Peaches and Cream Sweet Potato Pudding and Waffles

 A few years ago, Anthony bought me a waffle-maker for Christmas.  The funny thing is, I actually don't like waffles that much--he does. But whoever those waffles were for, the sad thing was that no matter what I did, every waffle I made stuck to that iron. We had a number of meals in which we had plates piled high with waffle bits, with not a single whole waffle to be found among the rubble.  After a while, we just tossed that waffle-maker; no amount of waffle bits were worth the misery of the clean-up that thing required.

Anthony was disappointed, but I did not feel the loss too acutely until at age two Sawyer discovered that he loved Whole Foods' frozen mini waffles. At almost $3 a box, his mini-waffle obsession sent me on a new waffle-maker quest.  If any of you have been searching for a waffle iron lately, you may have noticed, like I did, that there is no waffle maker out there that doesn't have a bunch of negative reviews complaining, "No matter what I do, the waffles stick!"  Well, I didn't want another useless appliance, so I gave up.  Fast-forward to last Christmas when my sister gave me a Circus Animal Waffler that makes Belgian-style waffles.  And then my mother-in-law gave me another one that makes the waffles with the little holes!  These wafflers doesn't have stellar reviews online, and I don't know why because they have been great for us: the waffles don't stick, and the kids love the shapes.  I make a batch of waffles every week with our waffle-makers, store them in the freezer, and save a bundle of money over store-bought frozen waffles.  Plus I can make so many different kinds!

Until recently, I have been nervous about making up my own waffle recipe--afraid that if I strayed from the tried and true ones, the waffles would stick to the iron.  But I finally got brave enough a few nights ago and made the first batch of waffles that I--the waffle skeptic--love. They were born from this awesome peaches and cream sweet potato pudding that we were eating as a side to a baked barley casserole.  You could also use the batter to make great pancakes, I'm sure, if you don't have a waffle-maker. I recommend that you enjoy the sweet potatoes as a dinner side dish, and then make the waffles (or pancakes) the next day with extra peaches and cream sweet potatoes on top. Yum!  As an added bonus, these recipes are a great way to get extra fruits and vegetables into your kids.

For the Peaches and Cream Sweet Potato Pudding:
3 medium sweet potatoes
1 generous cup frozen peaches, thawed
1/4 cup plain non-dairy yogurt (I used homemade.)
1 Tbsp. soy-free Earth Balance or coconut oil
1-2 Tbsp. maple syrup or agave nectar

1. To prep. the sweet potatoes, preheat the oven to 400. Scrub the potatoes, place them on a baking sheet, and bake them in the pre-heated oven for about an hour, until very, very soft. When you put the sweet potatoes in the oven, put your frozen peaches in a bowl on the counter to thaw.

2. Let the  sweet potatoes cool. Then peel off the skins and put the flesh into your food processor work bowl. Add the thawed  peaches, yogurt, coconut oil, and 1 Tbsp. of sweetener and blend until smooth. Taste and add additional syrup if desired. You can eat this warm or cold, as a side dish, breakfast, or just for snack!
 
For the waffle/pancake batter:
3/4 cup raw, shelled pumpkin seeds
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup of peaches and cream sweet potato pudding
1/2 cup frozen peaches, thawed
1 cup barley flour (I'm sure you could sub. whole wheat pastry, spelt flour, or a GF mix.)
1/2 tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 c. coconut sugar
1 -1 1/2 c. non-dairy milk
1/4 cup melted coconut oil or grapeseed oil

1. To make the waffles, preheat your waffle iron or skillet.  In your food processor, blend the pumpkin seeds and oatmeal until ground. Pour into a large mixing bowl and mix in the barley flour, salt, baking powder, and coconut sugar.
2. Clean out your food processor work bowl and puree the peaches. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the sweet potato pudding, peaches, oil, and 1 cup of milk. Stir just until combined. You want the batter to be thick, but easily spreadable on your waffle iron. If necessary, add additional milk.
3. Cook according to your waffle maker instructions, or fry up as pancakes in your skillet. These didn't even need butter and syrup on top; I just ate them straight out of hand.


Here is Sawyer having a grand time drawing some sort of monster--probably the Backson from Winnie the Pooh. He loves to draw, just like Daddy. 

This post is linked to Breakfast Ideas Mondays,  Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Allergy-Free Wednesdays , Whole Foods Wednesdays,  Happy lil ❤'s are baking and Wellness Weekend.