Merry Christmas and One Last Christmas Recipe

Merry Christmas Eve! It is such a joyous time! Besides all of the fun, laughter, decorating, presents, shopping, singing, and cooking/baking - it is the season of our Savior's birth! I am so thankful for the gift of God's son who came as a baby in a simple manger to save the world from our sin! We have so much to be thankful for!

If you forgot to plan something for Christmas breakfast, don't worry!! I think I've got you covered. Gingerbread waffles. If that doesn't say Christmas breakfast, than I don't know what does? And don't worry, I don't think you'll even need to run out to that crazy packed, traffic-filled, long-lined store to get anything. You probably have all of this stuff on hand from all the Christmas baking you've been doing. These are so yummy, and have just the right amount of spice. They are definitely a softer waffle, not hard and crispy. I topped them with a yummy maple whipped cream, but you can just use plain whipped cream, or whatever you have on hand.

I love making waffles, because my great-grandmother's waffle iron was passed down to me after she passed away. It's probably from the 50's and totally feels retro, but I love it. I always wonder what kind of waffles she made in it. She loved to cook as well, and I inherited a few of her baking tools - and I'm still working on getting her famous red velvet cake recipe! :)

I hope you all have a BLESSED and JOYOUS Christmas!!

Gingerbread Waffles with Maple Whipped Cream (Adapted from: Annie's Eats)

Ingredients:

For Waffles:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

4 large eggs

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 cup milk

1/2 cup sour cream

3 tbsp. unsulfured molasses

For Whipped Cream:

1/2 cup whipped cream or cool whip

3/4 tsp. maple extract

Directions:

For waffles:

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. Whisk to blend.

In a separate medium bowl, combine the eggs, butter, milk, sour cream, and molasses and whisk to blend.

Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry and combine until well mixed.

Using a medium-sized ladle, place one ladle full onto preheated waffle iron. Cook until golden brown and no longer sticks to waffle iron.

For Whipped Cream:

In a small bowl, combine whipped cream and maple extract. Fold together in order to not lose shape of whipped cream.

Serve on top of warm waffles and sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg, or whatever your little heart desires! :)