Cheese Waffles

Today we will start with Colonel Sanders lunch. She has a cheddar cheese waffle, strawberry half, blueberries, cheese, and salami.
 

 Look who is joining us for lunch today! Yes, it is lunch time, but to create a different routine than a school day, we stay in our pjs till after lunch unless we are going someplace.

My father in law punched a Babycakes waffle maker for me as a Christmas gift. (see bottom) The waffles are in a heart shape and there is a spot to add a stick to them. While that thought is interesting, I do not want the boys to have to much fun with lunch.

Our Easy Lunchbox is perfect for this lunch. For the boys I made the waffle into a sandwich. See waffle recipe below. I added a slice of cheese and a slice of salami. I put half a strawberry on top of it to add some color. To the left I have blueberries and a slice of ham on a sword pick. 

The flash was a little to much for Colonel Sanders. Although you can see by her smile that she is enjoying her salami.

I changed the waffle recipe a bit from the original recipe. I was looking for a recipe that was not to sweet. Sweet and cheese do not always go to well together. I took a look at the little recipe book that was included with my waffle maker. Inside was a recipe for buttermilk waffles that used no sugar. Perfect!!! Only I have no butter milk. I do have some kefir on hand though. (see jar on bottom picture) So I decided to see if I could substitute. Worst case, I have to make more mix.

I will post the recipe as I used it. The original is in the Babycakes book that comes in the Babycakes waffle maker.

 Cheese Waffles
1 3/4 C flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups kefir (ok, I was short, so I added some milk)
1/3 cup olive oil (it calls for canola)
2 eggs
1ish C cheddar cheese

Mix all dry ingredients. Then add wet and mix until combined. It will be slightly clumpy and not very thick. Do NOT over mix.

Add in your cheddar cheese. I shred my own cheddar. I think it has a better flavor. The stuff you buy in the store pre done is coated so that it will not stick together. Stir mixture till it is just combined well. DO NOT OVER MIX. The mixture will still be pretty liquid. I have to admit that it threw me off. I have never had a waffle batter this way. It did turn out well though! Pour some into your waffle maker and cook until desired color. It was 4 minutes for me.

Clark took his sandwich apart and Pork ate it as a sandwich.

See that jar in back? The one with the pink hair tie holding on a coffee filter? Yep, that is my kefir. And the machine in front of that is my waffle maker. I am a messy cook, so there is drippings and what not around it.

The 2 cups of kefir I indicated in the recipe, I actually used about 1 1/8 cup of kefir and the rest milk.

The waffles came out thinner than normal ones. This worked in my favor for sandwiches. I think the waffle maker was designed to make thin waffles.

Matching Daddy and Minion Domo Lunches

Today I made matching lunches for everyone. I really think that making lunches the night before for everyone is the way to go. At least for now. We will see how it works if I get this job. 

The Elder is special so I put a mini green cheesecake in his lunch. Below that is some apple & cranberry crumble (that is what we call it) with an oat topping. The Domo were made out of beer bread, ham, cheese and nori eyes. I used mustard to hold everything into place. I also added some carrots.

 The minions had a very similar bento. I used my Sassy boxes for them. I used mustard to hold on the face of the Domo but not on the inside. Their sandwich is also ham on beer bread. I sliced their baby carrots thin and added in some mozzarella cheese.

To the left is more of the crumble. Yes, there is quite a bit. Do I feel bad? NO!!! I made this myself. It is quite healthy in my humble opinion.

The boys are still ill and to top it off, there was no school today. So Clark is home today and enjoying lunch with us. Also getting out of you pjs was optional.

Sadly the cheddar and herb beer bread was not a hit with the little ones. The boys ate the faces off the bread and the meat center.

Colonel Sanders also joined us for lunch. Normally she would eat a little later. She had no interest in lunch. She just sat there and talked to her brothers while they all ate. Finally I gave up on her eating and put her on the floor to play.

Oh look! Someone is eating!  I left the room for just a minute and one of the boys decided that Colonel Sanders looked hungry. I am pretty sure it was Pork who gave her the lunch on the floor. Apparently that is what she wanted! Colonel Sanders dug right in. I should have known she would want it out of a bento. I had just put her lunch on her high chair tray.

The crumble was actually pretty easy to make. I cut up apples into small pieces, put them in a simmering pan, added cranberries, some water, a touch of honey (maybe a teaspoon) and a touch of vanilla and cinnamon. I let it simmer for a bit until the fruit was soft and the mixture had become thick. I think it took about 15-20 minutes. To be honest, I am one of those bad cooks that just tends to put things on low and walk away. I come and check on it once I smell something yummy. I don't do it with everything, but with anything that needs to simmer for a bit.

Once it has thickened, I turn the heat off and let it cool for a bit. Then I place it into dishes. Using the same pan, I melt some real butter in it. Add a touch of honey and let it melt together. After the butter is melted I give it a good stir and then add some rolled oats. I do not suggest using the quick cook. I am told they come out mushy. I add enough oats so that the oats are all coated, but that is it. I do not want them to fully cook or for there to be standing liquid. I keep the heat on medium for a minute and give the oats, butter, and honey mixture a minute to toast a bit and then I take it off the heat. Immediately spoon it over the top of the fruit. As it cools it will harden. Any leftovers can be eaten or added to the top of yogurt. I did both.  The minions really like a little bit of crisp topping on their morning yogurt sometimes.

Countdown: 3

Only 3 more lunches until we reach our 100th lunch!!!!