Banana Nut Waffles (sans nuts)

Shortly after Dan and I were married, we were shopping at the Mall of America. We stopped in to Williams-Sonoma to check out the clearance section (they have a great clearance section!). This particular visit, we found a Cuisinart Belgian Waffle Maker for $20, SCORE!
Ever since then, we've made homemade waffles on a regular basis ever since.
Louie loves "awfuls!"

Sunday morning, when we got back from church, I whipped up some waffles and used my rotten bananas that I was saving for banana bread. They were delicious!

I had a recipe for Banana Nut Waffles, but didn't have all the ingredients, so I just made up my own recipe with that other one as a guide.

2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl.
In a separate bowl whisk together:
2 eggs
6 tbsp vegetable oil
Stir into dry ingredients and then add
1 cup yogurt
3/4 cup milk
1 cup mashed banana

Let batter rest for 5 minutes before using. Preheat waffle iron. When the iron is ready, add batter and spread with a spatula to 1/4 inch of the edge. Close lid, when the green light turns on

Voila, you've got some delicious waffles to serve with maple syrup!

Louie can eat two of these, they're so good!

The recipe will make about 12 waffles. Any extras can be cooled on a cooling rack and then frozen in a zipper freezer bag for a quick breakfast. We've never bought Eggo's yet!

Best Hamburgers EVER!

My sister-in-law, Tesa shared this recipe with me earlier this spring and I'm addicted and converted. I used to be strictly a Lipton Onion Soup Burger consumer. We have converted to Hidden Valley Ranch Burgers. They're delicious and super juicy.
Here's the recipe:

2# of 80/20 ground beef (the fat content in the ground beef is very important when putting burgers on the grill)
6 Tbsp of dry Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing Mix (I have the big Sam's Club jar of mix, it's much cheaper)
1 large Vidalia onion, sliced thick
olive oil
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp of vegetable oil

Mix the ground beef and the dressing mix thoroughly, but don't be too rough with it.
Divide the ground beef in half and each half into thirds. Or about 5.75 ounces each (for third pound burgers).
Shape each third of beef into a ball and shape into a burger.
or . . . you can use this handy dandy little gadget: Robinsons Tastee Ring Burger Press

This burger press makes perfect burgers that stay flat on the grill. No little burger balls that are charred and don't fit into your bun! This burger press works perfectly with 1/3 pound burgers. It is the perfect size burger.
Put a piece of plastic wrap in the bottom of the press and then put the ball of beef on top. Cover with plastic wrap and then press with the top of the Tastee Ring Burger Press.

Voila! a perfect burger for your prepared charcoal grill!

Here's our grill with the coals getting ready for the burgers.

Once your coals are ready, prepare your grill for direct grilling. Preheat your grill grate and clean the grate. Use a folded paper towel to oil your grill grate (carefully).

Drizzle the sliced onion with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place the burgers and the onions on the grill and cover. Grill on each side for 5 minutes. Flip once (don't turn over again, they could break apart). Cook for an additional 4 minutes and add a slice of cheese if you'd like it (and who doesn't??). Put the lid on the grill for an additional minute and then remove the burgers and onion slices.

Serve on a good bun with the onion slices and condiments of your choice.

Enjoy! We enjoyed! That's why there aren't any pictures of the finished product!

These are great burgers.