Fig Waffles

I'm going to let you in on a secret: waffles are the same as pancakes, just in a different shape. So when I found my go-to pancake recipe, I also found my go-to waffle recipe. Wahoo!

I decreased the original recipe by half and had enough batter to make 2 and a half waffles. Because Cory isn't so fond of figs, I made his waffle, then stirred the figs into the batter and made mine.

Ingredients:

• 1 c. white whole-wheat flour (I used 1/2 c. AP flour and 1/2 c. whole wheat flour)
• 1/2 tsp. aluminum-free baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 2-1/2 Tbsp. natural granulated sugar (I used turbinado sugar.)
• 1/4 tsp. fine-grain sea salt
• 1 c. + 2 Tbsp. buttermilk
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 Tbsp. butter, melted
• 10 figs (I actually used 5, since I only stirred them into half of the batter.)
• Pam spray

Directions:

• Preheat the waffle iron. Mine has settings from 1-7; I set it between 5 and 6.
• Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt) in a bowl.
• Mix the wet ingredients (buttermilk, eggs and butter) together in a separate bowl, then whisk into the dry ingredients (be sure not to overmix; lumps are okay). Scoop out the insides of the figs, then add it to the batter.
• Wait about 3 minutes for the bubbles to emerge from the batter, then spray the waffle iron with a bit of Pam on both sides and add the batter to the waffle iron. Mine uses ~3/4 c. of batter for a full waffle.
• Wait for the waffle iron to scream that the waffle is ready (anyone else's dogs freak out at that noise?), then top with some fresh whipped cream and Greenling blueberries.

Verdict:
Adding fruit is a great way to invent the ordinary waffle. The figs add a wonderfully subtle sweetness to the waffle without being overbearing. I really enjoyed the flavor of figs without getting the gelatinous texture or plethora of seeds (my beef with figs!).