Strawberry Shortcake Waffles – A Recipe

After hinting about strawberry shortcakes for dinner, I decided to see what Google had to say about strawberry shortcakes in waffle form.  Mostly?  I was a little baffled.  Do people really use that much sugar?

When I’m thinking about strawberry shortcakes in waffle form, I want something that hints, no, winks at the desert without full on embracing it in a make out session.  This pretty much disqualified everything that came up – not to mention laughs in the face of a certain yum-o-like-chef’s recipe that calls for a box of pound cake mix to start.

Yeah.

In the end I started with a recipe from Heather Likes Food with the intention of ending up with something a bit less like desert and a bit more like breakfast dinner.  You would have to with a recipe that calls for 1 cup of sugar for only 4-5 waffles.  Egads, my dear Heather.

I suspect that if I had left the recipe as it was written, it may have turned out reasonably waffle like.  I found, though, that I had much better results by adding in additional liquid.  This resulted in a waffle that spread in the waffle iron much more completely and was a great deal less…dry.

I must tell you, my husband has declared these the best waffles he has ever eaten.  I had gone into the kitchen the morning after to find a piece for a morning nosh only to discover that there wasn’t a crumb left.  I asked my son if he had eaten them which is when my husband must have heard it and let us know.  From across the house.  He yelled from the other side of the house…you’ve got to know they’re really that good.

I’m flirting with a few changes to the recipe including separating the egg yolks from the egg whites and folding the whites in at the end.  Unlike my usual base waffle recipe (I’ll have to share that one another day), this is not a quick and easy meal.  It will require some work on your part – it calls for the stand mixer for goodness sakes.  So plan it for a leisurely meal complete with bacon and a cup of the most fabulous coffee you can find.  I guarantee it’s worth it.

Strawberry Shortcake Waffles
inspired by Heather Likes Food

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup plus 2T sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1t vanilla
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2t baking soda
1/4t salt
1/2-1 cup buttermilk

Directions:

1. While the recipe is not overly time-consuming it is a bit more so than your standard waffle.   Preheat your waffle iron right now anyway.  It’s not going to hurt anything and that way you won’t forget (I know I would).  While you’re at it get your eggs out of the fridge so that they can warm up.  Do the same with your buttermilk and sour cream (pour it into your measuring cups first, though).
2. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl.
3. In the bowl of your mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing completely after each addition.  Don’t forget to scrape down the sides of your bowl periodically.
4. Add in the sour cream and vanilla and mix again until it is completely incorporated.
5. Add in the flour mixture, alternating with the buttermilk.  You’re aiming for a cupcake/muffin batter consistency.  Be careful not to overmix.  Some lumps are better than none.
6. Spray your waffle iron with a bit of non-stick spray.  Add in about 1/3-1/2 cup of batter.  Close the lid and cook until done.  In my waffle iron this is 5 minutes, but yours may vary.  Be sure to check your manufacturer’s directions.
7. Remove from waffle iron when done and top with strawberries and slightly sweetened whipped cream.

When I make strawberry shortcakes, I like strawberries that are slightly sweetened with just the hint of sugar (no more than a tablespoon or so for a pound).  This macerates the berries ever so slightly and creates the most wonderful liquid to seep into every nook and cranny of your shortcake.

Also, for the whipped cream?  Whip with just the slightest splash of maple syrup – it complements both the cream and the strawberries nicely.  If you want to go all out, whip up the cream by hand.  I suppose only I’d be crazy enough to do this, but I think the whipped cream tastes that much better when you do it.  It’s probably all in my head, but at least it’s a good workout.

Notice the amount of sugar (not) used in this recipe?  Let’s not overwhelm the strawberries, folks.  Less in this case really is more.  You’ll have a greater appreciation for the strawberry’s natural flavor, which, let’s face it, is really what strawberry shortcake should be all about.

The next challenge?  The apple cider donut waffle or cinnamon and sugar donut waffle.  Donut waffle…hmmm….

Sunday at the Flea

I’m sitting in the basement because I have to. Not because I want to. It’s far too warm and breezy upstairs to do so willingly. My husband hates this weather, but I love it. For once I’m warm. I’m going to enjoy it while the thought, “I’m warm,” brings me joy instead of dissolving into “Why does it have to be so damn humid outside?”

It was an early morning preceded by a late night because all of my best thinking takes place after 11pm. Nothing good happens before then, the occasional blog post being the exception, though I’m paying for it with the slightest bit of a headache circling around the back of my head.

Today’s been full of plenty of unusual things and semi-weighed down by annoying questions like, “Did I pay too much at the Flea Market for that yellow Fiesta butter dish?” Or, “Should I go back to school?” The answer to the first one is, “No, I got a good deal.” The later requiring much more mental reserves than I currently have available, though it’s been a lingering question for more than a year at this point. The possibilities for change are interesting to say the least. My husband and I switching places with him staying home with our children isn’t even the biggest. Is a second degree worth it? Will anyone hire me given my late start? What about the current student loan market? Is it wise to borrow money for education when you can’t afford it otherwise? The questions seem easy enough to answer on their face, but to be brutally honest, I don’t know that making any decision before the next Presidential election is wise. Romney hasn’t exactly shown himself a friend to people like me when it comes to college and don’t even get me started on Scott Walker.

Instead, I’ll file it all away at the back of my mind and get on to more pressing matters like finding the perfect pre-camping trip muffin recipe and figuring out what we’ll have for dinner on nights two and three of the trip. I should also probably work out my to-do list for the coming week and put away some laundry.

And bread. Did I mention bread? It seems to me that this weather almost requires one make bread. It won’t bake or rise today (should have made bread yesterday), but the thought of future prospects certainly is appealing.

Of course, there’s always mowing the lawn and the most pressing question of all. Can one consider strawberry shortcake a sufficient dinner?  What if I make it into a waffle and serve it with sausage links?  Weighty matters all.

Dinner Invite

The kids have taken to eating outside for every meal.  We have this kids’ picnic table we bought when our oldest was a toddler that gets pretty heavy usage from May until somewhere along September.  The kids eat just about every meal outside and I enjoy a slight break from sweeping as there’s far less food on the floor.

On the other hand?  Dinner can get a bit lonely.  Today is not the first time that I wished I had someone else to invite over for dinner.  These nights happen on occasion when the kids’ plates come back in the house largely untouched.

I made chicken fajitas and they were delicious.  The chicken was moist and tender and the grilled veggies (zucchini, green pepper, and onion) were perfect.  You would have loved it, dear reader.  You would have asked for seconds and smiled happily as you pushed your plate away from you.  I would have enjoyed your witty repartee as we talked about the recall and why Governor Walker simply must go.  We’d nod our heads as we remembered walking around in the snow last year and pause at the impossibility of it all.  Maybe we’d even laugh at a joke or two.  Ole and Lena anyone?

I’m betting you would have even stopped me as I headed to the sink with the dishes and insisted, “Oh, please, let me do the dishes.  You’ve worked so hard to make this that I’d be honored if you’d let me clean up.”

I would insist that I was the one who was honored.  No one else ever does the dishes around here.  They sit in the sink were it not for me.  I’d remind you, “Don’t forget the stove!” as I took my iced tea out to the front step to enjoy the warm evening.

Did I not mention the stove before you offered?  See, a few months ago someone stole the gas tank off our grill.  I could have borrowed one from a family member (those things aren’t cheap, you know), but I didn’t think far enough in advance.  I had to use the cast iron grill on the stove instead.  That thing is fantastic (makes a mean panini, too), but hoo-boy, did it ever make a mess.

It really was so generous of you to offer, though, dear reader.  The floor steamer mop-thingy is hanging up on the basement landing in case the floor needs some attention.  I can’t begin to thank you enough.

Who knows, there may have even been desert involved (strawberry shortcakes, if the kids hadn’t eaten them all yesterday) and a cold beer because sometimes-picky-children not withstanding, I’m a terrific hostess.

If only.

Happy Birthday, Birthday Lou!

Our Year in Review

Bracing for Impact

I’m not sure how many pictures of the Solstice bonfire I can get away with, but I’m absolutely smitten with them so I’m going to chance posting another one and reserving the right to post a couple more. Perhaps as long as it’s still December?

This one captures one of our children’s favorite Solstice Eve activities. I can’t claim originality for it seeing as Yaya learned about it last year at the Aldo Leopold Nature Center, but it’s a BIG deal. The kids throw small cups full of sugar on the fire as they share their wishes for the new year (heck, adults could too). The resultant whoosh of the fire as pictured here elicits squeals of delight, multiple turns at making wishes, and will continue until the sugar I brought is all gone.

I feel like the whoosh of the fire is coming seeing as my in-laws will be arriving in less than twenty-four hours. I like my in-laws just fine just like I think the dentist is a nice guy, but I don’t love spending time with either of them. It has a lot to do with how I felt as my in-laws fought against my relationship with their son and then how much they over-stepped their bounds when we were first married (and first parents).

Yes, yes, yes, I know. Get over it already, right? We just don’t have much in common – didn’t have much in come then either. My husband and his father will be busy making furniture for the kids and I’m thankful for all that entails, but I’ll be left alone…with my mother-in-law…who recently learned that she’s mildly allergic to most everything you might want to eat.

The allergy part I can handle. This is a problem we could solve together and I don’t mind making the dietary changes while they’re visiting. We did it for my Dad several years ago. In my family that’s just what you do. You ask your sibling(s) to be in the wedding party and you accommodate food allergies so that all are included in the meal. The passive-agressive, moping, don’t put yourself out while I mope in the corner part? Not so much.

All these years later and I still don’t think we get each other. At all.

(Though, while reading a feminist blog this afternoon I had a mini-epiphany about my mother-in-law and I suppose myself to a certain degree. As much as I think my mother-in-law pretty much always gets her own way, it’s dawned on me that she seldom does so through asking. It’s always tears and not-so-subtle manipulation. I don’t know that she would be easier to deal with if she flat out asked, but it feels like I’d have more respect for her wishes, and sympathetic to her plights, if she were more upfront about them. As for the insights about myself – I’m not really all that much better at communicating what I want with others let alone my husband and can so see myself slipping into her patterns. Mirror. Me.)

Music for the Solstice

Merry Solstice Eve!

As the Wheel of the Year spins again, may you and your family be filled with the wonder and magic of Yule.  Most of all, may your new year be filled with light and love. Blessed be!

Happy Birthday, Birthday Boo!

I have been telling all of Boo’s loved ones that she is obsessed with Sesame Street, but I don’t think any of them really understood what I meant until very recently.  December is the month of Boo’s birthday.  She and my Mom just about share a birthday – or rather they would have if she had been born 40 minutes sooner.  Now, they share a birthday party which means that Nana this year had an Elmo birthday cake.

The birthday cake was one of several moments when Boo practically hyperventilated with excitement.  Umm, Elmo lovers might want to look away now.

Don’t worry, he was tasty.  Still, I think Boo was a little bit disappointed that she didn’t get all of Elmo’s face on her piece.  She made her Dad cut it up and then searched frantically through the pieces as if she was looking for him.

Then there was watching her new DVD of this particular character:

Which lead to even more hyperventilating.  I don’t think anyone is going to forget just how much Boo loves Sesame Street any time soon.

Happy Birthday, Birthday Boo!

The Holiday Scuffle

The penchant for Christians to mumble and complain in this country about a so-called “War on Christmas” or whatever other imaginary persecution they come up with (not so ironic given that Christians in this country still remain a majority), often leaves me mumbling to myself.  I had thought about creating some sort of witty post about it with a few choice words over the inanity, but then I loaded my RSS reader the other day and discovered that someone else had already done a better job than I would have.

So, in lieu of my own post, let me instead send you on over to The Whimsical Cottage for her thoughts on “The War over Winter” (though, if you are overly sensitive to certain words, consider yourself warned).

For those so inclined, she has a fantastically unique Etsy shop of the same name.  If I ever had to come up with a list of gift ideas for myself, I think I could just provide a link to her shop and call it a day.