I think one of my absolute favorite desserts is pie. I love cake- but only with a generous amount of frosting on top, thank you very much. And I adore New York style cheesecake, especially with some caramel drizzled over it. (I’ll eventually get around to posting my cheesecake recipe). And ice cream is always a hit with me. But when it comes right down to answering the “what dessert would you choose if you could only have one for the rest of your life?” question I think the answer has to be pie. There are infinite variations and it’s so homey and comforting. My favorite pie, as I’ve mentioned before, is apple. A nice apple pie with a good, thick double crust is a sure way into my good graces. Add some quality vanilla ice cream along with fresh whipped cream and I’ll do just about anything you want. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to make an apple pie- or any kind of pie- for months now, as my inlaw’s oven is broken and looks to be staying that way indefinitely. So my baking adventures are fewer now; I have to drive to my parents’ house across town and use their oven. I do that at times but I try to make things that don’t have heavy ingredients. Like the 5 pounds of apples my special apple pie requires. So what am I to do? My family loves apple pie too so this is hard for them as well. I had to come up with something. So I thought on it… and it finally dawned on me one day while I was making my monthly dinner menu. I needed a way to change up the weekly breakfast-for-dinner offering and things just came together: apple pie waffles!! I made Belgian-style waffles with a homemade apple pie “filling” to go on top and put a dollop of freshly made vanilla whipped cream on top of that. I can’t even tell you how good they were from the very first try! They have become very popular around my house and the kids asked to have them this month so I thought I would share them with you too! Now you can have apple pie without having to use the oven! Very handy for when the oven is on the fritz or in the summer when it’s just too hot to bake a pie 🙂

Really this is more of a method post instead of a specific recipe post- you could make this dish with frozen waffles and canned pie filling if you really had to, but using all homemade is so incredibly good that I BEG you to not go that route! And making waffles at home is so easy and so satisfying! The same goes for the pie filling- store bought has nothing on homemade! So I’ll include the recipes below to make things a little easier.

You can make the waffles or the pie filling first- it really doesn’t matter (Oh- and blueberry pie filling is amazing over waffles too! Don’t limit yourself to just apple.). One reheats just as well as the other so you don’t have to worry about having one ready & waiting for you before you start the other. This dish really is much easier than it sounds!

In all honesty you could use pancakes or crepes for this recipe just as easily as the waffles but we love waffles in my house so that’s what we use. And, incidentally, the recipe I’m going to give you makes such amazing waffles that my kids often ask for them plain– no butter, no syrup, no honey, no nothing. Please, please give it a go!

So get your waffles waffled and your apple pie “filling” cooked and ready to go, then start assembling. If you decide to make Belgian-style waffles out of the recipe below I would recommend starting out with half or a quarter of a waffle; this is a very filling dish! Make sure your waffles and your apples are hot and then spoon some “filling” over your waffle, add some freshly whipped cream on top just before serving (it will melt QUICKLY!) and enjoy.

Add a glass of milk & you’re set with a balanced meal! 😉

The Recipe- Waffles:

4C Flour

6T Sugar

3t Baking Powder

1t Salt

4C Buttermilk (sometimes I have to add a little more plain milk- depends on the humidity outside)

1T Vanilla

12T (one stick + 4 T) Butter, melted (Sometimes if I’m short on butter I’ll use 1 stick plus 4 T oil)

The Method:

*As I never have buttermilk on hand, the first thing I do is measure 4T white vinegar into a 4C measuring cup and add enough milk to bring it up to 4C. Let this sit 15 minutes & you’ve got buttermilk.

*Combine dry ingredients well.

*Add wet ingredients and whisk thoroughly.

*Let batter rest while waffle iron heats up.

*Once the waffle iron is hot, check the batter to see if you need a little more milk. If it doesn’t fall from the spoon in one smooth motion it needs a bit more milk.

*Make waffles according to your irons’ directions.

*This recipe freezes very well. If you make thinner waffles (not belgian style) you can even put them in the toaster just like store bought- only these are MUCH better!

The Recipe- Apple Pie Filling

4 Large Apples, sweet or tart, depending on your preference. I use sweet apples.

2T Butter

1/2C+ Brown Sugar (adjust to your tastes)

1t Cinnamon

1/4t Nutmeg

1T Cornstarch

1/4C Apple Juice

More Apple Juice as needed

The Method- Apple Pie Filling:

*Peel, core, quarter, and slice apples.

*Melt the butter in a large skillet

*Add the apples, sugar, and spices.

*Cook, stirring occasionally, until apples are to desired doneness. If you’re using these for this recipe you can leave them crispy or cook them until they’re soft- whichever you prefer. If you’re using this for an actual apple pie, leave them a bit crispy.

*Combine cornstarch and 1/4C apple juice to make a slurry.

*When apples reach desired doneness, add the slurry and stir through the apples.

*If the mixture is too thick (is seized up and too stiff) add more apple juice, a little at a time, until the filling is looser and spreads easily.

*Serve warm over waffles, pancakes, or ice cream. Also works well as a filling for crepes or even a pie.

*Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days.