Hearty spelt waffles with blueberries served with rhubarb cashew cream and crunchy turmeric granola. Beautiful and colourful vegan breakfast!
I’ve been making a lot of recipes on this site from a numbers-focused perspective lately. I try to make main course recipes because that seems to be the most popular content here, to keep the ingredient lists down, to ensure that the recipes could be made free of gluten, grains, refined sugar, moss, lichens etc. It’s a bit data-driven!
When I was working on posts over the last couple of weeks, the idea of just skipping the whole thing entered my mind. I think there’s a tendency to put a lot of pressure on yourself when you work in a creative field. There’s a constant feeling that you’re in competition with your own capability, that you have to one-up people around you and yourself.
I have a plugin for this site that helps me settle on optimal post titles, focus words, recipe descriptions etc with Google searches in mind. I read through all of the descriptions I’ve made with this thing, and thought “But that isn’t how I feel about this recipe at all!” It was a weird moment. Food is a universal language out of necessity, but it’s also highly individual because of background, economic circumstances, dietary needs, and skill level. It’s not something that can be captured by a short Google-friendly description sometimes!
I hardly ever make the same thing twice because I like to get wrapped up in the little moments of making food, and I love when those moments always feel different. When I make something for dinner that my partner likes and he says “You should put this on your site!” I shrug it off and try to explain that the dish has too many steps, it’s too simple, too many weird ingredients, it’s not an interesting flavour profile, it’s not a hearty vegan main course that’s ready in 17.5 minutes!
I never make definitively breakfast-y recipes on here anymore because they tend to lack in terms of pins, shares, and page views. But who cares ‘cuz I love breakfast way too much, and also I’m not a content creation robot. I still have a couple handfuls of frozen wild blueberries in our freezer, and I honestly couldn’t think of a better fate for them than pancakes or waffles. These spelt waffles are all jammy and nutty-sweet flavour. I make multi-flour waffles/pancakes almost every weekend, but the spelt is always in the mix because that’s my all purpose flour. The rhubarb for the tangy, sweet, and rich cashew cream came from my backyard! It’s a majorly happy food.
Fans of these may also like my Buckwheat Coconut Waffles with Cocoa.
Blueberry Spelt Waffles with Rhubarb Cashew Cream & Turmeric Granola
Ingredients
Rhubarb Cashew Cream
- ½ teaspoon coconut oil
- heaped ½ cup chopped rhubarb
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 4 hours
- 1/4 cup water, plus extra if needed
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Blueberry Spelt Waffles
- 1 ⅓ cups non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar/fresh lemon juice
- 1 ½ cups whole spelt flour (I use a sprouted spelt flour)
- ¼ cup light spelt flour
- ½ cup rolled oats OR coconut flakes (or a mix of both)
- 1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 tablespoons liquid coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup frozen blueberries
Equipment
Notes
- For the turmeric granola, I just followed Izy’s method from this recipe that she posted on The Kitchn. I combined the total amount of nuts and seeds used in the recipe and just made that up with what I wanted for add-ins (sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and sliced almonds). At the stage where the maple syrup is added, also sprinkle in ½ teaspoon of turmeric powder and a pinch of vanilla powder. Voila! Turmeric stovetop granola :)
- Also, I used a little pinch of beet powder to really bring out the pink hue of the rhubarb cashew cream, but obviously this isn’t a necessary step.
- Frozen raspberries would be so great in place of the blueberries.
- For a gluten-free option, just replace both spelt flours with an all-purpose gluten-free blend that you trust and make sure that you use certified gluten-free rolled oats.
- I also added a heaped spoonful of mesquite powder to the dry ingredients of my waffles for that sweetness.
Instructions
- Make the rhubarb cashew cream. Heat the coconut oil in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Add the rhubarb to the pan. Stir and sauté until the rhubarb is soft, about 3 minutes. Transfer the cooked rhubarb to an upright, high-speed blender. Drain the cashews and add them to the blender as well. Then, add the water, maple syrup and vanilla. Blend the mixture on high until totally smooth, stopping the motor and scraping the sides down if necessary. Transfer the rhubarb cashew cream to a bowl, cover, and set aside in the refrigerator.
- Make the waffles. Combine the non-dairy milk and apple cider vinegar and stir together. Set aside to curdle for about 5 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole spelt flour, light spelt flour, rolled oats/coconut, baking powder, and sea salt. Pour the non-dairy milk mixture into the bowl. Add the coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir the batter together with a spatula until just barely combined. There should still be some dry flour spots. Gently fold the blueberries in.
- Pre-heat your waffle iron to the desired level of doneness. Also preheat your oven to about 225°F. Place a parchment lined baking sheet in the oven so that you can transfer finished waffles to the warm oven quickly.
- Lightly grease the waffle iron with coconut oil. Drop about ⅓ cup of the batter onto the bottom iron and close the top. Once the timer beeps, retrieve the waffle and transfer it to the warming tray that you’ve set up in the oven. Repeat this process with the remaining batter.
- Serve waffles warm with rhubarb cashew cream, turmeric granola, extra blueberries, and extra maple syrup.
This is so beautiful and looks so scrumptious! Love everything about this post!
Such beautiful, honest words Laura – and so easily relatable to so many of us who share this space. One can never have too many waffle (or breakfast) recipes and I will value anything you post here, always. Keep ’em coming!
Just discovered your blog. Soooooo happy! I just bought a waffle maker and my recipe catalogue is growing! :)
I totally feel the pressure about posting more of a certain category. I’ve been wanting to post more about fitness and exercise but sometimes I just don’t feel like it and I go with my intuition. Blogging has to be something that you love, not an obligation!
You are speaking straight to my heart right here. I just made a commitment last month to start posting more meals that I actually make for dinner because it seems silly not to. I’m always worried about them not being fancy enough for the blog but I just really freaking like red beans and rice so why not post about it?
It constantly annoys me that most of the things food bloggers write these days sound exactly the same – every recipe description uses exactly the same phrases! The reason I love your blog is that it isn’t like that, that you’re honest about the food and how it makes you feel, so please do continue the good work :) And these waffles look incredible…
I definitely understand there is a lot of pressure to do well, especially when this is your livelihood, but I love breakfast recipes!! Do moar! (and your desserts are just ah.mazing) Especially as a working lady, Saturday and Sunday brunch are when I get to take my time in the kitchen and luxuriate in the process. I absolutely love having your beautiful and inspiring recipes to work from :) And I can’t be the only one who is totally intrigued by ridiculously complex processes – the more involved it is, the more I’m excited to try it, like this https://tienlon.wordpress.com/2014/12/10/chocolate-panettone-recipe-by-the-one-and-only-matt-tinder/ (making a mother? 20 hour prep time? game on)
On a completely different note, do you have any tips for getting thicker things out of a vitamix? I always end up just using my hands to get those last bits of cashew cream out…
Hey Lizzie! Thanks so much for this. I feel your pain on extracting stuff from the Vitamix! I have a nice, small spatula from a company called GIR (I think they call it a “mini” on their site) that I use for stuff like this and it manages to get most of whatever I’m making out. It’s actually one of my most-used tools in the kitchen in general.
-L
These look great and weird and delicious and like they were imagined by a creative human, not a robot blogger!
Loved to read this, super honest and true! You do you. :)
Oh, and this cashew cream is pretty much the FLUFFIEST I’ve ever seen! Boy, do I wish rhubarb was a thing in Portugal. Much love xo
I agree with one of the above commenters, when i look at new food blogs the breakfast recipes are the first ones i peruse.
Is there a secret to cashew cream? i soak my cashews for the allotted time, i use a Blendtec but i’ve never been able to get the creamy result like your rhubarb cream above. I tried adding some coconut water and eventually finished with my immersion blender. any tips?
Hi Tracey! Thanks so much for this. I honestly think it’s just nailing a cashew:moisture ratio, which obviously shifts if you’re throwing things like cooked fruit into the mix (like with this one). You also just have to be really persistent in stopping the motor to scrape everything down. I also tend to let the blender go on high for a bit longer than most maybe. By the timer my cashew creams are done, the blender has worked long enough that the cream is quite warm when I take it out.
-L
Yes, yes. yes, to all of this <3 I could gobble up a whole plate of this right this moment! And while breaky might not bring in the numbers, I just read pink things are the most Pinned – so you're totally winning this post ;)
Ah, screw the numbers. I keep coming back here because the food I make from your recipes tastes great — breakfast, lunch or dinner. I say make what you like (coz so do I!)
WOW I love this!!! Your recipes are absolutely divine and they always inspire me to get into the kitchen and come up with something new. Can’t wait to whip these up x
Wow these looks so amazing!
Yummy!
Izzy
I hear you on the numbers side, but the recipes that are truest to you will always stand out. I love everything you make :)
Thank you for this Laura. Really, truly, thank you. Looking up to you as I do, and still in the early stages of being a full time creative in this food blogging world, these struggles are already so real – and your honesty here is really settling my heart right now. You are amazing, truly gifted, and a constant source of inspiration for so many. But most importantly, you are you – and you need to be you, feel like you, and express you. And if it means more drop-dead-gorgeous waffles such as these, let your light shine girl!
I would argue I search blogs more for breakfast recipes than dinner! PLEASE always share yours!!! Especially the random, “too simple” or “too weird” ones…I feel that.
I almost always eat breakfast alone, so whether or not they impress someone else isn’t always important. For me breakfast is more about something rather unimpressive yet “genius” that I can make over and over and over again.
This one, however, is a total star and I think the boyfriend would love it. Looking forward to my grain-free diet being over so we can try it!!
b. yourself always <3
That’s it, I’m getting a waffle iron.
I think you just spoke to the hearts of a million food bloggers. Recipes and food should have no restrictions – thank you for putting this out there Laura. You could have posted only that picture of the rhubarb + hose and I would have pinned it a million times over. Inspiring as always. Excuse me while I go out and buy a waffle maker now. x
Although my inputs are probably not particularly necessary, especially since all the lovely ladies above have already voiced exactly what I think (and more), I do want to actually say it myself, too:
You do you.
Not everyone checks your site with some sort of expectation. I for a fact, don’t “expect” anything in particular from the blogs I am subscribed to. Not at all. I follow them because I just want to see what they create, regardless of whether it’s a breakfast food, something high in protein, or something sugar-laden -I just want to see and read it for the sake of doing just that. Of course I know not everyone is as weird as I am (I am obsessed with reading all those epic recipes and looking at gorgeous photographs, but in all honesty, I cannot recall the last time I followed a single recipe….Who knows though, maybe that will all change at some point?) but still, I say, post what YOU want to post or feel inspired by. Don’t just focus on what others might want, mix it up, find an in-between kind of way, or whatever works for you, and see what happens. What’s really THE worst thing that could ensue? And would even that genuinely be so bad or the end-all?
And finally, one thing that I can assure you is that the weirdos, like myself, are undoubtedly going to stick around nevertheless :)
I still think breakfast is important and it’s good that you’re having these thoughts because I learn through reading your blog and each recipe is a revelation in flavor combinations or substitution if you’re changing your diet. I also totally get trying to outdo yourself and expectation. I’d say this post does both. It takes a classic, but makes it absolutely amazing and provides a great alternative for someone like me who is just starting to experiment with alternate dairies and flours. It’s good to keep your eye on these things as a businesswoman, but it’s these feelings you express that makes your blog so honest and wonderful. Keep it up. You’re an inspiration.
Beautiful. Creative. Put in my mouth now.
Question – Off the top of your head, what else might you do with this rhubarb cashew cream? Fruit dip?
Hi Sophie, I used my leftover cashew cream to top overnight oats for the most part, but you could certainly use it on any hot porridge, as part of a granola bowl, whipped into a rich smoothie with berries, dolloped on top of some kind of fruit crumble/crisp… lots of options! ;)
-L
I literally just wrote about this! We food bloggers tend to put so much damn pressure on ourselves. But then I think sometimes we lose a little bit of our creativity along the way, by trying to get the optimal post title / recipe name / etc, like you said. It’s maddening. But ultimately you have to do what’s right for you, whether that be following the plugin’s suggestions or doing what you chose autonomously. To each their own! :)
I absolutely love everything you post and would be excited to read recipes from you that are 10 minutes meals to the most complicated. Everything you post is beautiful and inspiring. Many thanks!!
Oh my gosh, such a good, honest post. I totally know what you mean. As a creative, I feel like I am asked to make things that would be “popular” but it doesn’t feel as genuine. I definitely have to make things just to express me and my current mood sometimes! Great post and lovely photos! :)
I’ll be pinning the hell out of these gorgeous waffles girl! ;)
Long live breakfast and creating from within! Hearts.
Oh my gosh. I think you were reading my mind when you wrote this post. I’ve been feeling the same way with trying to create the “right” recipe, instead of just following my heart. Mixing creativity and business can be such a hard challenge. Hopefully we can both find the balance! Anyway, this recipe is great! xoxo
I agree with other posters, I fully believe that you should post what feels right to you! you have a very loyal following, i certainly don’t make every recipe but i always enjoy reading your posts, matter of fact it’s one of the few I make the effort to check out!
I feel the exact same way, sometimes I can get too caught up in the ‘will this be a good title/be too weird/ have too many things’ that I avoid making something that I’m truly passionate about. These are gorgeous dear Laura! xo
GORGEOUS girl. I cannot wait to make these! And re: obsessing over google analytics/metrics: I feel like the more you overthink what people want from a content perspective, the less authentic it will feel, and therefore the less compelling. There’s nothing wrong with listening to your readers feedback, but if you base everything you do off it, it’s like listening to a radio station that just plays the music I already like – I’m never discovering something new! People come to your site because they value your unique perspective/creative mind. I think it’s worth trusting in that.
Ahh this looks SO delicious! I’m kind of working on a vegan fritter recipe of my own, and I can only hope it turns out as good as this!
I love reading all of your recipes/posts, I love the passion you have for fresh food and simple ingredients that are always full of flavor. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, and would love to see more posts! even if its a basic bowl of oats because I know that you would show me how to elevate a simple delicious breakfast to the next level!!! this is my favorite blog ever, you are inspiring and creative and very talented!!! Rock on girl
I second you here – I LOVE breakfast. Almost too much. Regardless, this looks phenomenal! I love the bright colors of the rhubarb cashew cream.
So…
1. We completely share the same feeling about never making the same thing twice – and when my man says “I like this main plate!” he never sees it again. Sorry.
2. I love breakfast and I think that you should really post what you like, not everytime, but what people want for 70% and what you want for the other 30%! Really, this recipe is amazing!
3. These photos are STUNNING <3
xoxo
Gosh I am craving waffles now!It’s a pity I have no waffle maker :( otherwise I would have already been in my kitchen making these!
Tumeric granola? Rhubarb cashew cream? I am in awe of your food brain and your recipes are always a huge pleasure to read/reflect on/put together.