A Twist On Something Traditional

It's so good to be back!  We really miss our daily visits with everyone!  Our decision to visit only weekly for a while was a wise one though.  Let's get on to the today's topic. 

Today we are sharing a fun twist to one of the most basic recipes around, cornbread.  Earlier in the week, we in the kitchen heating up soup and preparing to make cornbread.  A random thought crossed through my mind as I wondered aloud whether cornbread batter could be cooked successfully in a waffle iron.  Ever ready to try something new in the kitchen, the waffle iron was brought out and heated up.  Guess what?  It worked wonderfully!  Not of This World mixed up the cornbread batter just like normal.  However, instead of cooking it in the cast iron skillet, she cooked it just as if it were waffle batter.  Delicious!  Our cornbread waffles had a perfectly crisp but not too crisp outside.  When eaten with a bowl of piping hot chili, the comfort factor went off the charts!  We are certain they would be equally as yummy slathered in butter and topped with maple syrup at breakfast too.  Cornbread waffles are our newest favorite thing.  Our minds immediately began swirling with possible meals to use our new discovery in.  And...in keeping with Living Large On Less tradition, they are economical and easy to make.  Simply mix up a batch of your favorite cornbread batter and cook in the waffle iron just as you do traditional waffle batter.

The only question that remains is.....what else can we cook in our waffle maker?  I'm wondering about chocolate chip cookie dough.  That might make a really tasty desert when topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, drizzled with hot fudge sauce, and sprinkled with toasted nuts; maybe a mocha brownie served with whipped cream and dusted with cinnamon or cocoa powder.   Ahhhhhhhhh, so many pleasant possibilities to experiment with.  Sweets are fun, but there are a number of savory combinations to taste too.  One of the first that I hope to try is the classic creamed chicken over waffles.  I'd also like to put a spin on the traditional hot beef sandwich by substituting waffles for the bread.  Sometimes we put slices of bacon and shredded cheddar cheese in our waffles.  There has to be a new recipe hiding inside our imaginations that will use those.

Before I get carried away with waffles, they are one of my most favorite foods---can you tell?  I want to share another newbie in our kitchen, the cheesecake in a sheetcake pan.  Preparing the cheesecake in a sheetcake pan enabled us to use small cookie cutters to create perfectly sized bites of cheesecake for us to "embellish" however the mood strikes us.  Toasted pecans, drizzles of caramel and chocolate sauce are all definite possibilities in the future. A few adjustments were made to our standard 9" round pan recipe. The recipe for the cheesecake's crust was doubled.  It was fairly thick, but this prevented the crust from breaking into pieces when cut with the cookie cutter.  The filling for the classic flavored cheesecake was the normal recipe plus half.  If using a flavor, such as chocolate, the requires additional ingredients, the normal recipe amount works fine. This is going to be so much fun!

Receptions for graduations, weddings, bridal showers, baby showers, and other occasions abound this time of year.  If any of you have Living Large on Less tips for special occasions, send them to us in a comment.  We at Living Large on Less will pass them on in a post. Tips and ideas for decor, gifts, food, and everything in between are welcome.

Thanks to everyone who responded to the granola challenge.  Our Favorite Recipes recipe booklet is well on its way towards completion.  You can begin looking for it by the end of next week.  Until next week, Blessed Mama

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