Savoury Paleo Waffles

Savoury Paleo Waffles

This recipe is based on the Grain-Free Waffles recipe on the Against All Grain website, which are beautifully sweet waffles.

I was really craving a savoury waffle to have in place of a piece of toast under an egg, so I came up with this recipe. I use Boris the Bellini to make these, but you could use any high powered blender or food processor.

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup unsweetened Almond milk
• 3 tbsp oil - macadamia or olive (coconut oil is too sweet for this recipe)
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 3 tbsp coconut flour
• 3/4 tspn bicarb soda
• 1/2 tspn onion flakes
• 1/2 tspn garlic powder
• 2 tspn savoury yeast flakes
• 1/2 tspn salt 
• 1 tspn white chia seeds
• 1 tspn psyllium husk

Method
Pre-heat your waffle iron.

Place all ingredients in a high powered blender or food processor, process on Speed 6 (medium) for 30 seconds, moving up to Speed 9 (high) for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides with a spatula, and repeat for another 30 seconds on Speed 9 (high).

Spoon mixture onto your hot waffle iron, and cook until golden brown (watch for the steam - once that stops, you're pretty close).

Serve warm with poached eggs, ham, and some sauteed spinach and mushrooms.

These freeze really well - just place in individual ziplock bags in the freezer. When I want one from the freezer I let it sit on the bench for about 20 minutes to defrost, then pop it in the toaster to warm it up, which makes them go a bit crispy on the edges. Just watch they don't burn in the toaster!

Paleo Challenge - Week 3

After two weeks following the Paleo lifestyle I’m feeling pretty great. The Keratosis Pilaris  (chicken skin) on my arms is clearing up, my IBS has calmed down completely, and I feel really energised.

Kombucha, Coconut Oil, Cacao Nibs and Kelp Noodles - Paleo staples

Last week we had a few unforeseen things come up which meant we went “off plan” for a few meals, but I still managed to keep within the Paleo guidelines. I did have a couple of glasses of wine out to dinner with a friend one night, but I’m OK with that! That was my only slip up, so I’m pretty happy with myself. I think the main reasons the Paleo lifestyle is working for me is that I can eat until I feel satisfied (i.e. I'm not hungry!), I’m not counting calories or weighing portions, and I can fit it into my real life.With a bit of prep and planning it's really pretty easy.

I’ve become a little bit obsessed with making Paleo waffles (using this Against All Grain recipe). I make them on the weekend and then freeze some for a quick breakfast during the week – they’ve been satisfying any lingering cravings I have for a piece of toast in the mornings. I might try them without the honey and make savoury ones… with bacon?  Mmmmm…. Bacon….

Week 3’s meal plan is below.

Paleo Challenge Week 3 meal plan

This week I’m using the Quirky Cooking cookbook and the Skinnymixers website for inspiration. They're all Thermomix recipes, which work perfectly in Boris the Bellini. These recipes are available freely online:

Beef Madras - I serve this with cauliflower rice, and it is AMAZING!

Vietnamese Fish Curry - I might do this with a broc-cauli rice combo, for a splash of colour.

Singapore Noodles - I’ll replace the soy with coconut aminos, and the vermicelli noodles with kelp noodles.

Mexican Pulled Pork - I'm serving this with some sauteed onion and capsicum, and a spicy guacamole, in butter lettuce cups.

Chicken Tikka Masala - also with cauli rice, and I might make some Paleo naan bread if I’m feeling decadent.

I’ve only managed to fit in two cross-trainer sessions this week, but have just tried to be a lot more active in general. Yesterday I walked about 30 minutes carrying Little Miss in the Manduca (baby carrier), which was quite a workout. At 16kg she’s pretty much at the max weight limit for babywearing, but it was actually quite nice to have her so up close and personal for our walk, we had some lovely little chats along the way. I won’t be doing it again anytime soon though, my shoulders are still killing me!

The main thing I’ve been missing is some kind of salty, crunchy snack, so I’m on the hunt for a tasty Paleo savoury snack recipe this week.

How is your January going? Are you still working on your New Year's goals and resolutions?

I've linked this post to I'm an Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday

Paleo Challenge - Week 2

Well week 1 of this Paleo challenge was a breeze! I really only felt hungry on the first day, and after that have been feeling pretty darn good. No real cravings for anything, except for pizza on Saturday night, which was satisfied by Pete Evans’ Meatzza! That will definitely be going on the meal rotation – so many possibilities of different flavour combinations. I’m going to experiment with a Vietnamese chicken Meatzza next weekend, based on our favourite pizza from Crust.

My version of the Meatzza

I haven’t yet managed to fit in any exercise, and I’m struggling to figure out when I can actually do any. The kids are awake by 6am (I say ‘by’ because sometimes it is much, much earlier) so I can’t sneak in a quick workout before they get up, and then by the time we get them into bed of an evening, then cook and eat our dinner, it’s nudging 9:30pm and all I’ve got left in me is to stare at the TV for an hour before falling into bed. Little Miss has also now dropped her day sleep, so I’ve even lost that blessed midday break that I’d become so accustomed to.

Hummus - kid friendly and adult versions

I really love Hummus. I like it as a spread in sandwiches, and I love it with vegie sticks and crackers. It's such a versatile dip and it's so easy to make. Some of the shop-bought varieties have a list of ingredients as long as your arm, so I avoid these at all costs. They also often use vegetable oil, which can contain soy.

It seriously takes about 4 minutes to make this Hummus. Here's how.

Ingredients
1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp tahini (I use hulled)
Juice of one lemon
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 garlic glove
1/4 cup water
Salt to taste (leave this out for babies under 12 months)
1 tspn ground cumin

Method
Chuck everything in a high powered blender or food processor (I use Boris the Bellini), and whiz on high for 10 seconds. Scrape down the sides and keep repeating until you have the texture you like. You can add more olive oil, or more water, depending on whether you like it thick and creamy or slightly thinner.

Tweaks

• To make this Hummus a bit more exciting for grown ups I like to add 1/2 tspn or so of chilli flakes or chilli powder.
• You can also add more garlic for a stronger flavour (but be careful - too much raw garlic can be very overpowering).

This Hummus will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 4 or 5 days, just give it a stir before you use it.

Perfect served with Mountain Bread Chips, vegie sticks or rice crackers.