Whole Grain Cottage Cheese Blender Waffles with Peach Melba Conserve Topping

I love waffles. So much. Baked goods for breakfast are another weakness. However, we always seem to need additional protein with such breakfasts because we get hungry again within a couple hours of eating waffles or pancakes. So, I wondered about trying cottage cheese in my waffles and tried researching online to see if anyone had tried making waffles with cottage cheese. I stumbled upon this great blog: www.gethealthywithheather.com  and also read about trying the batter in the blender. This was my first attempt at making the batter in the blender--now I'm hooked. It's easier to pour them into the waffle maker this way.

You absolutely cannot even tell these are whole grain either (well, I couldn't). And, you will not be able to 'taste' the cottage cheese; so if anyone in your family is averse to it, you can still try it. The waffle recipe below is Heather's recipe with my changes in the italics.

In addition, I love fresh fruit on top of my waffles but the peaches I picked at the orchard a few weeks ago seemed a little spotted. My mom always makes conserves or compote with excess fruit--but I wanted to try making something similar but with maple syrup instead of processed sugar. I LOOOOVED the result of these conserves. If you liked my Quick Blackberry Jam with Agave Nectar, you will probably like this too. Now, I wish I would have made double the peach melba topping, because it was that good!

WHOLE GRAIN COTTAGE CHEESE BLENDER WAFFLES
Adapted from www.gethealthywithheather.com

These waffles are a bit more cake-like, but they crisp up pretty good in the toaster when reheated.

Serves ~4-5

• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat PASTRY flour (purchase at Whole Foods or other natural food store)
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. flax meal, ground (optional--my addition)
• 2 Tbsp. wheat germ (optional--my addition)
• 1 cup reduced fat cottage cheese
• 4 eggs (I used 3 eggs + 1 egg white)
• 1 cup milk (I used low-fat buttermilk)
• 1 tsp. vanilla (I skipped this because I was out of extract)
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup (optional)

Turn your waffle iron on and begin to heat it up while you make the batter.

Whisk together the flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking powder in large bowl (add flax meal and wheat germ, if using).

In a blender combine the cottage cheese, eggs, milk, and vanilla (plus optional maple syrup). Blend until smooth. Gently add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients into the blender. Process JUST until well combined.
Once the waffle iron is ready, coat it generously with olive oil spray. Pour the batter (from the blender) into the hot waffle iron (about 1 cup batter) and cook until your waffle iron lights up as done (or screeches as mine tends to do). Repeat with remaining batter until batter is all used up.

Serve the waffles warm. (Heather suggests almond butter and applesauce and I can't wait to try that next time!)

PEACH MELBA CONSERVES

Makes ~2 jars of conserve (about 26-30 ounces)

• 4 cups fresh peaches, diced and peeled
• 1 1/2 cups fresh raspberries, rinsed and dried
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• Juice of 1/2 a small lemon

In a medium pot, bring all ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat and let the fruit simmer for about 25-30 minutes or until the juices have thickened and evaporated some (mix the fruit once in a while). Turn off the flame and keep covered until ready to serve over the waffles.
Store covered in the refrigerator. Keeps for several weeks. Extra conserves can be frozen as well. But ours never last that long because this mixture is so delicious over toast or eaten straight out of the jar. YUM!

To serve: Plate 2 waffles for each person with some peach melba conserves and sprinkle with 1-2 tsp. sliced almonds.