This recipe is a revision of a favorite recipe of mine created in 2017 called Cacao Chia waffles. Back then I was still eating cacao, chia seeds, sugar and coconut milk. Since then I found out those items are high in arginine and should be avoided when trying to lessen shingle outbreaks. For those battling viral infections, eating foods high in arginine disrupts the viral life cycle. Foods higher in lysine or with an equal balance of lysine to arginine helps the immune system to stay strong and ward off the onset of viral outbreaks.
So instead of cacao, what’s being featured in the revised waffle recipe is carob. I talked about carob on this blog before and how it’s inherently sweet and has a slight cacao flavor. It’s basically a perfect chocolate substitution for any one who can not consume chocolate. But in order to get the full richness of carob I strongly suggests to find a high quality carob. I’m a big supporter of
The Australian Carob Company, not only is their carob high quality but there are no other contaminants such as nuts or gluten being produced in their facility, it’s just carob! So there’s no worries of cross contamination.
Another good thing about using carob for this recipe is that unlike cacao there is a sweetness to carob, which makes it perfect for those watching their sugar intake. So in this new recipe there is no additional sugar used.
What stayed the same in this new recipe was teff flour. I talked about the benefits of teff a year and a half ago here. What I didn’t know at the time I wrote that post and what I know now is that teff is one of the friendliest grains (well actually seeds) regarding the arginine to lysine ratio. According to a study found on ResearchGate, teff has a better ratio of arginine to lysine then some other gluten free grains such as rice and sorghum. Teff also has lots of protein, iron and a low glycemic index.
Wanting to bring an additional new twist I incorporated bilberry jam as a filling and topping to the waffles. The bilberry spread used is only made out of fruit with no sugar added. The fruit spread adds sweetness with a nice berry flavor. This is a perfect option for the winter when fresh berries are pricey and might not be readily available. Sliced red bananas on top gives it another layer of flavor and deliciousness. A small drizzle of maple syrup was used for my waffles but you can really go without the syrup to make it even more glycemic friendly. This recipe is so versatile you can use it to add your own type of fillings and toppings like fresh fruit, other fruit jams, non dairy yogurt etc…
Carob Bilberry Jam Filled Waffles
1/2 cup Teff Flour (I used
this)
*4 Tablespoons of Carob Powder (I used
this)
*1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon of Sea Salt
1 teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
3/4 cups of Non-Dairy Milk (I used this
one)
*1/2 teaspoon of Lemon Juice
Filling & Topping
Bilberry Jam (I used this one)*
Red bananas
1. Pour lemon juice into the non dairy milk and place to the side, de
2. Heat up waffle iron.
3. Mix all the dry ingredients together. Then pour the milk mixture and vanilla extract into the dry mixture and whisk all together.
4. The mixture might seem a little loose at first but let the batter sit for about 30 seconds and the mixture will be a nice thick consistency.
5. Grease the hot waffle iron with a little oil, I used melted coconut oil. Scoop the thicken mixture onto a hot waffle iron. This batter does not take long at all to cook. It cooked very fast on my waffle iron, about a minute on heating level 4.
6. After waffles are cooked. Place one waffle on the plate and spread bilberry jam on it, then place another waffle on top, spread more jam and then add the sliced bananas. You can then add a drizzle of maple syrup if you choose.
Now this recipe makes enough for one person, it can be doubled for two and should you have four people to cook for just quadruple the recipe!
Enjoy!
* This post is not sponsored and all items listed are just personal favorites.
