Vegan Waffles

I used to make these for Gabi to take on waffle days at daycare (at least once a week), back when he couldn't eat any egg at all. His teachers always commented how good they looked and smelled. I guess he wasn't scarred from not eating the class waffles with the rest of his buddies.

Vegan Waffles

1/3 cup quick cooking oatmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup vegan milk (I prefer coconut)
1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Mix all the dry ingredients and all the wet ingredients in separate bowls, and then combine and whisk until just moistened. Pour onto waffle iron. Mine takes 6 oz of batter at a time and makes 2 7" squares. I got about 5 squares out of this batch, so I am guessing this makes about 2 cups of batter.  This batter can be made ahead of time, and it benefits from refrigerating overnight.

Variations:

Lemon-Blueberry waffles: Add to the dry ingredients the zest of 1 large lemon; use lemon juice, not the vinegar; add 1/4 cup dried blueberries; let the batter stand for at least 1 hour (preferably overnight) to give the blueberries time to reconstitute.

Fruit Pie waffles:  Cut the amount of milk to 1/4 cup, and add a large can of pie filling to the batter.  After pouring the batter onto the waffle iron, top batter with crushed graham crackers before closing.

Lentil-Cheese Chimichangas

An episode of Gordon Ramsay's "Kitchen Nightmares" show rescued a Mexican restaurant the other day. It reminded that I've been meaning to play with a vegetarian version of a childhood favorite of mine, the chimichanga.

I have never seen a healthy, vegetarian version of the chimichanga. They are usually stuffed with chicken, pork, or beef, and then they are deep fried. My complete nemesis. That is why I have not eaten one since quitting meat in 1990. It has been long overdue that I remedy that.

My family loved these. I assembled them the night before. Then, I nuked them for 3-5 minutes (until they were hot) before broiling. Buen provecho!

Lentil-Cheese Chimichangas

1/2 cup dried lentils, rinsed
3/4 cup salsa
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup corn kernels
1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used mozzarella)
salt and pepper to taste
8 whole wheat tortillas
1 tablespoon olive oil

1- Place lentils in sauce pan, cover with water and boil for 20 minutes. Drain.

2- Mix cooked lentils, salsa, onion powder, garlic powder, corn, and cheese until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3- Warm the tortillas in the microwave until pliable, for about 30 seconds.

4- Divide the lentil filling evenly among the tortillas and fold them burrito-style. Place chimichangas seam side down on greased cookie sheet.

5- Brush the chimichangas with the olive oil. Broil for 5-10 minutes, until golden brown.