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Iowa Recipe Quest-Cooking With Iowa’s Brews, Wines, & Spirits: Pumpkin Waffles w/ Sutliff Cider Caramel Sauce

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Sutliff Hard Apple Cider: Lisbon, Iowa

It’s pumpkin season and we have felt the pressure to conform and come up with a recipe featuring the great squash king. We needed something to pair with it and the folks at Sutliff Cider came through for one of the greatest, ooey-gooey, brown sugary, caramel sauces that has ever flowed. If you all get your chores done, you can lick the spoon…..after I go first.

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It’s Halloween season at the official sponsor of Iowa Recipe Quest! The North Dodge Hy-Vee in Iowa City supplied The Iowa Gallivant with another great round of groceries!

Prep Time: 20 minutes     Cook Time: 1 hour     Yield: 12 waffles & 4 cups caramel sauce

For the caramel sauce:

  • 1 bottle (25.36 fluid oz) Sutliff Hard Cider
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1 cold stick SALTED butter, sliced
  • 2 cups dark brown sugar
  • 1 cup dark Karo corn syrup

Pour all the hard cider into a heavy bottom saucepan on high heat. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Reduce cider by half. Perhaps I should have mentioned earlier to get multiple bottles of Sutliff Hard Cider. One for the recipe and the rest for that happy belly of yours. But you knew this system already. Add the milk, brown sugar, and corn syrup and whisk. Add the butter one piece at a time letting each one melt while whisking constantly. Turn heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes. Let’s get those pumpkin waffles prepped while that wicked brew of caramel bubbles itself to perfection.

For the pumpkin waffles:

  • 3 cups AP flour
  • 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon clove
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried ginger
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 extra large eggs
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
  • 1 stick melted unsalted butter

Turn waffle maker on to high. Please tell me you have a waffle maker! OK, lets get going. And welcome back to everyone that just ran out to get a sweet new waffle maker. Mix together flour, brown sugar, clove, ginger, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Next, add eggs, syrup, milk, condensed milk, pumpkin, and butter and thoroughly whisk until batter is smooth with no lumps. Leave a lump in there. I dare you. Check in on that caramel sauce and give it a quick stir. Pour batter into the waffle maker and cook until baked through. These will be somewhat soft waffles due to all the pumpkin in the batter… which makes it perfect for ice cream! Cut hot waffles into fourths and layer with vanilla ice cream. Pour a heavy amount of the Sutliff Hard Cider over the top waffle, garnish with chopped pecans, and dried cranberries. We had an peach hanging out and welcomed it on to our plate as well.

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We manged to get through this dessert just fine. Or is it breakfast? Maybe brunch? To tell you the truth we had it for dinner. That’s how we roll, folks. And you can, too!

Be sure to read about more of our kitchen adventures in Iowa Recipe Quest!

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