I know very few people who don’t love a good waffle. I love the classic, but, you know me: traditional is rarely good enough for the starving artist. I am obsessed with gingerbread, so I had the idea to combine it with my waffle batter – quite the good idea if I do say so myself. And my guest Tim, who had his birthday yesterday, heartily agreed that it made for a fantastic birthday breakfast. This one is easy to pull off for me since I always have baking basics (flour, sugar, powder, soda, butter) in my kitchen, not to mention all the spices. All I need to buy is buttermilk and eggs and I have breakfast for three (or as many as five). I also had some sausage leftover from my Impromptu Comfort Food recipe I posted a few days ago, so I just fried those up in a skillet and added some maple syrup in at the end for a quick and easy breakfast sausage. So delicious – a must-try.
Now I have to tell you that this batch of waffles has a special ingredient: Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookie Butter. My roommate bought a jar for her parents. I saw it sitting on the table while I was assembling the waffle batter and thought… yeah, this needs to happen. If you haven’t tried cookie butter yet, run, don’t walk, to your nearest Trader Joe’s and pick some up. It’s the most divine combination of gingerbread and cookie, melded into this spread that still has a light crunch to it. I warn you it is VERY dangerous stuff – I have mindlessly housed half a jar on more than one occasion. At 90 calories per tablespoon, it is no small indulgence. Yikes. You will likely be getting many more recipes that employ this heavenly concoction. For this one, not only can you put it in the batter, but if you’re feeling exceptionally decadent, you can even put it on top. Gasp! Personally, I stick to the tradition whipped butter and syrup. If you read my post “Griddled Amazingness“, you’ll know all about my feelings on both of those toppings.
What’s that? You thought waffles were too involved for the starving artist? Oh sweetie, just you wait – I do it all. Whether I’m whipping together waffles for friends or baking a decadent treat for a party, I’m always looking for the same traits: simple, resourceful, affordable (mostly), and a little out of the ordinary. And honestly, the joy and warmth that comes with serving fresh hot waffles (or any warm baked good) to your loved ones is always worth it, regardless of price.
I am going to continue the breakfast theme for the rest of the week, so check back in to see what I get up to. What do you put in your waffles?
Gingerbread Waffles (Recipe PDF)