Confession: until now, the only waffles I have “made” went from freezer to toaster to plate. That’s just how I roll. But Eva and I made this amazing recipe for Weekend Pecan Waffles (for a Saturday night dinner, in fact) and it was totally worth a few extra minutes!
Now, I know there are lots of jokes out there about food bloggers taking forever to get to the recipe, however:
a) I am not a food blogger, and
b) I would be remiss if I did not mention that this recipe came from an extremely valuable book called Eating For Pregnancy: Your Essential Month-by-Month Nutrition Guide and Cookbook – Third Edition by Catherine Jones and Rose Ann Hudson. And before you start hitting me with pregnant belly emojis: no, the book is not required reading for me at the moment, but any woman who is pregnant, trying to get pregnant, or postpartum will find a wealth of resources inside. More about the book later, but here’s the recipe for those who want to try it out!
Weekend Pecan Waffles
These waffles are a weekend treat that can be refrigerated or frozen for weekday breakfast bliss. If you do not have whole wheat flour, you can use 1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour or oat flour; gluten-free flour works, too. Dairy-free or vegan? Use your favorite nondairy milk and coconut oil instead of butter and omit the eggs. Need more calcium? In a measuring cup, mix 1/3 cup of pasteurized instant nonfat dry milk with the milk until dissolved, then follow the directions in Step 2. (Waffles made with instant nonfat dry milk tend to be heavier.) Need more fiber? Add 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseeds to the batter in Step 1. To prevent cooked waffles from getting soggy, lean them up against each other in a tentlike position to allow the steam to escape. If they do get soggy or cold, toast them briefly in a toaster or place them directly on the rack of a 350°F oven for a few minutes.
(Protein, B vitamins, and folate promote your baby’s cell, brain, and nervous system development and muscle building.)
Note: if you’re following this recipe from a mobile device and finding it small you can zoom in!
And some highlights of the book:
- It’s not just recipes (though there are 150 of those): it’s also a month-by-month guide to how baby is growing and what’s happening to mom throughout the process, making it so much more than a food guide
- This updated version has more vegan and vegetarian variations, as well as gluten-free and dairy-free options, and ideas for women with diabetes (gestational or other)
- There are detailed prenatal and postpartum sections, making it helpful for women who aren’t yet pregnant, or who have already had their babies. I was particularly impressed by the postpartum section with extensive help for depression, a supportive view of breastfeeding (“Breastfeeding ain’t easy, but it’s worth it . . . if it works for you. And, there is no shame or self-punishment if it does not. Formula feeding is a healthy alternative”) as well as a realistic view of weight loss: practical and healthy while understanding that losing the baby weight is an important goal for many women
- The biggest highlight for me: the frequent use of the word balance – it’s not rigid or judgy, as many pregnancy books can be. (Back in 2005 during my first pregnancy there were a lot of them.)
For more information or to purchase: Eating For Pregnancy: Your Essential Month-by-Month Nutrition Guide and Cookbook – Third Edition by Catherine Jones and Rose Ann Hudson
Those look really tasty!