My husband is a huge fan of waffles and is apathetic towards pancakes. I love both! It’s so easy to customize waffles by adding oats, chocolate, or fresh fruit. I particularly enjoy adding ground flax seed for a little extra protein.
The great thing about waffles is that the waffle pattern is perfectly made to catch melted butter and maple syrup. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water!
Of course, every family has their waffle recipe. I particularly like this one because it is quick to mix together and has a great flavor and texture!
Recipe
Ingredients:
2 cups of milk of your choice (almond milk makes it a bit harder to brown the waffle- I like using coconut milk or a couple teaspoons of powdered coconut milk and water)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
6 teaspoons oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1-2 tablespoons sugar (Optional- I like to add some sugar to help the waffles crisp up)
1/4 cup ground flax seed (Optional)
1/4 cup of add-ins: chocolate chips, blueberries, pecans, etc.
Directions:
Mix milk, eggs, vanilla, and oil together.
Add flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, and ground flax seed.
Mix until just combined. If you mix too much it will turn tough. It’s ok if there are lumps.
Cook in a hot waffle iron, top with butter and syrup, and enjoy!
Breakfast foods are so versatile- they make Saturday mornings memorable, bring friends together for a late brunch, or make dinner quick and easy. Even though we don’t have kids, we still have plenty of days when I come home exhausted and don’t want to make a true dinner- so we have breakfast for dinner at least once a week.
One of our favorite things to eat for breakfast (or dinner) is German Pancakes. They have six eggs in them, which is three times the amount I put into normal pancakes, so I like to think that we get some protein in under all that syrup.
I prefer to bake the German pancakes in my cast-iron skillet, but it’s perfectly fine to bake it in a 9×13 glass pan too.
Recipe
Ingredients:
6 eggs
1 cup of lactose-free milk
4 Tablespoons of lactose-free melted butter, plus 2-4 tablespoons more for melting in the pan
1-2 Tablespoon of sugar
1/2 Teaspoon of salt
1 Teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 cup of flour
One thinly sliced apple (Optional)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and place the 9-inch cast-iron pan or the 9×13 pan into the oven.
Place all of the ingredients except for the flour into a blender.
Then add the flour.
Blend together until smooth, scrape down the sides of the blender, and blend again for a few more seconds.
Add the 2-4 tablespoons of butter into the preheated pan and let it melt. It should only take a few seconds.
Pour the blended mixture into the pan and bake for 15-18 minutes. The edges of the German pancakes should be golden brown and puffed past the sides of the pan.
Top with maple syrup and sautéed apples (optional).
Side Notes:
You can mix everything in a bowl with a whisk, of course, but the texture isn’t as smooth without the blender.
I prefer baking German pancakes in a high-sided cast iron skillet because it turns out thicker and has a custard-like consistency, but they are delicious no matter what you bake it in!
I like to put apple slices on the bottom of the pan and bake the German pancakes on top, but my husband doesn’t like the texture. So I sautéed the apples until soft in some Ghee, honey, and a little cinnamon to top my German pancakes. Delicious!
If you are wondering where I get my lactose-free butter and milk, I have recipes on how to make your own on the blog.
Granola is a versatile breakfast item. You can add it to a smoothie bowl, a bowl of yogurt, or have it with milk. I really enjoy Green Valley’s lactose-free vanilla yogurt or some chocolate almond milk to go with a bowl of granola to add some protein.
I like to have granola on hand because it makes breakfast quick and easy. My husband likes quick breakfasts that he doesn’t have to cook, so this works perfect! I also like knowing exactly what we are eating for breakfast. A tad healthier than [Your Favorite Brand-Name Cereal], right?
My mother-in-law was kind enough to share the original recipe with me when my husband started asking for me to make it. I have tweaked it over time to fit what we like- and that’s the beauty of this recipe! It is easy to customize to fit your taste and diet.
When I made this granola I decided to go with larger pieces of coconut, a couple teaspoons of cinnamon, and sliced almonds to customize it. However you choose to customize it, I hope you enjoy it!
Recipe:
Ingredients
7 cups of quick or rolled oats (I like a mix)
1-2 cups of shredded coconut
1-2 cups of ground flax seed, wheat flour, chia seeds, quinoa, and anything else you want to add! I generally add 1 cup of flax seed and make up the other cup with the other seeds and grains I happen to have in my pantry.
1-2 cups of your preferred nuts (optional)- I like pecans, walnuts, and almonds.
1 tsp salt
1 cup honey- I suggest using local honey because local beekeepers are more likely to treat their bees well and the honey tastes better too!
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup oil of your choice
1 cup water
3 tsp vanilla
Raisins or other dried fruit (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix the oats, shredded coconut, seeds and optional nuts into a large bowl.
3. Add honey, brown sugar, oil, water, and vanilla into a saucepan.
4. Set the stove to medium heat and let the mixture simmer until the sugar and honey are dissolved, stirring occasionally.
5. Pour the hot mixture into the large bowl with the oat mixture. Stir it until everything is coated evenly.
6. Scoop the mixture onto two large jelly-roll size baking pans and spread it out thinly. Don’t press it into the pan or it will turn into weird granola bars.
7. Place your two pans into the oven and bake for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes take the pans out and give them a good stir. Move the top pan to the bottom rack and vice versa to make sure they are cooking equally.
8. Repeat the last step another three to five times or until the granola takes on a golden color and everything starts separating and being less clumpy. It won’t get very crispy until it has cooled, so don’t bake it for too long or it might burn!
9. After the granola has cooled, add dried fruit. I personally don’t like the flavor of baked dried fruit as it tends to get harder and slightly burnt, so I omit it until this step.
Side Notes
I generally use vegetable oil because I usually have it on hand, but coconut oil, ghee, or avocado oil all should work as well. I don’t know the exchange between vegetable oil and the others, but I am sure it is a quick Google search away.
I haven’t tried maple syrup or coconut sugar in this recipe yet, but I am sure it would be delicious! It would be easy to make a maple almond granola with real maple syrup. Mmmm!
It can take anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour for the granola to bake. It depends on what you added, the moisture in the air, and if you are wearing your lucky socks. But seriously, granola is hard to mess up. The only way I have messed it up before was by burning it because I was trying to get it extra crispy. Oops!
Have you tentatively taken your granola out of the oven for fear it will burn only to find that it isn’t quite crispy enough? Never fear! You can put it back in a 350 degree oven for another 5-10 minutes to crisp it up. It’s okay to do this even if the granola has cooled.
Lackin' Lactose 