Friday, September 20, 2013

Sourdough Surprises September: Carrot Cake Waffle Sundae

I laughed out loud when I read the Sourdough Surprises post revealing the dish for this month.
This month we are going to go really super easy on you! This month we are going to make pancakes and/or waffles! 
Ha! I find waffles and pancakes to be anything but easy. I'll admit that I do not have a lot of waffle and pancake experience (neither eating nor making). My mother never made either while I was growing up and I can't remember eating either before undergrad. I don't even have a memory of specifically eating them then but I am just going to assume that I probably tried pancakes at least once. I know I definitely did not go anywhere near the waffle maker in the dining hall.

I remember some years ago reaching for the waffle iron that an old roommate left and armed with a recipe from Good Eats, I was expecting some, well, good eats. Uhm. How does one even use a waffle maker? How do you know when they're finished? Yeah. I had to Google that. And it still was a disaster. Waffles stuck. Batter oozed. Things burned.

Two years ago I visited a friend and she made waffles for breakfast. They were great as the "bread" for my eggs  (I cannot fathom pouring syrup over waffles or pancakes*) so I came home with the waffle bug again. This was right when I was first growing my starter. One weekend I made the most delicious and buttery sourdough waffles. I loved them so much that I invited a friend over for breakfast just so that I could make them again.




BUT. There is always a but. My waffles weren't crispy. They were delicious but soft. How on earth do you keep your waffles crispy? I read about keeping them warm in the oven but that did not work for me. I swear they were soft within seconds of taking them off the waffle iron. I read about using egg whites and cornstarch. Nope and nope.

Seriously, how do you do it? Give me your best waffle tips. Please.



I'm sure it's me though. It could even be partly waffle iron. I decided to brave waffles again for this challenge because I am little bit more afraid of pancakes.. I thought I'd go with a carrot cake waffle (lots of flavour!) and probably turn them into ice cream sandwiches dipped (or not) in chocolate.



That didn't quite work out. I would get into the mess that was the first six waffles but I am sure you can guess.  But eventually I had tasty waffles, pineapple ice cream, a delicious buttermilk syrup and maraschino cherries that have been soaking in rum since October. And all of that equals waffle sundaes and/or happiness.



*(Side note: I posted on Facebook  a couple weeks ago that though I loved sweet things (chocolate, ice cream, cake, cookies, ice cream, chocolate...), I could not pour syrup on waffles or pancakes. I was immediately ostracized. Only one person agreed with me (no surprise that he's one of my best friends). Once you start pouring syrup over things, it's dessert. I am not opposed to dessert for breakfast (I have had ice cream for breakfast A LOT) but I am opposed to dessert for breakfast and pretending that it's not dessert. Anyone else out there on the no syrup train?)




Sourdough Carrot Cake Waffle Sundaes

Carrot Cake Waffles (adapted from King Arthur's Classic Sourdough Waffles)

Ingredients

Overnight Sponge

1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 cup 166% sourdough starter, unfed
2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons sugar

Batter

All of overnight sponge
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots


Directions

In a large bowl combine all the ingredients for the overnight sponge, cover and leave at room temperature overnight or for at least 8 hours.

Plug in and heat waffle iron.

In a small bowl, beat eggs, oil and vanilla then add to overnight sponge. Add salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and stir until combined. Stir in baking soda, mixture will bubble. Quickly fold in carrots.

Cook according to manufacturer's directions on your waffle iron


Pineapple Ice Cream

I don't own an ice cream maker. I consider it the ultimate unitasker and my kitchen is too small to justify the purchase. I used a shortcut for this ice cream and I loved it!

Ingredients

8 oz whipped topping (e.g. Cool Whip)
14 oz condensed milk
20 oz crushed pineapples

Directions

Gently combine the whipped topping and condensed milk. Don't mix too much but try to make it as evenly mixed as possible. Freeze for 2 hours.
Stir in drained pineapples. Freeze until hardened or about 4 hours.


Buttermilk Syrup

I found the recipe here on Tasty Kitchen and it's the first time that syrup has really worked for me. The only thing I did differently was to cook it for a few minutes after adding the baking soda so that I could get that beautiful colour. Really loved this!


Finally, assemble your sundae as you desire, sprinkle on some nuts (or even add them to your waffle batter. Maybe you like raisins in your carrot cake? Go for it!). Top with a rum soaked cherry. Devour.






30 comments:

  1. I feel your anxiety, I've never even tried waffles. These look amazing and I think you should be able to put whatever you want on top!

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  2. I'm definitely a syrup-on-my-waffles kind of girl, but there is no doubt that these ones in particular are dessert! They sound wonderful. I also have the non-crispy waffles issue - I have read that having your iron properly heated and cooking the waffles until dark brown helps, as does a copious amount of butter in the batter. I'm still experimenting, myself... It might also have to do with the type of waffle maker you have: apparently the low-tech cast-iron models seem to give the crispiest results.

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    1. Oh right! I forgot about the "lots of fat" trick. I meant to try that here but forgot. If I could see the progress of the waffles, it would be so much easier.

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  3. I'm with you, I never find pancakes or waffles to be easy! Over cooked, undercooked, floppy, etc. I'd love to know the secret to crispy waffles too!

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  4. I am not a super fan of pancakes or waffles, BUT~ Topping them with ice cream or whipped cream, nuts and syrup!! Now your talkin' Lynn @ Turnips 2 Tangerines

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  5. Those look lovely! I need to make them for my hubby as he is a big carrot cake fan. I heard higher heat and cook longer make waffles crispier but I am just learning to use mine so don't quote me.

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    1. Do some irons have adjustable heat settings? I preheat for a long time. Hmm

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  6. I love the idea of a waffle Sunday and carrot cake to boot. Sounds wonderful! I have a hard time with waffles myself so I made pancakes and served them for dinner.

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  7. I'm so glad that I'm not the only one who struggles with this.

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  8. I hope you find out how to make crispy waffles. I don't have a waffle maker but I have looked up tips for when I do eventually get a machine, and it seems to be all about the fat. Your Carrot Cake flavour AND ice cream sound delicious!

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    1. Thanks, Jane. I completely forgot about increasing the fat! Next time I will.

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  9. Your waffel recipe is so creative!
    Thank you very much for this...such a shame I own no waffle machine :(
    Have a wonderful day
    Lou

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  10. Oh good heavens, that looks and sounds amazing. Yum! I have no waffle tips, sadly, having never made them myself, but looking at all these blog posts I feel I might be missing out.

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    1. They're great even if they don't come out perfectly. But perhaps you can make pancakes with all the great flavours instead of getting the waffle iron? Assuming that you didn't want to get one of course.

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  11. Oooh, waffle sundae! What a great idea. I don't care for syrup on pancakes/waffles much. This led me to believe for many years that I didn't like pancakes, but it turns out that they're great with jelly or peanut butter, or Nutella. I just don't care for syrup much.

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    1. I love using Nutella too. But I was called weird for that. My friends are all syrup lovers.

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  12. Delicious looking waffles! Love the carrot cake take on them! I find that waffles get soft really easily, so I tend to put the waffle iron on the table and eat them as they come off! Thanks for joining us this month!

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    1. Eating right from the waffle iron. Now that's something that I could get behind.
      Thanks!
      Hope all is well with you and your baby.

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  13. These sound and look great! I absolutely love syrup on my waffles and pancakes, but no ostracization for differing tastebuds from mine :) My waffles do end up crispy, but I have no idea why. I can follow a recipe like a champ but have very little inferencing ability to know why it works the way it does!

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    1. Thanks Marissa. I read recently that buttermilk waffles tend to get limp quicker so I may try this recipe without buttermilk soon. Lots of variables to play with.

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  14. I don't really do much with syrup either...generally I'm content to just eat waffles or pancakes on their own! Or maybe with a dollop of yogurt on top. Yours look fabulous! If you ever figure out the key to crispy edges let me know!!

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    1. Yes!! Validation! *smile*
      I'll keep researching and then have the waffle iron monster soon.

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