Lemon Belgian Waffles with Blueberry Syrup

I can't believe I've had this blog for nearly 10 months and I haven't posted one waffle recipe yet! Breakfast foods are some of my favorites to make (and blog) so I can't tell you why I've waited until now to do a waffle post. 

In my home I make pancakes and french toast more often than waffles and I think one reason I prefer to do so is because with Belgian waffles you can only make one at a time. With pancakes and french toast I can make like 6 at a time. I've been wanting to buy one of the Belgian waffle irons that cooks two at a time. I have a long list of kitchen gadgets I want, you'd think the list would get shorter as I get more things but it just gets longer. I don't get into fancy clothes and home decor just fancy kitchen accessories =). I'm running out of kitchen storage space.

Anyway, thanks to this recipe I know waffles are going to make their way into my home far more often, even if it means cooking one at a time until I get a double Belgian waffle iron. These are crisp on the outside, moist and tender on the inside. Just as a waffle should be. You get a perfect flavor combination when you pair the vibrant, citrus flavor of the lemon waffle with the sweet, mellow flavor of the fresh blueberries. I decided to add a little bit of applesauce in this recipe rather than doing all oil. I like to be just a little healthy when I can =). If you want to you could replace the applesauce with more oil or butter but I do love them just as they are. Also, if you didn't notice I added the lemon poppy seed variation at the bottom. All you have to do is add poppy seeds since these are already lemon. Enjoy!

Lemon Belgian Waffles
Yields 5-6 waffles


Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup milk 
2 Tbsp vegetable oil (or melted butter, cooled)
2 Tbsp applesauce
2 large eggs, separated
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
2 Tbsp lemon juice


Directions:
Preheat a Belgian waffle iron (and butter if necessary). In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together buttermilk, milk vegetable oil, applesauce, 2 egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice. In a small mixing bowl, using and electric hand mixer, beat 2 egg whites until soft peaks form.
While whisking, slowly add flour mixture to buttermilk mixture and whisk just until combine (don't over-mix, batter should be slightly lumpy). Using a rubber spatula, gently fold egg whites into batter just until combine. Cook batter (mine fit about 3/4 cup) on waffle iron according to manufactures directions, until golden (cooking time will vary depending on brand and model of waffle iron). Slowly lift lid when removing waffle from iron so waffle doesn't split. Serve warm with Blueberry Syrup, Vanilla Cream Syrup, Maple Syrup or butter and powdered sugar. 

Lemon Poppy Seed Variation: simply mix in 3 Tbsp poppy seeds into flour mixture and prepare as directed. I would recommend serving them with Vanilla Cream Syrup and if you want to make it Lemon Vanilla Cream Syrup just add a little bit of lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Blueberry Syrup


Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 cup cold water
2 cups fresh blueberries (frozen works too, I use frozen when not in season)
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice


Directions:
Whisk together sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Stir in water, add blueberries and lemon juice. Cook mixture over medium high heat, stirring frequently until mixture reaches a boil. Once mixture reaches a boil, reduce heat to medium low and allow to gently boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Pour syrup into a blender, cover and blend on low speed about 1 minute until well pureed. Alternately, if you don't want skins and seeds, force mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl. Store in refrigerator up to one week (You will likely have some left over, it makes great blueberry lemonade. Just add cold blueberry syrup and lemon juice to sparkling water to taste).


Recipe Source: Cooking Classy