Eating Well is Hard No. 1: Whole Wheat Blueberry Waffles

By Stranger Place - October 20, 2016



 Welcome to my new series "Eating Well is Hard" where I will mainly talk about how much I love carbs and dairy!

  Okay, I'm sure my love for all things bready and cheesy will be mentioned often but in this series, I will document how I'm trying to be more responsible & health conscious with my food choices. Just to debrief you guys on my history with food, I'll mention that I've had many dietary changes throughout the years. I grew up in part of an Italian family where food was the center of every occasion. This is probably where the carb-loading tendencies come from.  I was vegetarian for many years but I was medically advised to quit and I did (reluctantly and gradually) but I still don't often cook with meat.

  A couple years ago, I gained quite a bit of weight due to some metabolism problems caused by a medication I was taking at the time. The weight was slowly coming off after I stopped the medication but my weight loss took a more drastic turn around the time of my mom's death (more on that later, I promise). The stress of the loss and all it involved really exhausted my system, and I found myself eating less and less frequently.
  Although I haven't dropped into the underweight category, I recognized that this was potentially a problem and decided to start improving the quality & quantity of my food. By no means am I claiming to eat completely clean or healthfully (I mean, come on, we're looking at waffles here) but I'm taking small steps to consistently eat food that is good for my body and that I genuinely enjoy.

  And now, onto the waffles. I went home for the weekend and wanted to do some cooking that would provide my dad and me with some homemade, healthier leftovers. I knew I wanted to take advantage of the waffle iron while I was home for the weekend, but I wanted the waffles to be a little more nutritious.I have a beloved family waffle recipe but it's heavy on the white flour, so I did some scouting around online to find a whole wheat waffle recipe with blueberries and I chose this one. I added about a tablespoon of ground flaxseed to this recipe which I highly recommend doing. At first, I was concerned that the batter was too runny but it resulted in perfectly crisp, airy waffles.

A few recommendations and reflections:

1. Really let that waffle iron heat up first. My waffle iron is ancient and takes a while to warm up. Unfortunately, my impatience usually gets the better of me and I start pouring the batter in before the iron has had a chance to evenly heat up. Next time, I'm setting the timer for ten minutes before I pour the first waffle and walking away.
2. Go heavy on the blueberries. In retrospect, I wish I had put more in. I highly recommend using slightly thawed frozen blueberries and coating them with whole wheat flour like the recipe suggests. This keeps the blueberries juicy and intact so they really burst in your mouth when you eat them.
3. Add some ground flaxseed. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I love flaxseed for its omega-3 and fiber content (or so I've been led to believe, I'm not a nutritionist). The subtle nutty taste makes it a great addition for this recipe.

All in all, these waffles were a hit and were devoured by the health conscious and the non-health conscious alike. Let me know how you healthify your cooking or any recipes you think I should try for this series!

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2 comments

  1. blueberry anything I love!!!

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