Healthier coffee waffles swirled with pumpkin butter. They’re partly whole-wheat and made with Greek yogurt.
While there are plenty of exciting things happening week, what with it being Thanksgiving the US and all, I’m particularly excited about the annual Presidential Turkey Pardon. Something about that strange tradition gives me the giggles.
Apparently, the Turkey Pardon can be traced by to the Great Emancipator himself. Lincoln is believed to have freed a turkey that was destined for the Christmas dinner table because his son, Tad, was fond of the bird. The turkey was named ‘Jack’ and Tad led him around on a leash, or so the story goes.
A little over 80 years later, Truman started the tradition of appearing with giant turkeys in photo-ops. While Truman received plenty of turkeys as gifts, the birds weren’t pardoned, and several ended up being served for dinner in the White House.
The enormous turkey given to JFK in 1963 came complete with a sign stating, ‘Good Eating, Mr. President!’ But that particular turkey was spared! As a ‘Thanksgiving present’, the bird was sent back to a Californian farm.
Ronald Reagan is believed to be the first president to actually use the term ‘pardon’ in reference to a turkey. After side-stepping some questions about whether he’d pardon those involved in the Iran-Contra Affair, Reagan was asked about the fate of the 55-pound turkey. The president quipped, ‘I’ll pardon him’.
Finally, we come to the president who actually started the tradition of the Turkey Pardon, George H. W. Bush. The 41st president started the annual Turkey Pardon with the following words:
Let me assure you, and this fine tom turkey, that he will not end up on anyone’s dinner table, not this guy. He’s granted a presidential pardon as of right now.
And voilà, we have a turkey pardoning tradition!
Information Source: history.com
Enough about turkey pardoning, let’s talk about waffles. Before November ends, I had to share one last pumpkin-y recipe. This breakfast is based on the (mostly) beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte, but using waffles!
Here we have coffee waffles – made with both coffee and espresso powder – swirled with pumpkin butter. The waffles are made without oil or (regular) butter. Instead, the moisture comes from Greek-style yogurt, cottage cheese and almond butter. They’re also made with a mixture of regular and whole-wheat flour, plus rolled oats, for a little extra goodness.
For the pumpkin butter swirl, I used Williams-Sonoma’s Pumpkin Pecan Butter, which I’m slightly addicted to. (By the way, this post is not sponsored by Williams-Sonoma or anything, I just like their pumpkin butter).
The cream cheese topping (made from cream cheese and maple syrup) is completely optional. If you’d prefer to skip the cream cheese, a drizzle – or splash – of maple syrup is delicious too.
If you’re looking to reheat the waffles, do not microwave them. Waffles don’t like to be microwaved. You can, however, reheat them in the oven or toaster. The waffles can also be frozen (without the cream cheese topping) for a couple of months.
Last of all, I can’t resist mentioning one more thing about turkey pardoning: this year the pardoned turkey will either be Tater or Tot (and both birds will be spared).
- Waffles
- 2 large eggs, separated
- ¼ cup (60g) Greek-style yogurt
- ¼ cup (60g) cottage cheese
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar (25g), packed
- 2 tablespoons (35g) almond butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120mL) cold coffee
- ¼ cup (60mL) milk
- ½ cup (65g) all purpose flour
- ½ cup (60g) whole wheat flour
- ½ cup (50g) rolled oats
- 1 tablespoon (15g) cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (140g) pumpkin butter
Cream cheese topping- ¼ cup (60g) spreadable cream cheese
- 4 teaspoons (20mL) maple syrup
- Chopped walnuts
- Preheat a waffle maker on medium heat (or medium-high for crispier waffles). Preheat the oven to 200°F (95°C).
- In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with a fork. Whisk in the yogurt, cottage cheese, brown sugar, almond butter and vanilla extract. Pour in the coffee and milk, and mix until well combined.
- Add the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, rolled oats, cornstarch, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Mix until just combined.
- In another bowl, use electric beaters to whip the egg whites into firm peaks. Fold the egg whites into the waffle batter. Use a butter knife to gently swirl in the pumpkin butter.
- Grease the waffle maker with cooking oil spray. Pour in enough batter to cover the waffle holes, using a spatula to spread the batter to the edges. Cook according to manufacturer’s instructions until golden brown and lightly crisp, usually about 6 – 9 minutes.
- Place the cooked waffles in the preheated oven while cooking the remaining batter.
- Meanwhile, prepare the cream cheese topping by whisking together the spreadable cream cheese and maple syrup in a small bowl until smooth. If the topping is too thick, whisk in additional maple syrup (or milk). If the topping is too thin, whisk in additional cream cheese (or, for a sweeter topping, some confectioners’ sugar).
- Top the waffles with a drizzle of cream cheese topping and some chopped walnuts. Alternatively, serve the waffles with maple syrup and ice cream.
This is easiest if you fold in one tablespoon first, and then add the remainder of the egg whites.
Milk
Ideally, use full-fat or low-fat milk (not skim milk or almond milk).
Cooking Time
Don’t be surprised if these waffles take longer to cook than usual. My waffles took about 9 minutes.
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