Call it a blueberry morning

Is it just me, or do Saturday mornings get sweeter the older you get? Sure, when you’re a little kid they’re amazing because you get to laze around in your jammies all morning, watch hours of cartoons and eat cereal on the floor of the living room, but once you reach adulthood, I think you learn to savor those idle mornings even more. For our family, it’s the one day of the week when we wake with a purposefully empty to-do list. No school. No work. Not a care in the world. It’s just Jared, Ella, Beany and me, having our own little PJ party while catching up on the Late Night With Jimmy Fallon we recorded the night before (yes, I realize recording late-night TV is another sign of getting older). Throw in a big breakfast and a spontaneous afternoon outing, and you have a foolproof recipe for success. It really is my favorite day of the week.

Last weekend, we awoke to a sky filled with sun and a refrigerator filled with blueberries, which could logically mean only one thing: Waffles with blueberry syrup were in order. After months of trial and error with multiple waffle recipes (I was on a mad search after kicking my Bisquick habit), I landed on this simple Alton Brown recipe as my go-to pick. I’ve made a few swaps and additions to lighten it up and add a bit more flavor, but the basic bones are the same. As for the blueberry syrup, just stick a pile of fresh blueberries and a sprinkle of sugar in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, and let them work they’re magic. They’re totally profesh that way.

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Basic Waffles
Recipe adapted from Alton Brown

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 3 whole eggs, beaten
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• cooking spray for waffle iron

Spray waffle iron with cooking spray, and preheat according to manufacturer’s instructions. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. In a separate bowl, beat together eggs and milk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and stir until combined. Slowly add melted butter to the mixture, and mix until just combined. Allow mixture to rest for about five minutes.

Ladle batter into the waffle maker, and bake according to the waffle iron’s instructions (bossy little appliances, aren’t they?), until waffle is golden brown on each side. Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200-degree F oven until ready to serve.

Blueberry Syrup

• a couple pints of blueberries
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2-3 tablespoons water

Wash blueberries, and place them in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Sprinkle them with sugar, and add a few tablespoons of water to the pot. Stir together, and heat over medium-low heat until berries burst and break down and form a syrupy consistency. You might want to use a lid for this; blueberries can be messy business.

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I always end up making way more waffles than we need because they keep so well. If you have extra waffles leftover, allow them to cool, then store them in the freezer in a large Tupperware or Ziploc bag. Heat them back up in a 250-degree oven until crisp, then it’s leggo my homemade waffle, y’all.

What’s your usual morning routine? Do you live for the weekdays? Love the weekends? Any great homemade breakfast ideas that are quick enough to squeeze into the busy Monday through Friday schedules? I’d love to hear about them!

XO,
Katrina