Belgian Waffle with Glazed Bananas

I love me some belgian waffles. However, I rarely eat them because they are huge calorie bombs and I don't like eating half-a-day's worth of calories before 9 am.  Therefore, if we are out at brunch, I beg Jack to get pancakes/waffles/french toast so I can have a bite. He often says no.  I then sulk and order my egg whites and dry toast with a side of fruit, dreaming of the deliciously warm, crisp on the outside, pillowy inside belgian waffle, drizzled in syrup with a bit of butter. 

But once in a while, I whip out my Wolfgang Puck Belgian Waffle maker and whip up some delights at home. They still aren't low fat or low calorie, but I can only eat half and not feel bad for wasting money. 

I did make some changes to make this a bit less artery-clogging. The recipe called for 3/4 stick of butter to be put into the batter. I omitted this. It also called for 2 cups of buttermilk. I used 2 cups of skim milk.  Small changes, but I saved at least 600 calories for the entire recipe by making these changes. 

This belgian waffle hit the spot. Sweet caramelized bananas, perfectly browned waffles, a drizzle of banana-infused syrup made me a happy girl. 

Belgian Waffles with Glazed Bananas - adapted from Gourmet Magazine

For waffles

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups skim milk

2 large eggs

Spray for waffle iron

For topping

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 firm-ripe large bananas, cut diagonally into 1/3-inch-thick slices

1 1/4 cups pure maple syrup

Special equipment: a waffle iron (preferably Belgian-style)

Accompaniment: sour cream or whipped cream

Make waffles:

Put oven rack in middle position and put a large metal cooling rack directly on it. Preheat oven to 250°F and preheat waffle iron.

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

Whisk together buttermilk, melted butter, and eggs in another bowl, then whisk into flour mixture until just combined.

Brush hot waffle iron lightly with vegetable oil and pour a slightly rounded 1/2 cup of batter into each waffle mold (see cooks' note, below). Cook waffles according to manufacturer's instructions until golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer as cooked to rack in oven to keep warm, keeping waffles in 1 layer to stay crisp. Make more waffles in same manner.

Make topping:
While last batch is cooking, heat butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then add banana slices in 1 layer and cook until golden, about 1 minute per side. Remove from heat and add syrup to skillet.

Spoon bananas over waffles, then drizzle with warm syrup before serving.

Comments

[jenn]

I wish i had a waffle iron. That's definitely one thing I haven't had in long time. Nice touch with the glazed bananas. Yum!!!

[Tracy]

Ooooh Teanna, that looks amazing! I wish I were eating that for breakfast right now!!

[Andrea@WellnessNotes]

Looks & sounds great! I don't make waffles very much either; in fact, I just "found" my waffle iron in the garage when we cleaned it out over the weekend. I think I'll have to use it soon... :)

[Tracey]

Your waffle looks terrific! I love waffles too and I rarely make them but more because I'm too lazy on the weekends than because I'm worried about the calories :)

[Jamie]

These look amazing...I just dug out my waffle iron last week and I forgot how fabulous they are! I must try these! :)

[Michele]

Thanks for giving us a recipe for lower fat waffles! Banana infused syrup? I am amazed! This looks fantastic and I would eat it any time of the day!

[Nicole]

Ooooh, yum! Your self control amazes me :) Never would have thought to make a glazed banana sauce, but it looks so good.

[Phyllis (me HUNGRY!)]

LOL - I think there's more than just a drizzle of syrup on those waffles, judging from how it's pooling up in the little squares! And what's wrong with eating half of the day's calories before 9am?! But seriously, this waffle looks amazing, especially since you made it without the butter!

[grace]

note to self: invest in waffle iron. i'm like you--i always want waffles or pancakes whenever i eat out. the difference is that i order them. and eat them. every last bite. :)

[Cookin' Canuck]

I'm going to have to make these caramelized bananas to go over pancakes until I add a waffle maker to my arsenal. They look sweet, gooey, and fantastic!

[Jessie]

delicious waffles, they look wonderful!

I'm in the same boat with you about waffles being a huge calorie bomb. I'm always trying to find ways to make waffles or pancakes healthier. I manage to come up with a great whole wheat oat waffle that was amazingggg! I think you would like them as well :)

http://simplyscrumptiousfoodie.com/2009/03/whole-wheat-oat-waffles/

[ThatsSoYummy]

This looks delicious, so yummy.... makes me want to eat waffles now!!!!!!!!!!!

[Wendy]

YUM! I can't eat this much in the morning too. That's why I like breakfast for dinner. :P

[Michele]

Your waffles look just fantastic!

[Kristen]

See, we make waffles for lunch a lot, so I don't feel so guilty about having such a feast for breakfast!

[Natasha - 5 Star Foodie]

Great substitutions to make it lower in calories. I also use skim milk and also add some fat free vanilla yogurt. I love the idea of glazed bananas with the waffles, will definitely try that. Btw, my husband just walked by, saw your gorgeous picture of the waffles, and requested waffles for breakfast tomorrow :)

[Jen @ MaplenCornbread]

These look SO good! I love adding glazed waffles to waffles, pancakes, oatmeal! beautiful pic too!

[Sophia]

I didn't know Belgian waffles are such calorie bombhouses. They look so...innocent and tasty!

[Karine]

These waffles look great! Thanks for sharing!

[lisaiscooking]

I should not have looked at this right now. It's morning, and I haven't had breakfast yet, and that look great!