Gluten-free Toasted Coconut Waffles with maple cream

I found this recipe on the blog www.joythebaker.com and have been looking for an excuse to make them ever since. So when I realized that last Wednesday was National Waffle Day I knew I had found my excuse :)

I am posting this as is from the web site. I did some modification because the batter looked so wrong and was still unhappy with what the batter looked like. Once we cooked them up though, we were pleasantly surprised. I suggest following the recipe the first time, then play around with it if you want to. Just don't be scared off by how runny the batter is.

We didn't have cream on hand so I didn't make up the maple cream, but I did make a fresh batch of coconut syrup (that recipe can be found on my blog as well) and drowned the waffles in that! YUMMY!

I'm going to play around with other ideas for coconut waffles, and if I find something better I'll let you know :)

Gluten-free Toasted Coconut Waffles with maple cream

makes 2 sheets of square waffles in a 8 1/2-inch waffle maker, serves about 3

For the waffles:

1/3 cup sweetened or unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted

4 tablespoons melted coconut oil, or unsalted butter

6 large eggs

1/4 cup agave nectar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup coconut flour

2 tablespoon mashed bananas (i forgot to buy bananas and used peanut butter)

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, toasted (if you don’t want to use flakes in addition to shredded coconut, just top your waffles with more shredded coconut)

For the maple cream:

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.

Place coconut on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for about 4 minutes. Keep an eye on the coconut, it browns and burns quickly.

Remove toasted coconut from the oven and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together coconut oil, eggs, agave nectar, vanilla extract, and mashed bananas. Whisk until well incorporated.

In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, salt, and baking soda. Work the mixture with your fingers to ensure that the coconut flour doesn’t have any lumps in to.

Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mixture will begin to thicken as you whisk. Add the toasted, shredded coconut and whisk to incorporate. Allow mixture to sit for 5 minutes while you plug in and preheat the waffle iron.

I have an 8 1/2-inch square waffle iron, and this recipe made 2 waffle sheets. I divided the batter in two to bake them up.

To make the maple cream, whisk together heavy cream and maple syrup, in a medium bowl, until soft peaks form. Easy.

Bake up waffles, and serve warm with maple cream and toasted coconut flakes.

Quinoa Black Bean Mango Salad

I found this on one of my favorite blogs, http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/. I Took this one to potluck the other week and it was VERY well liked. My family really liked it too. :)

1 cup uncooked quinoa
1/2 cup uncooked millet
1 ripe mango
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed
1/3 cup chopped scallions
Juice of 1 lemon
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Place quinoa in a fine mesh strainer. Rinse under cool water for 2 to 3 minutes. Place quinoa in a medium saucepan with 1 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil. Add a bit of salt. Reduce to a simmer and cook until water is absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes before fluffing. Cool slightly.

In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add millet and a bit of salt. Reduce to a simmer, cook uncovered until water has absorbed and millet is fluffy. If you don’t stir it too much during cooking, the millet will be fluffy.

Toss slightly cooled quinoa and millet with mango, black beans, scallions, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve.

This salad lasts 3 days in the refrigerator.

I used couscous instead of the millet and I also added some fresh basil.