A simple delight: Buttermilk Waffles

Last week was not a great week for me. However my boyfriend got some good news and therefore Saturday morning required some celebration. What says a little celebration better than waffles?!

These waffles were basic buttermilk waffles with a little extra twist. I scan a few different recipes for inspiration and saw that a few people were seperating their eggs to give th dough a lighter airy quality and oh boy does it work?! The texture is beautifully light on the inside and crispy on the outside. The hidden trick, they also contain very little fat which helps when you find yourself eating your 3rd waffle!

Buttermilk Waffles

500ml Buttermilk (or any milk with 2tsp lemon juice)

2 eggs separated

1 pinch cream of tartar

1 tsp vanilla extract

250g plain flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp brown sugar

50g granulated white sugar

Beat your egg whites with the pinch of cream of tartar until light and fluffy, beat in the white sugar to form a meringue. Change the bowl and beat together the buttermilk and egg yolks. Sieve the flour, baking soda and powder over the buttermilk while continuing to whisk. Once the mixture is smooth add the brown sugar and vanilla extract. Once these have been incorporated, let the mixture sit for 20-30 minutes. Preheat the waffle iron and fold in the egg whites. Your waffle iron will give you an accurate indication of timing for cooking your waffles. Serve with syrup, fruit and frozen low fat yoghurt, or ice-cream depending on your inclination. Enjoy ;)

And in case you were wondering if the boyfriend enjoyed this celebratory meal... well here's the same waffle 30 seconds after I stopped photographing it.

One bite left and one happy bf, congratulations to my lovely man.

Keeping it simple - healthy-ish muffins

Last week I missed out on posting, for basically no reason other than my frustration at my own inadequacy. I had baked these delicious healthy cupcakes with the same base as the 80Kcal cupcakes but then I faltered rather badly on the topping. Meringue - been there, done that. I tried a chocolate dip topping but it didn't look good. So then I tried a basic icing topping but again it was too boring and I ended up leaving some of the cupcakes totally bare. Well as irony would have it, the recipient of said cupcakes preferred the frosting free ones, which left me feeling a little bit.....why did I bother, I suck, inadequacy cloud..... you get the picture!

This week however I return and this time I am keeping things simple with delicious, healthy-ish autumnal muffins. They are deliciously spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg and bejeweled with plump sultanas. The muffin itself is made with whole-wheat and oats to make it healthy and wholesome. The over-all effect is not too sweet but hits all the right notes of a little treat when you wanna be good too. It would make a perfect breakfast muffin.

Spiced Whole-wheat Sultana and Oat Muffins

300g               Wholewheat flour
30g                  Oatflakes
20g                  Wheat germ
2 tsp                 Baking powder
1 tsp                 Baking Soda
1/2 tsp              Salt
1 tsp                 Cinnamon
3/4 tsp              Nutmeg
150g                 Caster Sugar
2                       Egg yolks
240ml               Natural low fat yoghurt
120ml               melted Butter
250ml               strong Tea
200g                 Sultanas

to decorate
20g Rolled Oats
25g Brown sugar

If you're planning this recipe in advance it's best to soak the sultanas overnight but if you don't have time just start soaking the sultanas before you take out any of your ingredients to get started.

Preheat your oven to 200'C/400'F/Gas Mark 6. Mix together your flour, oat flakes, wheat germ, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Normally I would say your should sieve them together but that's difficult with the wholewheat and wheat germ and all that so I say whisk them thoroughly.
In a separate bowl add your sugar, melted butter, yoghurt, egg yolks together and again whisk thoroughly. Now pour the dry ingredients onto the wet ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon only enough to combine. Then drain the tea away from the sultanas and cover the sultanas in a little more flour. Add the sultanas and again mix only until combined. Spoon into muffin tin and heat a frying pan on the hob. Toast the rolled oats. Once the oats are toasted pour them into a container with the brown sugar and pour this combination over the scooped muffins before baking.

Bake for 20-30mins and cool on a wire rack. Then enjoy being healthy and happy =)