I promised in the August Dr. Grandma’s Newsletter to send you a new recipe in honor of National Waffle Day, August 24^th and National Waffle Week is August 31^st to September 6^th. Waffles are a special treat at our home – we don’t top them with syrup, but enjoy them with fruit toppings.

Shrek’s buddy Donkey likes being ‘manly’, but when it’s morning he’s not embarrassed to be making waffles. The evidence is in a Donkey quote: “We can stay up late, swappin' manly stories, and in the mornin', I'm makin' waffles!” I hope that Donkey knows that the very best waffles are made from 100% whole wheat, and extra virgin olive oil.

Everything is not in the name - just because the most popular frozen waffles are called “……… Low Fat Whole Wheat Waffles” doesn’t mean that they are REALLY WHOLE WHEAT. I was reading the ingredient list of one brand and discovered that those who prepare the labels for this product  must be thinking that the public doesn’t actually read the ingredient list.

The list starts with enriched flour (right after water). I love the irony of the term “enriched”; it sounds so incredibly healthy. But the fact is that this nice little word actually means: to impoverish wheat of an uncounted large number of nutrients, then add back a few cheap substitutes with scientific-sounding names.  Here’s how to do it:  First the portions of the wheat that might spoil and reduce shelf life are removed (bran and germ).  These are sold as animal food or for health additives, at a nice profit. Since this is where most of the nutrients are, taking those nutrients out radically impoverishes the flour. Then the cheap substitutes are added back in and a new name is given to the concoction: Enriched Flour!!!. The term ‘enriched’ thus becomes an inside joke for people who understand what has been done. It means that the processor has added back to the impoverished white flour, 5 or 6 of the numerous nutrients, antioxidants, fiber and phytonutrients that have been removed. Please do not believe that ‘enriching’ makes the flour equal in any way to whole-wheat flour. Remember that the first ingredient is the heaviest ingredient in the mix – so first you get water (comparatively heavy) and next white flour.

Continuing down the list, next in weight is the whole-wheat flour, followed by wheat bran. No one is asking my opinion, but I do not think that a product should be allowed to be called ‘whole wheat’ or ‘whole grain,’ if it contains stripped down white processed flour; but of course, that’s just one person’s opinion.

The next thing that I find fascinating is that the processors are still using the vegetable oil ‘trick.’  By that I mean that they list one acceptable type of vegetable oil and two awful types, then say the product includes “one of more” out of the list. In this case the soybean oil is OK, but I would personally not choose a product with palm or palm kernel oil – too much saturated fat for my arteries. After the oil, begins a list of ‘added stuff’ that you would never add to your homemade waffles.

You can find many recipes on-line for making your own ‘from scratch’ whole-wheat waffles. Or you can use Dr. Grandma’s Pancake and Waffle Mix and save the time of experimenting to get whole-wheat waffles just perfect. The mix makes making waffles so easy that even Donkey can do it. I always whip the egg whites and fold them into the batter, to ensure a light fluffy waffle. But Donkey makes them without whipping the egg whites (real egg whites). Note: Dr. Grandma’s Waffles use extra virgin olive oil and erythritol and fruit extracts instead of sugar, for a touch of sweetness.

The first time ever that I’ve made Pecan Waffles they were delightful. We love the nuts, but even if you don’t fold in the finely chopped pecans they still have a natural nutty flavor from the whole wheat.

As has been discussed before at this website, the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, a USDA agency, found that consuming at least 3 ounces of whole grains per day reduced the risk of diabetes, coronary heart disease, and also helped with weight maintenance. I don’t think that you need to start calculating all the foods that you eat to see how many grams you’re getting in your frozen waffles.  If you switch to real “100% whole grain products” and eschew the processed products containing impoverished flour, you will be getting what your body really needs. Someone is getting this message; the Nielsen Group (people who count all kinds of things) reported that whole wheat bread just edged out white bread in sales. It’s slightly misleading, because it’s measured in dollars not in volume of bread and for some strange reason whole wheat bread costs more

So, in honor of National Waffle Day, try my Hot Apricot Waffle Topping with Pecan Waffles on the pecan waffles listed in the recipe.

Remember that Good Health Can Be Yummy!