), likely due to the high moisture from the bananas, but they were the perfect morning treat, enjoyed all the more because they were eaten in a state of relaxation!

Am I the only person who struggles with relaxing?!

One Year Ago: Peanut Butter Milky Way Blondie Cups
Two Years Ago: Panzanella Caprese

Banana Nut Bread Waffles
from Willow Bird Baking
Ingredients:
-2 cups all-purpose flour
-1/2 tsp salt
-2 tbsp sugar
-1 1/2 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1 3/4 cup buttermilk
-2 eggs, separated
-4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter, melted and cooled
-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
-3 ripe bananas, mashed
-3/4 cup chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans)

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, stir together the buttermilk, egg yolks, butter, mashed bananas, and vanilla.
2. Preheat waffle iron and spray with cooking spray. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Stir chopped nuts into the mixture.
3. Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl with a whisk or mixer until they hold soft peaks. Fold the egg whites into the batter gently.
4. Spoon batter onto the waffle iron and baking according to your waffle iron, until waffles are cooked through. Remove from iron and serve with syrup.