Pumpkin – most people either love it or hate it. I am firmly in the ‘love it’ camp. It’s one of the things I love best about fall. When All Things Pumpkin bombard Pinterest & Twitter full force, I know cooler weather is on the horizon. So hang on to your butts, because the Theme Weavers are celebrating all things orange and tasty with Pumpkin Week and an array of our fall favorites.
“We’re staying up late telling scary stories, and in the morning I’m making waffles!” –Donkey from Shrek. These gorgeous pumpkin waffles are laced with toasted hazelnut meal, buttermilk and a hint of fall spice. Seriously, friends… if we just had smell-a-vision, you’d be clamoring to get over here for breakfast. They smell HEAVENLY! And I’ll use any excuse to break out our vintage waffle maker (circa 1982). Don’t laugh; it works. But before we do anything, we need to plug in the waffle maker and let it start getting good and hot.
Please don’t laugh at my waffle maker. She may not look like much, but she’s a beast. And for the record, she’s not dirty, she’s just well-seasoned. While the waffle maker heats up, let’s prep the ingredients. I like to start with the wet stuff.
Then I toast the hazelnut meal in a non-stick skillet and toss it in with all the dry ingredients. Don’t be like me and forget the brown sugar until the last possible second (hence the golden brown blob in the photo below). If you think food bloggers are miraculously flawless and free of mistakes, you are quite mistaken. Trust me – I screw up all the time. I just don’t show you that part.
Once your wet and dry ingredients are ready to go, take those egg whites and beat the tar out of them. We have one of those awesome KitchenAid stick blenders with a whip attachment that makes short work of this step. If you don’t have one yet, you should think about it. They are the Mighty Mouse of kitchen tools. When your egg whites hold firm peaks, they’re ready to roll.
To blend all of this into pumpkin perfection, whisk the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk your wet ingredients (except for those egg whites). Then invite the wet ingredients to play with the dry ingredients and blend them together with a whisk until they’ve all gotten to know one another better. Then it’s time to fold in those fluffy, snow-capped egg whites. Just remember – they’re sensitive. Fold slowly so you don’t scare the fluff out of them. Patience pays off in fluffy waffles here.
When your batter is blended, it’s time to start makin’ the waffles. I always spray my hot waffle iron with a little of that canned cooking spray before the first waffle hits the pan, just to be safe, because no one wants to sit in the floor and cry when the first one refuses to release and burns. No one.
Remember when I said food bloggers make mistakes? Well, here’s your peek behind the curtain. Proof that I’m just like you (if you like to slop your waffle batter onto the machine and say ‘Sure…that looks like enough. Why not?’).
It’s not tragic or anything, it just takes longer to clean up. So for my waffle maker one cup minus 2 tablespoons = the perfect amount of batter for one waffle. I can’t speak for your waffle maker, so you’ll just have to get in there and give it a shot. If yours do run over, though, please promise you’ll tweet me a quick pic, because that would make me feel SO much better. #WaffleWrecks
Hello, Gorgeous! So my first waffle may have been a mess, but when the second one came out PERFECT, you can bet your sweet bippy I did a happy dance. If you’re happy & you know it clap your hands {clap! clap!}
So let’s talk toppings. These waffles are so rich and fragrant, they just need a little something sweet on top. I chose cinnamon honey butter. Because butter is a given. Adding cinnamon and honey (or agave if you like) just brings it all in for a big group hug. I make it the night before and chill it so it’s scoopable. Yum.
When that scoop of honey butter starts to melt into a hot waffle, I promise your eyes will roll back in your head and your heart will beat a little faster. And the only thing better than one hot waffle with honey butter is a big pile of them. You can poke me with a fork now; I’m done.
NanaBread’s Hazelnut Pumpkin Waffles:
4 large eggs, separated
1 cup buttermilk + 1 cup vanilla milk
OR 1 cup buttermilk + 1 cup of whole milk
1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill hazlenut meal
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Pre-heat your waffle iron while you mix up your waffles. To make, blend the egg yolks (egg whites come in later), buttermilk and milk, pumpkin, melted butter and vanilla in a bowl and whisk until well blended. In a non-stick skillet, toast the hazelnut meal over medium-low heat until it just starts to take on some color and smells robust and fragrant. Toss it into a large mixing bowl and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Whisk to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until thoroughly blended.
In a deep mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until they form and hold firm peaks. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the waffle batter. I like to scrape to the bottom of the bowl and flip it once very gently, then turn the bowl a quarter turn and repeat the process until you can no longer see streaks of egg whites (see photo above). Once blended, you’re ready to bake.
Lightly spray your hot waffle iron with cooking spray. Depending on the size of your waffle iron, spread one cup of batter (if your waffler makes one waffle) or up to two cups (if your waffler makes 4 smaller waffles). It truly depends on your machine, so use a little caution on that first one and adjust as needed until the batter spreads to all edges without running over. When done, remove from the waffle iron and place it on a ceramic plate; cover with a clean kitchen towel to keep them warm while the others bake. My old-school Belgian Waffler made seven waffles. Two died immediately and the others were frozen for later. These will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days or in the freezer (wrapped in waxed paper and placed into air-tight freezer bags) for up to six weeks.
Cinnamon Honey Butter:
1/2 stick of butter, softened
1 cup of your favorite local honey (or agave nectar)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Beat together until smooth and creamy. Scrape into an airtight container and chill until needed. To use, simply scoop a tablespoon on top of a toasty warm waffle and enjoy. So good, y’all. So, so good.
Before I go, don’t forget to drop in on our other Pumpkin Week participants:
Monday
Kirsten @ Comfortably Domestic – Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Beka @ Kvetchin’ Kitchen – Pumpkin Streusel Bread
Tuesday
Carrie @ Bakeaholic Mama – Pumpkin Pie Macarons
Jeanne @ Inside NanaBread’s Head – Look, Ma! I made waffles!
Wednesday
Megan @ Country Cleaver – Mini No-Bake Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Crumble Topping
Allison @ Decadent Philistines – Pumpkin Marshmallows & Pumpkin Spice Syrup
Shanna @ Pineapple & Coconut – Creamy Maple Bacon Pumpkin Risotto
Thursday –
Anne @ From My Sweet Hear – Pumpkin Doughnuts with Cream Cheese Icing & Candied Pepitas
Kat @ Tenaciously Yours – Marbled Pumpkin Gingersnap Tart
Madelyn @ La Petite Pancake – Pumpkin Spice Cake with Maple Frosting
Friday –
Madeline @ Munching in the Mitten – Savory Pumpkin Tart
Lauren @ Climbing Grier Mountain – Pumpkin Mousse with Candied Squash
Kirsten @ Comfortably Domestic – Pumpkin Kiss Cookies
Saturday –
Beka @ Kvetchin’ Kitchen – Pumpkin Scones
Monica @ The Grommom – Pumpkin Ice Cream
Note: this recipe is adapted from Smitten Kitchen.
Inside NanaBread's Head 