"The Playdough Waffle"

It would of course be more alliterative if it had been 'The Playdough Pancake'--or even better if it had been made of real playdough as a joke...but instead it was a waffle and it was not supposed to be playdough...

F had made a wonderful ceviche--essentially a fresh salsa with fish in this case (recipe to follow). It tasted delicious and we were excited to eat it on the tomoto-oregano-waffles (recipe to follow) I was making to go with it. The first waffle turned out fine--needed a bit more salt, but other than that, fine.

(By the way--how much is a 'pinch' anyway? The recipe called for a pinch of salt which I decided was too little--I had already put in at least a half teaspoon at this point and it still needed more....does no one else believe in salt? Or am I just the one in the dark who thinks that a 'pinch' means tiny--perhaps it really is always the perfect amount of salt--I'd say somewhere just under a teaspoon. If anyone can enlighten me on the subject, I'd be grateful)

Anyway, the light had gone out on the waffle iron, so I checked the waffle but for some reason it still looked squishy. I closed the lid, turned up the heat and let it sit a bit longer, but then my patience ran out and I took it out--it was almost falling apart! And here is where we get to the playdough.

The waffle looked like I had put playdough in the German waffle iron with its 6 diamond-printed hearts. It also felt like playdough as it  fell apart at the heart seams. And it also tasted rather like playdough--thick, dense but still squishy..just playdough-y. It kind of sits in your stomach. Not so fun...I apologized to F and thanked him again that at least his part of the meal tasted good...

(I was baffled..true, I had added a little bit of water--but that should NOT have ruined the texture so much! I will admit that I like to experiment and play around with recipes, here I had added some tomato puree--but--considering that the first had gone so well--a little water shouldn't have suddenly ruined them!)

The light was out on the waffle iron so I went to check the next batch and I could hardly get the waffle iron open! It seemed stuck but with some prying, I managed to get it open--only to find that the batter was still wet and had been sticking the sides of the iron together!

At this point F noticed that I had actually turned off the powerstrip into which the waffle iron was plugged--but 3 waffles ago! There had been enough residual heat  for the first waffle to turn out fine, but then with less heat to offer---VIOLA! we had found our explanation for the playdough waffle--as well as the blob of batter currently in the waffle iron. Luckily that was easily remedied by turning the power strip back ON.

 (When I turned it back on, however, I realized why I had turned it off in the first place. Not just my bordering-on-obsessive desire to save electricity--but because we have a pretty cheap microwave. You know how most microwaves turn off when you open the door? Or, as you may have thought, all microwaves do? Yeah, I thought so too--until I met our microwave (yes--we've introduced ourselves--his name is Steve :P ). Our microwave will keep on microwave-ing for all the world to see (and presumable feel)--so the only way to turn it off is either turn the time dial to 0 or to turn off the power strip.

Anyway, problem solved--explanation for playdough waffle found AND solution to never having to eat a playdough waffle again. Needless to say but amusing for the anecdote--because I had previously turned up the heat, the next waffle turned out extra crispy. (However I was fine with this--anything but playdough!) I then turned the heat back down and the last two turned out just beautifully. Unfortunately playdough is rather filling so we weren't able to enjoy those ones yet. They'll just have to be a delicious snack for later :)

p.s. As I read this entry to F he said I'm starting to sound like Polly Horvath--which is frankly just fine with me :) She's a Canadian children's book author and my family had enjoyed many hours reading these chapter books to each other. As a recommendation  that fits with the topic, I'd tell you to start with "Everything On A Waffle". Enjoy!

p.p.s. In fact, on the topic of "Everything On A Waffle" Polly Horvath includes recipes every few chapters, so I have include the recipes of what we made as well.

F's Ceviche

1/4 cup tomato puree

1/4 c. corn, drained

1/2 onion, diced

2-3 green onions, diced

1 small garlic clove, minced

1 T frozen chopped herbs (dill, parsley, chives, etc.)--essentially green stuff  :)

1 tsp cilantro

1 Tbsp lemon juice (less if ultra-concentrated)

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 Tbsp olive oil

Salt

Dash of pepper

2 filets white fish, barely cooked and diced---salt before adding to the ceviche

(***Note--real ceviche in Peru uses raw fresh fish that is then essentially 'cooked' in lemon juice by being marinated in it and is essentially cooked in the acid--for reasons of lacking freshness (we used frozen filets) and questionable hygiene, we nuked them in the microwave on low power for a few minutes until the fish was white--no longer pink)

(**If using frozen fish, save the liquid from the defrosting and add to the ceviche)

Sara's (NOT playdough) Tomato-Oregano-Waffles

1/3 cup olive oil

2 eggs

1/4 c tomato puree

2/3 c. white flour

2/3 c. whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4-1 tsp salt

1 tsp oregano

1/4 c water

Mix ingredients together (and don't overmix--batter will still be a bit lumpy--at least I think that's the rule with waffles..I unfortunately couldn't follow this advice because I kept adding things :D ) Pour 2-3 tablespoons (amount will vary depending on size) in greased waffle iron and let cook for 2-3 minutes (Ideally there will be a light that will go on--or off, depending on your machine--that will help you figure out the time) or until lightly crispy (again NO playdough!).

(and if you don't have cooking spray--like me--fingers work great. Isn't it great that God gave us such versatile tools on the end of our arms? I decided to skip the paper towel because I would probably just end up with an oil-soaked paper towel rather than an oiled waffle-iron...)

Anyway, enjoy this savory version of a breakfast favorite!