+SF
What do you do when one person wants banana bread for breakfast and another wants waffles? You compromise and make these big and hearty banana bread waffles. These delicious giants are filled with bananas, cinnamon, walnuts and a little cornmeal for a crispier texture. If you want to make them even more decadent, top them with sliced bananas, toasted walnuts, a sprinkle of ground cinnamon and lots of warm and buttery maple syrup. This is what weekend mornings are all about. —LM + AM
SERVES 4
2 tbsp (14 g) ground flaxseed
4 tbsp (60 ml) water
½ cup (59 g) chopped walnuts
2 very ripe bananas
1½ cups (185 g) all-purpose flour
½ cup (89 g) cornmeal
1 tbsp (12 g) sugar
3 tsp (11 g) baking powder
½ tsp ground cinnamon
⅛ tsp fine sea salt
1½ cups (360 ml) almond milk
3 tbsp (44 g) vegan butter, melted (use soy-free)
1 tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 tbsp (30 ml) melted coconut oil (to brush the waffle iron with so the waffles don’t stick)
TOPPINGS
Sliced bananas
Toasted walnuts
Ground cinnamon
Pure maple syrup
Heat your waffle iron.
Mix the flaxseed and water together in a small bowl until it’s thick and sticky. Set it aside. This is your “flax egg.”
Toast the walnuts in a cast-iron skillet or nonstick pan over medium heat (shake the pan frequently to avoid burning) until they’re golden brown and fragrant, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Purée the bananas until they’re smooth and creamy.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the dry ingredients until they’re fully combined. In a medium bowl, whisk the almond milk, melted butter, lemon juice and vanilla extract until combined; pour the liquid into the dry mixture. Add the flax mixture and the puréed bananas; stir until the wet and dry mixtures, and the bananas, are combined. Fold in the walnuts.
Brush a thin layer of coconut oil on the waffle iron. Make sure the pockets of the grid are well oiled or the waffle will stick. Fill the grid with batter until it’s three-fourths full. Close the iron and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, or until it stops steaming and the waffle is firm and golden brown.
Note: Because there is a lot of banana in the batter, you will have to cook the waffle a lot longer than you’d cook a plain waffle.