Sweet Potato Waffles

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Healthy and economical have been on my mind a lot lately when it comes to meal planning.  I love so many things about a Paleo diet, but I have a few hang-ups as well.  First of all, I don’t like meat to be in all my meals.  It isn’t sustainable, budget-friendly, or, in my opinion, the healthiest way to eat. I do like meatless Paleo meals, but I do find I have to eat a lot to get full. My second problem with all-paleo is the cost.  It isn’t affordable for our family, especially when I like to buy some things organic.  This leads into my last problem, which is sharing meals with friends.  I want food that I can make in large quantities so we can share with other people in our lives.  So, I have been trying to find and develop recipes that are still healthy, often highlight veggies, but are affordable as well.  I won’t be posting quite as many grain free recipes, although I’m not giving them up entirely.  I still often eat grain-free, but I’ve been adding in some select foods that help round out meals. I make a lot of sourdough bread these days.  I love homemade sourdough, as does the fam.  I find that fresh sourdough and cheese next to a vegetable soup is one of our favorite meals.  Healthy, affordable, filling.  

This waffle recipe contains two full sweet potatoes.  It feels like a sneaky healthy recipe since the kids are just pumped to be eating waffles.  Pure maple syrup is something I won’t abandon, so that is what I suggest for your topping!

Sweet Potato Waffles

serves 4


Ingredients:

2 medium to large sweet potatoes, well-cooked and cooled (I microwaved mine)

1 1/2 c milk (dairy or non-dairy)

2 eggs

1/4 c butter, melted plus some for topping

3/4 t salt

1 1/2 t baking soda

 1 t cinnamon

2 c spelt flour (or regular flour)

Directions:

  1. Cook your potatoes any way you like. I find the microwave to be easy in this case. Make sure they are plenty soft.

  2. Scoop the sweet potatoes out of the skin and place in a medium bowl. It’s ok if the potatoes are warm, just don’t have them too hot that you’ll burn yourself or cook your eggs.

  3. Stir the potatoes together with the milk until well combined and not too lumpy.

  4. Whisk the eggs in a separate small bowl and then add them into the sweet potato mixture.

  5. Add the melted butter and stir everything until well combined.

  6. Add the salt, baking soda, and cinnamon and stir well.

  7. Mix the flour into the rest of the batter.

  8. Grease your waffle iron between every waffle. Scoop about 1/2 c batter for each waffle. Serve with butter and pure maple syrup.

Busy Mom's Chicken Wild Rice Soup

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Fall in Duluth is a magical time. Watching the woods slowly change from summer to winter is therapeutic. We drove along Lake Superior over the Bayfield, WI this past weekend. The drive there is one of my favorite parts of the trip. Our Bayfield routine always starts with a stop downtown for coffee. What used to be Big Water Coffee is now Kickapoo. The shop is bright, clean, and inviting. The coffee is awesome, third wave, makes you want to drink it all day kind of stuff. We brought it out to a pier and watched the ferry go by. I love looking at Lake Superior from a different angle. I feel so familiar with the Lake Superior of Duluth. Going elsewhere reminds me just how vast it really is.

We picnicked in an apple orchard, attempted to pick our own apples (they were mostly gone), and ended up buying a few bags to bring home. We also picked up some cider and hard cider from Bayfield Apple Company. Their’s is my absolute favorite hard cider. It’s so refreshing and not too sweet.

We journeyed back to Duluth in the afternoon, early enough to be home for dinner. On the way home I fantasized about how I should decorate our house for fall. I just want everything to look like the colorful forest and smell like apples now. And soup making is a must for our house to smell like fall.

I am a big fan of crockpot meals. Now that I am a full time working mama, crockpot meals help keep me sane. I made this recipe extremely easy. No sautéing anything before adding it, no additional steps or pans you need to make messy. This is a soup recipe for the busy mom (or dad) who wants a delicious, satisfying homemade meal with minimal work and very few dishes to clean up. That is a winning combo in my book.

Busy Mom’s Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Serves 6, 8 hours

Ingredients:

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 large carrots, chopped

3-4 frozen chicken breasts

1 c rinsed, uncooked wild rice

6 c chicken stock

1 1/2 t salt

1 1/2 T butter

1/4 c heavy cream (optional)

pepper, to taste

Directions:

Place diced onion, celery, carrots, wild rice, chicken, and chicken stock in a slow cooker.

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

Use two forks to shred the chicken.

Add the salt, butter, and cream (optional) and stir until fully incorporated.

Add pepper, if desired.