Winter Comfort Food

Winter brings on images of warm soups and simmering stews using winter vegetables, but what about desserts? There are lots of great egg-based recipes on the Life Slice website such as souffles and custards, but how about some quick and easy comfort food? We were inspired by a recipe recently published on making your own homemade hazelnut spread and thought we'd try different pairings with crepes, pancakes and waffles. General opinion was although it went well with just about everything, a favorite pairing was with the waffles because of their texture, so it was this week's blog entry winner. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did. 

Creamy Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw, skin-on hazelnuts*
• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• A few pinches kosher salt
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Roast hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet until very light golden . Watch the nuts closely and ensure they do not turn brown of the nuts will become butter. 
2. Rub the warm nuts in a kitchen towel to remove skins.
3. 2. Whirl nuts in a food processor, scraping sides as needed, until it looks like peanut butter. If using a Vitamixer, you can simply add teh chocolate and allow it to melt. Otherwise melt chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently; let cool slightly.
4. 3. Add chocolate and remaining ingredients to nuts in food processor and whirl until smooth.
5. Place the hazelnut spread into a bowl and mix in the cream with a spoon until blended well and of a viscosity similar to syrup.

Quick and Easy Waffles

Because of the higher density of the hazel nut spread, a waffle that can stand up the greater weight is beneficial. The waffle we found that best meets these requirements is the waffle recipe from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. 
Optional:  Add in up to one cup of dried blueberries to incorporate in a superfood. 

Ingredients

Canola or another neutral oil for brushing waffle iron
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 T sugar
3 tsps baking powder
1 1/2 cups milk 
2 eggs
4 T butter, melted and cooled
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

Steps

1, Brush a standard waffle iron lightly with oil and preheat.
2. Combine dry ingredients. 
3. Mix together milk and eggs. Stir in butter and vanilla.
4. Stir the wet into the dry ingredients. If the mixture seems too thick, add a little milk.
5. Spread the batter on the waffle iron to thinly cover it and bake until the waffle is golden brown.

Plating

Serve immediately or keep warm for a few minutes on an ovenproof plate placed in a 200 degree oven. Plate the waffles and apply a smear of hazelnut spread to each waffle.