gluten-free eats

This recipe is adapted from Cookie + Kate's oat waffles, which I've already shared here, but I've been fiddling with it to make something a bit lighter and not so oat-y, and I think I've got it. These waffles are light and fluffy on the inside and often crisp and golden brown on the outside, though your results may vary as mine inevitably do. The waffle iron is a fickle creature.

Ingredients:

2 cups oat flour (200 grams)
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon cassava flour (56 grams)
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp fine salt
1 cup apple juice or almond milk
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons light oil (6 fl oz)
1/4 cup maple syrup
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Time: 30 minutes and you're eating waffles.

Tools: Waffle maker.

Instructions:

1. Mix the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.

2. Mix the wet ingredients together in a different medium bowl.

3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and combine until you have a smooth batter with maybe a few small lumps. This takes under a minute and can be done by hand.

4. Set it aside to have a think. Like five minutes. While your batter quietly thickens, warm up your waffle maker.

5. Once your waffle maker is ready to go, your batter will have thickened up a bit. It should pour easily, but shouldn't be thin or watery. Give it a couple of nice stirs to make sure everyone's happy.

6. You're on your own with your waffle maker, but here's what you need to figure out:

Q: How much batter goes in each waffle?

A: You want the batter to, eventually, fill the whole grid and also reach the top of the waffle press, but you don't want so much it comes pouring out the sides and onto the counter. The amount will depend on the size of your waffle maker and the consistency of your batter. If in doubt, start with less than you think you need.

Q: How long does it need to cook?

A: You gotta eyeball this one. If you think it's getting close, lift the lid and take a peek. These waffles will turn a lovely golden brown when they're done. Mine take about six minutes with the machine set on high.

7. Once your waffle is golden brown and delicious, remove it from its maker. I like to put it on a cake rack. This allows it to let off steam without getting soggy. Serve immediately or slide into a warm oven to keep hot while you cook the rest of the waffles.

Notes: If you don't have cassava flour, you can use tapioca starch instead. They come from the same plant, but cassava flour uses the whole root and tapioca starch only uses its starchy pulp. I like to use cassava flour because it has more fiber.

This makes exactly five waffles in my round 7-inch Oster waffle maker when I put exactly 3/4 cup of batter in each. Leftovers freeze well, but if you just want fewer waffles, you can easily halve this recipe.

I like to serve these with blueberry sauce, which is purely a thing we throw together as we go, but looks a little something like this:

1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1/4 cup apple cider or orange juice or water
couple spoons of sugar
spoon of cornstarch
dash of vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Just mix that all together in a small saucepan and bring it to a nice bubbly simmer until your berries are hot and the sauce thickens.

Questions? Ask 'em!