the Kaysville K/Christmas... dinner

MERRY CHRISTMAS

after some inital confusion about whether our "breakfast dinner" was breakfast, or dinner, the Kaysville Krew (that's when it includes Jacob) met Friday night at 6pm for a waffle breakfast...dinner.

sorta, kinda, festive: all decked out in holiday red

a buffet of high-carb waffles:

Gingerbread, Chocolate, Belgian, Wheat-n-Honey

L-R: wheat & honey waffles, chocolate waffles; low-carb meats (bacon, sausage, ham); high-fiber oranges.

more L-R:  pink grapefruit, sparkling cider, orange juice, milk.

foreground:  make your own belgium waffles!

Comcast On-Demand provided a crackling fire

(all 40" of it in the background!)

and accompanying Christmas music.

e~~a~~r~~t~~h~~q~~u~~a~~k~~e ?

no, just an unsteady hand not recognized until days after the fact.

Hope YOUR Christmas was very Merry too.

Mom's xmas tree looked better in real life (my camera's being weird).

So -- I've decided to add the chocolate waffles recipe.  Although reactions were mixed I thought the waffles were quite good, very chocolatey but not too sweet.  In fact, if you're expecting a very sweet waffle this recipe is definately not it.  A red-flavored "Pappy's Syrup" was the perfect topping.

CHOCOLATE WAFFLES

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3 whole eggs, beaten

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat waffle iron according to manufacturer's directions.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and baking soda.  In another bowl beat together the eggs and melted butter and vanilla, then add the buttermilk.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir in the chocolate chips just until combined.  Allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Generously grease or spray waffle iron. Ladle the recommended amount of waffle batter onto the center of the iron.  Close the iron top and cook until the waffle is crispy on both sides and easily removed from iron.  Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree F. oven until ready to serve.  Makes about twelve 4-inch waffles.

PAPPY'S SYRUP

3 cups fruit juice*

1 envelope Sugar-Free Kool-aid**

3 tablespoons instant Clear-Gel starch

Mix juice and Kool-aid in blender.  Slowly add Clear-Gel and blend thoroughly.  Refrigerate. Mixture will thicken after several minutes.  If too thick add more juice, if too thin carefully add small increments of clear-gel.

Because of the fruit juice any leftovers must be refrigerated. Or, since the clear-gel is very stable, you can freeze leftovers and thaw out later as needed.

*Any fruit juice will work, such as apple juice or cranberry juice.

** This syrup gets its major flavor from the Kool-aid.  If you want a raspberry flavored syrup try "Blastin' Berry Cherry" or "Tropical Punch" or "Cherry" as, quite frankly, they all come out kinda tasting 'red'! Experiment yourself with various fruit juice and kool-aid combinations.

Enjoy.