Healthy Eating

I just made these waffles this morning and they were delicious! The oat flour gave them a nice, chewy texture and they were very filling – the perfect complement to a lazy Saturday morning. 🙂

Generally I’m a big topping fanatic, but these were actually good without anything on them, and they were so easy to make. If you want to make them dairy-free, you can use a milk substitute, such as rice, almond, etc.

I found this recipe at: http://www.girlmakesfood.com/ridiculously-awesome-oat-waffles/

They’re pretty healthy, too, considering that they’re mostly oat, they don’t have any sugar (maple syrup is used as a sweetener) and you can substitute non-dairy milk for regular milk. They also use coconut oil instead of butter, which is a superfood that has countless beneficial properties. You can check out this site for more info on why coconut oil is so good for you.

So, here’s the recipe…

Basically, you just mix together the following ingredients and spoon the batter into your pre-heated waffle iron…then, when ready, top with whipped cream, bananas, blueberries, strawberries, sprinkle them with cinnamon, and drizzle some maple syrup on top! Yum! (Or you could top them with YOUR favourite fruits and toppings…I guess it’s up to you 🙂 )

Ingredients:

-1 1/2 cups Oat Flour*

-1 Tbs Baking Powder

-Pinch of Salt

-2 Eggs

-1 cup Milk – dairy or nondairy (I used dairy, but according to the site I got the recipe from nondairy works well too)

-2 Tbs Maple Syrup (the maple syrup gives the waffles a divinely sweet hint to them)

-2 Tbs Coconut Oil

*I made my own oat flour (the original recipe suggests this as well) by grinding 2 cups of oats in a food processor. I left mine a bit chunkier than regular oat flour because I wanted the added texture, but it would probably be a bit more like regular waffle batter consistency if you were to grind the oats finer. Depends on how much chewing you want to do. 🙂

This recipe is gluten-free, raw, and vegan

I attend a raw vegan potluck once a month, and when I came across this recipe on youtube I thought it would make the perfect contribution. You can find the original video for the recipe here. I topped these brownies with a vegan chocolate ganache (not pictured), found at rawmazing.com (scroll to the end of the strawberry pie recipe for the ganache directions). The original recipe for the ganache is raw, but I swapped some of the ingredients to make do with what I had. Anyway, here’s the recipe:

Prep Time: about 30 minutes

Fridge/Freezer Time: minimum 1/2 hr.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup rolled oats

3/4 cup walnuts

1 cup dates, pitted (I halved mine as I pitted them)

4 tbs melted coconut oil

2 tbs cacao powder (I used cocoa powder as I didn’t have cacao)

1 tbs chia seeds

1 tbs flax seeds

pinch good salt (such as sea or Himalayan – not table salt! :))

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

When melting the coconut oil, please do not use the microwave!! It’s not good for you or the food, and we definitely don’t want our raw brownies to become cooked :). Coconut oil is a solid at room temperature (except during warm, summer weather) and has a low melting point, so an easy way to melt it is by putting it in a dish and placing the dish in hot water (pictured left). If its warm and sunny out and the coconut oil is still solid, try putting it in sunlight – near a window, etc.

To make the brownies…

Start by placing the rolled oats and walnuts in a food processor.

Pulse them until they form a powder, as seen below.

Next, add all the rest of the ingredients…

…the dates, melted coconut oil, cacao powder, chia seeds, flax seeds, salt and vanilla.

Continue to pulse these ingredients until they have a gooey texture and appear fully combined. You will still see white bits and whole flax seeds (if you didn’t pre-grind your flax). You can refer to the picture of the batter in the pan if you want to see what the it should look like (shown 2 pics down).

Line a pan with foil – I used an 8 x 8 in. square one, but you can use whatever you have depending on the size and thickness you want your brownies to be.

Then spread your brownie batter evenly in the pan.

The batter should go in the fridge for at least 2 hours or the freezer for at least 1/2 an hour to firm it up.

And there you have it! Cut them up and enjoy!

I also added a chocolate ganache topping (just before eating the brownies) from a recipe found at rawmazing.com.

The original recipe calls for 1/4 cup raw agave nectar, 2 tbs melted coconut oil, and 1/4 cup cacao.

I substituted the agave for maple syrup and, again, the cacao for cocoa powder. The ganache will be quite runny at first; if you want it to get thicker, let it cool in the fridge for a while before serving.

Simply whisk the ingredients together and drizzle them over your brownies! Yum!

Tag Archives: coconut oil

Gluten-Free Waffles

Raw Vegan Brownie Recipe