Savory Waffles and Sundried Tomato Cashew “Cheese”

I bought a waffle maker.

I started making waffles.

I kept making waffles; different types of waffles…pumpkin waffles, maple waffles, Belgian waffles. I found myself eating breakfast for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

I could eat no more waffles.

And then I had a brilliant idea. What about savory waffles?

After thorough savory waffle recipe research, I came up with something I wanted to try. I reluctantly broke out the waffle maker (reluctantly because I had packed away this specific kitchen tool, believing that it would be taking an extended hiatus. Obviously I was mistaken).

I got the ingredients together and came up with what I consider to be one of the best alternative gluten free vegan ideas to date:

Savory chickpea waffles with sundried tomato cashew “cream cheese.”

Savory Chickpea and Zucchini Waffles

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chickpea flour
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• ¾ cup water
• 3 tbsp. nutritional yeast
• 5 sundried tomatoes (boiled for 10 minutes and diced)
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. dried oregano
• ½ tsp. garlic powder
• Sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Shred the zucchini and add a bit of salt. Set aside for five minutes and then strain the water out with a nut milk bag or dishtowel
• In a large bowl sift the chickpea flour and then add the nutritional yeast, baking powder, garlic powder and salt and pepper
• Add the strained zucchini to the chickpea flour mixture
• Add the sundried tomatoes, oil and water. Mix until completely combined and set aside
• Preheat the waffle maker
• Scoop about ¼ cup of the batter into each square of the waffle maker and cook for about 5 minutes or until it stops steaming (it will depend based on your individual waffle maker)
• Once they are cooked (browned), serve (I used sundried tomato cashew cheese and fresh basil) and enjoy immediately!

*The original recipe for the waffles on vegandoesit.com and can be found here: Savory Vegan Gluten Free Waffles

Sundried Tomato Cashew “Cream Cheese”

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups (200g) raw cashews
• 10 sundried tomatoes (boiled for ten minutes and dried and chopped)
• 1 garlic clove (crushed)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 4 tbsp. filtered water
• Sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Put all the ingredients into a high-speed blender or food processor (I used my Vitamix) and blend (scraping down the sides) until a spreadable cream has formed
• Add more water if you wish to have a creamier consistency
• Serve and enjoy! (Store in an airtight container in the fridge)

*Just a note: since I discovered cashews, “vegan living” has become so much more versatile and enjoyable. Although not the healthiest of nuts, cashews are an incredible tool in vegan cooking- in both savory and sweet dishes. This cheese is just one of the many cashew cheese, creams and sauces that can be made to substitute dairy. I will be posting more as time passes but you can easily alter the ingredients and spices to suit your tastes.