I hope you all had a very, merry Christmas! My favorite gift this year was being able to come home from school and spend the holidays with my amazing family and friends. My second favorite gift was the totally awesome heart-shaped waffle maker I received (thanks to my rad boyfriend). Most of my gifts this year consisted of kitchen and baking accessories, cookbooks, and home decor so I can't WAIT to get started working on some fun new things to share!

Waffle batter (yields 2-4 waffles):

- 1 cup of whole wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons of melted butter (I use Smart Choice, non-dairy olive oil)
- 1 teaspoon of organic vanilla powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 2/3 cup of water
- 1 egg

Toppings:

- Strawberries
- Kiwis
- Shredded coconut
- Organic chocolate syrup (Santa Cruz)

Directions:

Turn on your waffler maker and allow it to heat up fully. For this particular waffle maker, there are six different heat settings. I place it on the highest setting once I first turn it on (6) then turn it down to a medium setting (3) once I'm ready to start cooking. Next, spray both the top and bottom of the half with cooking spray, making sure to cover the entire surfaces. Dollop a few tablespoons on to the bottom surface (I use about 3-4 per waffle). Make sure you leave a little bit of extra room around the edges for the batter to spread out once you close the top. If you use too much, it will ooze out of the sides and make a not-so-fun mess. If you're not sure how much to use, I recommend starting with less and seeing how the first waffle turns out. From there, you can always add more if you need to and avoid the crazy mess! 

Each waffle takes about 2-3 minutes to cook but depending on how crispy you like your own waffles, you can always add or subtract some time. Once you think it is ready (nice and golden - no gooey spots left), use a spatula to remove it from the waffle maker.

I topped mine with fresh strawberries and kiwis, along with some shredded coconut and my favorite, organic chocolate sauce from Santa Cruz + a toasty cup of coffee. This super cute coffee mug was a Christmas gift - I'm so in love with it... ugh - and it's from Michael's!

Enjoy! :)