Vegan Pinole-Chia Waffles

These aren’t just any vegan waffle — they’re based on the diet of the Tarahumara, a Mexican tribe of super-athlete ultra-marathoners. Even if you’re not out to run the marathon in record time, these are super tasty, great for a sweet tooth, and dense with nutrients and foods lacking in junk.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup cornmeal or pinole, medium to finely ground
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1/4 cup oats, ground
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 cup hemp milk
• One tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. If starting with cornmeal instead of Pinole, toast it lightly in a pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until it is lightly browned and fragrant. If you are using real pinole, grind in a coffee grinder to make into a fine-textured flour.
2. Preheat waffle iron.
3. Stir together the cornmeal, chia, ground oats, salt, and baking powder. In a separate bowl, mix together the applesauce, hemp milk, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. (The coconut oil needs to be at warm temperature or warmer to mix, so you may need to microwave it to get it to a liquid state.)
4. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry to combine into a smooth batter. Spray the waffle iron with baking spray even if it is nonstick, and pour batter into hot iron. Follow the directions of your waffle iron, or wait until the iron stops steaming.
5. Carefully remove waffles from iron, re-spray the waffle iron with cooking spray, and repeat. This was enough batter to fill my waffle iron two and a half times, making 5 small waffles.
6. To enjoy immediately, top with maple syrup and the fruits of your choice. Alternatively, slice into bars, freeze and take on your next run.