I believe that Sundays are for easy living. If breakfast happens closer to lunch time, who cares!? Sundays aren’t for scheduling.
This lazy Sunday, in particular, was much needed. Mid-week, last week, our 4-year-old Chihuahua-mix fell ill–which landed us at the emergency vet where our girl, Luxe, had to have a blood transfusion (something I never even realized was something that happens for dogs until it did) and had to spend a few nights at MSU’s small animal clinic. Needless to say, there was a lot of stress, a lot of tears, and a lot of worrying. I hate it when animals get sick or injured because they just can’t tell you! and, the thought of her scared and in an unfamiliar place just broke my heart. She responded super well to her treatments, to the vet and our great relief, and got to come home Saturday evening.
So, when a fresh Sunday rolled in, and the sun seemed to be shining just a little brighter, I woke up earlier than most weekend mornings, took the pups out for a romp in the leaves, then promptly began putting these waffles together. Since I already opened a can of pumpkin for feeding Luxe her meds (I crush up the pills and mix it with a teaspoon or two each of plain yogurt and pumpkin–it’s a treat with a medicinal surprise! yeah, I am THAT dog mom and I learned the trick from this dog mom…), I decided to use the remaining pumpkin in a lightly spiced, crispy edged waffle.
These waffles use beer for lightness and a little extra lift. It’s my favorite way to mimic a yeast-raised waffle batter in a fraction of the time. There’s brown butter because, well if you’re going to melt it anyway, why not brown it? The bit of whole wheat lends a little texture and toastiness without getting dense or heavy. These waffles taste like October and comfort and carefree Sundays…which is sometimes just what you need, with a side of pup cuddles for good measure.
Luxe on the mend. What a champ!
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1¼ teaspoons baking soda
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup pure pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup beer
- 5 Tablespoons browned butter, cooled to room temperature
- In a small skillet melt butter over medium until it becomes foamy. Once foamy, continue to heat butter over medium-low until the milk solids begin to brown at the bottom of the pan, you can whisk or stir it if you would like–the butter will become nutty and fragrant–allow it to brown as long as you dare before it burns. You will know by the smell if it is burnt. Pour into a heat-proof bowl and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 275*F and have a sheet pan ready to keep waffles warm. Preheat the waffle iron according to manufacturers instructions. Oil, butter, or spray the iron lightly if needed.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flours, salt, baking powder and soda, sugar, and spices. Set aside. In another mixing bowl combine the vanilla, milk, pumpkin, and eggs. Whisk well to combine, gently whisk in the beer. Make a well in the dry mixture and add all of the pumpkin/beer mixture, followed by the cooled brown butter, fold until just combined and there are no longer large dry pockets within the batter–some small lumps are okay. Ladle batter into the waffle iron–I used about ¾ cup per each batch, this may vary depending on your iron–and bake according to manufacturers instruction. Place baked waffles onto the baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while you continue with the remaining batter. Serve warm with butter and syrup.
Waffles freeze like a champ, simply place on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer, freeze for 30 minutes, remove and place frozen waffles in a resealable gallon bag and freeze for up to 1 month–reheat in a toaster.
I’m so happy Luxe is doing well! And hell yeah, pumpkin and yogurt is a dream pup medicine situation! All treat-like and stuff!
And these waffles are a dream. I can’t wait to make them!
Thanks x 2! You would LOVE these I bet!
Awww Luxe! So glad she’s doing well. Nice-looking waffles, too!
Thanks 😀
Aw! I’m glad your pup is doing better. I never knew about doggy blood transfusions, either, whoa! Ooo..I love your beer trick for waffles. How clever!
Wild, right!? Thanks Nicole!
I just bought some pumpkin ale that would be perfect for this! I also believe in waffles on Sunday, it’s the best way to start it!
nice! great minds…
So cute! So glad your pup is doing better!
This sounds like everything I love in a waffle.. beer, spice, brown butter, whole wheat…Now I just need a waffle iron 😛
thanks Katie! I bet you could adapt these into a pancake!
Your dog is so cute! Good to hear he’s doing better. It’s always stressful when something like that is going on in life. But we just have to hope good things are always just around the corner.
thanks for the wise words! she’s a champ 🙂
so i was just emailing megabite last week about how to mash-up the recipes for pumpkin waffles + beer waffles on her site. and how you’ve done all the heavy lifting for me! i will most def be enjoying these next sunday morning!
Nice! I’m glad I could be of help 😉
These waffles sound like fall and love and magic all mixed together. So happy to hear that Luxe is ok!
Thanks Amanda!
You are wickedly creative. Love this idea so much!
aw, thanks Lori!
I made these for brunch this weekend! Threw in some pear chunks for good measure. They are excellent, thanks!
yes! love the pear idea!
Made these this morning for my husband and OMG they were fantastic. Instead of nutmeg (which I didn’t have) I added all spice. Best waffles ever! Thanks for sharing!
Yay! I’m so glad. Allspice sounds like a great sub to me!