Waffles & Coffee Cake For Holiday Breakfast

Whether you have little kids excited to see what Santa brought them, older children back in the house for the holidays or just a gaggle of friends and family around for Christmas breakfast, here are a couple of easy recipes to feed them all.

Donna Britt

Make the batter the night before for easy morning waffle making.

Overnight waffles are wonderful because you mix them up the night before you serve them. Then all you have to do is pull them out of the fridge in the morning and bake them off in the waffle iron. Serve them with berries, whipped cream, honey, syrup, nuts, chocolate sauce or whatever you have and everyone will be delighted. 

The other easy-peasy idea is to make a coffee cake, which you can also do the night before and have it ready to serve with coffee, tea, milk, juice or even mimosas the next morning.

Merry Merry and Bon appétit!

Overnight Waffles
8 servings

• 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
• ½ cup warm water (110 to 115 degrees)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 cups warm milk, whole or 2%
• ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
• 2 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
• 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar; let stand 5 minutes until foamy on top. Add milk, butter and eggs and mix well. Combine flour and salt. Stir into milk mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Next morning, stir batter. Sift in baking soda and stir well. Bake waffles in a preheated waffle iron until golden brown.  Serve with berries, whipped cream, syrup, etc.

Holiday Coffee Cake
8 servings

• ½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 ¼ cups sugar
• 2 eggs, separated, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 2 cups peeled, sliced fresh fruit, such as apples or pears
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
• 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter and flour a 9-inch cake pan (round or square).

Beat the butter and ¾ cup of the sugar in a large mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks and beat well. Add vanilla and beat until blended.

Stir or sift 1 ½ cups flour and baking powder together. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk to the sugar/butter mixture, beating well after each addition. Begin and end with flour mixture.

Sprinkle two tablespoons flour over the fruit in a separate bowl and toss to coat. Beat the egg whites until stiff and gently fold into the batter.

Pour the batter into the pan and arrange fruit over the top. Combine remaining ½ cup sugar, nuts, melted butter and cinnamon in a small bowl. Pat the mixture gently over the fruit.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of cake comes out clean, 35-45 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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