Happy New Year!
2019 was gone in the blink of an eye I swear! What a year it was and I am looking forward to more positive and happy occasions that are coming in 2020!
Do you set New Year’s Resolutions? My goal is to go camping more and try to get outside as much as I can! I am not a huge fan of cold weather so getting outside will be waiting until spring here in the midwest 🙂
I did not mention the most common resolution, that I too am reciting every January 1, promising that this year will be different: to get healthier. Whether it’s diet or exercise, better sleep, drinking more water, or getting outside more, there’s always little things that I want to improve. Small steps are how my real food journey started. Small swaps, ingredient changes, eating less sugar and more vegetables.
One of the hardest parts of these small changes are the old favorites and decadent comfort foods that are oh so tempting. I have the added restriction of needing to avoid gluten 100% of the time due to my health. It was this struggle that lead to my sweet and savory Chicken and Waffles.
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Why I Love This Recipe
A few years ago I was having dinner at a restaurant with my family. When the waiter brought our food out everyone exclaimed over my sisters meal, chicken and waffles. Sticky barbecue sauce coated crispy chicken strips all smothered in maple syrup sitting atop a fluffy waffle. This truly was a match made in comfort food heaven. As everyone sampled her dinner and I could only listen to how wonderful it was, I vowed right there that I was going to make my own healthier version that didn’t include off limit ingredients that would make me feel sick for weeks.
Enter this homemade version that brings great flavors, with my own spin, and none of my off-limit ingredients! This recipe has quickly become a family favorite.
Making Chicken and Waffles
To make these, start with a batch of my Easy Grain Free Waffles. Mix up the waffle batter and set aside.
I like to use chicken strips for this because you get more surface area for the sauce to stick to. Boneless skinless chicken breast sliced into strips will work great but when we are camping I like to buy pre-cut chicken strips just to save on time and cleanup.
Coat the raw chicken strips in your favorite hot sauce. I like to use Frank’s Red Hot because it’s easy to find and has good flavor. (If you don’t like spicy food skip this step and grill the plain chicken strips)
I loved using our Blackstone griddle for this because it was easy to set up and cook all the chicken on! Not to mention clean up was a breeze. Don’t have a Blackstone yet? No problem, you can easily make this in a fry pan inside your camper or over a fire-pit.
Note: I highly recommend having a Blackstone for your camping trips if you have the space. I’ll be posting a full review of my Blackstone soon so stay tuned)
While the chicken cooks, heat up your waffle iron. You can use a traditional waffle iron (we use our Dash waffle iron when we are in the RV because it is the perfect size) You can also make these over the fire with a fire-pit waffle iron like the one in these photos.
If you’re using the fire-pit waffle iron you’ll want to use more waffle batter in the iron than you would use in a smaller iron like the Dash. Start with about a 1/4 cup and add more if the batter doesn’t cover the iron well.
When the chicken is fully cooked add some of your favorite BBQ sauce to the chicken. I love Primal Kitchen’s BBQ sauce because it doesn’t have added sugar but still has amazing flavor. Adding this while the chicken is still on the grill allows the natural sugar in the BBQ sauce to caramelize giving the chicken strips a sticky sweet coating.
To assemble your chicken and waffles, top a waffle with a few chicken strips and pour real maple syrup over the top. If you are trying to make this low carb/Keto friendly you can use a sugar free maple syrup or another syrup substitute. Just be careful and read the ingredients, they like to sneak less than “real” ingredients into some sugar-free foods.
Now dig in! This is a family favorite on our camping trips – the maple syrup with the BBQ sauce really work well together. I love how gooey and sticky they are on the fluffy waffles.
If you give these a shot, make sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram @realfoodcamping and #realfoodcamping!
Happy camping,
-Jess
Chicken & Waffles
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
- Fry Pan or Griddle
- Waffle Iron
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Strips
- 8 oz Hot Sauce
- 4-6 oz Barbecue Sauce (enough to evenly coat chicken)
- Maple Syrup
Instructions
- Skip to step #3 for less spicy version.
- Place chicken strips into disposable storage bag
- Add hot sauce and coat chicken strips
- Heat griddle to medium-high heat
- Place chicken strips on the griddle and cook
- When chicken strips are thoroughly cooked coat in BBQ sauce
- Leave on griddle on low until BBQ sauce is sticky and waffles are done
Waffles
- Prepare waffles according to instructions in the Easy Grain Free Waffle Recipe
- If using a fire-pit waffle iron, be sure to use caution and follow manufacturer's directions for use.
Assemble
- To assemble your chicken and waffles, top one waffle with a few chicken strips
- Drizzle maple syrup over the top
- Enjoy!
Notes
- For a less spicy version skip steps 1 & 2 and grill plain chicken strips before coating in BBQ Sauce.
- If using a fire-pit waffle iron you may need to include more batter than what is called for in the recipe. Start with a 1/4 cup and add more to evenly coat your waffle iron.
- Cook times for the waffles will vary if using a fire-pit waffle iron or a larger waffle iron. Bake until waffle has reached a golden brown color for best results.
Easy Grain-Free Waffles
Equipment
- Waffle Iron
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- Meauring Cups & Spoons
Ingredients
- ½ cup Almond Flour
- ¼ cup Coconut Flour
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 8 Eggs
- ½ cup Unsweetened Coconut Milk (or dairy free milk of choice)
- 1 tbsp Maple Syrup
- 1 tsp Cinnamon (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat Dash waffle iron.
- Whisk dry ingredients together to remove all clumps.
- Mix eggs, milk, and maple syrup in separate bowl. Combining well.
- Whisk wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Combine well and let batter sit for 2 minutes.
- Spray Dash waffle iron with oil. Pour 2-3 tablespoons of batter into hot waffle iron. Close iron and set timer for 4 minutes.
- When the timer goes off, make sure waffles have reached a golden brown appearance. Place finished waffle on cooling rack.
- Repeat until all the waffles are baked.
Notes
- You can mix up the dry ingredients ahead of time and store in an air tight container. This makes whipping up these delicious waffles easy at the campground.
- If you don’t have a Dash waffle iron, any iron will work, just make sure to use enough batter.
- If you are strict low carb/keto, use a alternative sweetener such as stevia or monk fruit.
