Isolation Brunches

Going back in time to those two months I spent on leave from work, isolating away in our house. One of the things I did to try and bring some struction and fun into our lives was a weekly brunch. This also meant, as you will see, that I dug out my waffle maker and had a mighty fine time! I keep forgetting that waffles are so easy to make with this waffle maker. It was also a nice time to get to make some of these sweeter brunch-type recipes that I hardly ever have a good time to make. Since heading back to work, I haven't made brunch once! I need to try and at least find a fun time to do it occasionally.

Old-Fashioned Chelsea Waffles and Brown Sugar Peach Coulis from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz: These was so easy to make, and they make a lot. I used half the recipe and got 6 nice fat waffles and one mini one. They are not overly sweet, but I really enjoyed that. I served them with some Brown Sugar Peach Coulis, which allowed me to use up some frozen peaches in my freezer because it certainly was not peach season. I also drizzled it with a bit of sweetened rice cream.
Rating: Waffles :), Coulis :)



Peanut Butter Waffles and Blueberry Ginger Whole Berry Sauce from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz: Peanut butter everything! These waffles are filling, and also a bit crunchy because you use crunchy peanut butter. Again, I made a half recipe for 6 waffles. These had a nice peanut buttery flavour, and were not too sweet (again, hurrah!). Served with the Blueberry Ginger variation of the Whole Berry Sauce recipe, which used frozen blueberries and fresh ginger. The fresh ginger gave such a lovely sparkle to the sauce.
Rating: Waffles :), Sauce :)



Raised Waffles with Baked Cinnamon Apples from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz: I thought I'd try my hand at these yeasted waffles. You have the option of making them in the morning and letting them rise, or making them the night before and doing a longer rise in the frige overnight. I took the first option. Again, I halved the recipe and got 6 waffles. Mine got very dark on the outside with this recipe, which is different from how they look in the book. It didn't do anything bad to the flavour though. When I pulled these out of the waffle iron, they still seemed a bit soft compared to the others. But once out the crisped up on the outside and have a lovely fluffy inside. I served these with some nice and easy Baked Cinnamon Apples, also from the book.
Rating: Waffles :), Apples :)



Tempeh Bacon from Baconish by Leinana Two Moons: Pancakes, bacon, and fruit, which a combination. The tempeh bacon from Baconish is easy to make and delicious to eat. I had a packed of Melinda's gluten-free pancake mix from an Vegan Mystery Box that I needed to use up, and I am sorry to say that it was not a good time. They tasted funny, the batter was so thick but also so fragile to flip. Thankfully the bacon, some apple slices, and maple syrup saved the day!
Rating for Tempeh Bacon :D



Raspberry Cornmeal Pancakes from Eat, Drink, & Be Vegan by Dreena Burton: These pancakes were a bit of a miss, they were quite crumbly and hard to flip. I wonder if my cornmeal was not fine enough? The recipe itself I noted had no sweetener in it, however it did call for vanilla soy milk which is normally sweetened. I didn't have any of that, so I used a blend of plain oat milk, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to make my own. I used a 1/3 cup measure as a scoop, and got 6 pancakes. I served this with some Maple Cream, another recipe from the blog that I have made a few times before, and some fresh strawberries.
Rating: :|



Hearty Pancakes with Buckwheat and Blueberries from Power Plates by Gena Hamshaw: These also gave me a bit of trouble with the batter, as it was very thin and if you made the pancakes too big then it would tear when you flipped it. But I found using a 1/4 cup measure as the scoop just perfect. These had a really nice flavour and texture, thanks to the mix of spelt and buckwheat flour. I served these with some runny peanut butter, maple syrup, and sliced strawberries.
Rating: :)



This final brunch, which was actually the first brunch we had chronologically, did not involve any recipes. On my last day of work before I went into isolation, I stopped by Naim to pick up some vegan raspberry croissants. When I got home they went into the freezer and there they stayed until we decided to get brunching! These were lovely. Dusted with a raspberry poweder and filled with raspberry jam, they were a big hit. We happened to have quite a few types of fruit in the house that day, so I mixed up a quick fruit salad with banana, apple, raspberries, grapes, and pawpaw to have with it.



Cute Kitty Photo of the Post



As well as sleeping with my bamboo contour pillow for bad necks, I have to sleep with a little cushion tucked next to the right side of my head to stop my head from flopping to the side too much while I sleep, thus ruining my neck more. Chronic pain, it's so unfun. But one morning Dim Sim decided that sitting on a little cushion on top of the pillow was the ultimate in comfort. She stayed there for quite a while! Thankfully she doesn't try and take it from me when we are sleeping, because you know I would let her have it no matter the consequences for my neck.