Vegetarian Buffalo "Chicken" and Spiced Brown Sugar Waffles

Well I can't believe it's been 4 months since I blogged last! Where has the time gone? Due to a new job, no daylight for photographing food, writing two novels, editing said novels and just overall being burnt out, this blog obviously took a hiatus. Oh, and Trader Joe's opened so I fell victim to the ease of delicious prepared food. However, I am taking a break from their Spelt Risotto and Sweet Potato Gnocci to start cooking a bit more from scratch. If you're still with me, thank you :) I appreciate your readership!

I probably first heard of chicken and waffles when I moved to North Carolina for college, and it seemed so weird to me. We rarely had fried chicken growing up, and our waffles were always at breakfast smothered in syrup and fruit. However, I saw them recently in a magazine and decided the sweet and savory combo sounded fantastic. I try to limit our fake meat consumption to once a week, and Trader Joe's chickenless fingers are my husbands favorite fake meat. We love any and all Buffalo chicken combinations, so I figured using a sweeter waffle then dousing these with buffalo sauce would taste great.

I used this recipe for Spiced Brown Sugar Waffles from Williams-Sonoma for the waffle portion of this meal as it turned up in a search for sweeter waffles. These waffles were delicious, just sweet enough with a hint of spice. They take a few extra steps, but it's worth it for a crisp outside and fluffy inside. If you decide to go with a traditional waffle, you may want to drizzle some maple syrup along with buffalo sauce, or skip the buffalo sauce all together (but....don't). My husband liked to make his waffle and chicken into a sort of taco, but these were delicious any way you make them. I served these with a bacon-less wedge salad on the side.

Vegetarian Buffalo "Chicken" and Spiced Brown Sugar Waffles

waffles from Williams-Sonoma

1 package chickenless chicken nuggets or tenders

1/2 c. buffalo sauce

4 waffles, recipe below

3 eggs, separated

1 3/4 c. buttermilk

1 stick butter, melted (or canola oil, I used 50/50)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 3/4 c. unbleached all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar

Cook chickenless tenders according to package directions. 

While chicken cooks, prepare waffles.

Preheat waffle iron to medium-high heat.

Whisk together egg yolks, buttermilk, butter and vanilla.

Sift flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and sugar together, stir into wet mixture .

In another bowl, beat egg whites until peaks form, fold into other mixture until just incorporated.

Grease waffle iron, spoon batter onto iron (about 1/3-1/2 c. depending on iron) and cook until golden, about 5-6 minutes.

Keep warm on a plate covered with foil until serving. 

Serve with chickenless tenders, a drizzle of buffalo sauce and maple syrup, if desired.

Black Eye Pea Cakes, Corn Waffles and Greens

When this Yankee gal married a born and raised Southern boy, our culinary norms collided. Growing up on Long Island, I was raised eating a lot of Italian food, bagels, deli sandwiches, and of course, the German food of my ancestors. When my family moved to Ohio, there were a few Cincinnati-specific foods we were introduced to, but no specific Mid-west specialties. However, when I went to school in North Carolina and met JJ, I was introduced to a world of new dishes. That's not to say people don't eat this food in the Northeast or Mid-west, but it didn't seem as prevalent growing up there.

When I started to pay more attention to the Food Network and read cooking magazines in college, I mentioned the tradition of collards and black eyed peas at New Years to JJ, and he looked at me like I was just realizing the sky is blue. So since then, I've made it a tradition to make these dishes on New Years Day. Usually I just throw the beans in a crockpot with garlic, onions and vegetable stock, but when I saw this dish on Joanne's blog, it seemed like a fun new way to enjoy the traditional food. We received kale in the CSA, so I used that instead of collard greens, and I guess it was a big mistake because on January 2, I had to drop a few hundred on car maintenance. At least it still tasted good! If you haven't had your black eye peas and collards yet in 2013, I insist you do it now, with this dish!

Black Eyed Pea Cakes with Collard Greens and Corn Waffles

BEPs and Greens adapted from Eats Well With Others and Cooking Light

Corn Waffles adapted from Food.com

Greens:

1 tsp. olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large bunch of collard greens or kale, chopped (12 oz.)

2 c. vegetable stock

1/2 orange or red bell pepper, diced

1 tbsp. cider vinegar

1 tsp. honey

Pinch of salt

Black Eye Pea Cakes:

1 tsp. olive oil

1 small yellow onion, minced

1/2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

1 garlic clove, minced

2 1/2 c. black eyed peas, drained and rinsed (I used dry, canned is fine)

1/4 c. bread crumbs

2 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 egg

1/4 c. cornmeal

Fresh ground black pepper and Kosher Salt

Corn Waffles:

1 1/4 c. all purpose flour

3/4 c. fine corn meal

2 tbsp. light brown sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

2 eggs

1/4 c. canola oil

1 3/4 c. milk

1/2 c. frozen corn kernels

To prepare greens:

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat.

Add onion and garlic, saute' until tender, about 5 minutes.

Add greens, vegetable broth, bell pepper, cider vinegar, honey and salt, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes, until greens are tender. Stir occasionally. 

To prepare BEP cakes:

Preheat oven to 400*

Heat olive oil in a large saute' pan over medium heat. 

Add onion and garlic, saute' 5 minutes, until garlic is golden.

Add onions and garlic, thyme, HALF of the BEPs, breadcrumbs, mustard, cayenne, salt and pepper to a food processor, pulse until blended, add the egg and pulse again.

Add to a bowl with the remaining BEPs, stir well until combined. 

Place cornmeal in a shallow dish.

Divide into 8 cakes, dredge in cornmeal, then place on a lined baking sheet.

Bake cakes for 20 minutes, then flip and bake for another 10, until crisp and browned.

To prepare waffles:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, oil and milk.

Add baking powder, sugar and salt, whisk again.

Add flour, cornmeal and corn, using a spatula, fold until mixture is incorporated.

Heat a waffle iron over medium heat.

Spray with nonstick cooking spray, and ladle batter onto waffle iron.

Cook until waffles are puffed and release.