At Chehalem Ridge B&B, we say we do #BreakfastDoneRight. What exactly do we mean? We take local ingredients and great recipes and give them a twist so our guests start their day off with unique, tasty, and hearty breakfasts.
Yeasted Hazelnut Waffles
Take this morning: with a request for an egg-free breakfast, we broke out the Yeasted Hazelnut Waffles. Letting the batter rise overnight in the fridge gives the yeast time to develop flavors slowly and gives the finished waffles chewy-crispiness without using eggs. We can easily make this vegan using dairy-free milk and oils (it actually came from the cookbook Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz). Kristin says it’s even better when made with our gluten-free flour blend. We can’t verify that though, because she eats all the gluten-free extra bits without sharing.
Why Hazelnuts?
Did you know that the hazelnut is the Oregon State Nut? Oregon produces 99% of the US commercial crop, most of it grown right here in the Willamette Valley. While vineyards are planted on the hills of the valley, hazelnut orchards dot the valley floor, with lots of new fields being planted each year. We buy our nuts raw in bulk, but the skins are a bit bitter, so they need to come off. We toast them in a single layer on a rimmed cookie sheet for about 15 minutes. As they cool, we rub them with a kitchen towel to get the skins off. (If you stop at this point and just eat these toasted hazelnuts with M&Ms – we get it, we’re right there with you.) Toasted “chopped” hazelnuts go especially well in the waffles, adding texture to each bite.
We like to give credit to the recipe developers of our recipes and this one is from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. The cookbook is chock-full of great recipes like this and we highly recommend it.
- Pour milk into a large glass or ceramic bowl. Sprinkle in the yeast & sit for about 5 minutes.
- Mix in the sugar, oil & vanilla, then add in the flour. Stir until the batter is relatively smooth. Add the water. Cover & let rise on the counter for 30 minutes. Place in the refrigerator overnight.
- In the morning, remove batter from refrigerator, mix salt into the batter & let sit for 30 minutes. Stir in the hazelnuts. Preheat your waffle iron. Brush the waffle iron with melted butter & cook waffles according to manufacturer’s directions.
- Makes 2 waffles for us… each waffle maker is different, though!
Mostly from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Toppings fit for the Season
In addition to using local hazelnuts in the batter, our toppings are seasonal local fruit. In the spring, we use local strawberries, transition to local blueberries in the summer and round out the year with caramelized apples and cranberries in the fall and winter. Kristin doesn’t really use a recipe for the toppings, but here’s her general approach to making our caramelized apples and cranberry topping you see above.
Use about 1 granny smith apple (or other tart variety) per waffle, sliced into about 12 slices, cutting the core out. Melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium heat, then add the apple slices. Let the apple slices sit without stirring for about 2-3 minutes, then use tongs to flip the apples and cook on the other side for another 1-2 minutes. Lower the heat to low, add 1/4 cup brown sugar to the skillet and cover with a lid. After 2-3 minutes, check and stir the apples and melted sugar. Toss in 1/4 cup of cranberries and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Serve warm over waffles.
"Chopping" Hazelnuts
Are you curious about why we keep putting quotes around “chopped” hazelnuts? Hazelnuts are rolly-polly little guys and Kristin has developed a new method of “chopping” hazelnuts. Check out this episode of Inn the Kitchen with Kristin to see it in action!
Make reservations to stay with us and experience Kristin’s #BreakfastDoneRight for yourself.
