Perfect Puree of Napa Valley Strawberry Review + My Homemade Belgian Waffles With Strawberry Glaze & Whipped Cream!

*Disclaimer:  This post has been compensated through a free product (s) or monetary payment.  Opinions are solely mine. All links are "no-follow" links.**

 Strawberry Topping

I usually don't eat whipped cream, but I do splurge on occasion like I did for today's post.  Since you may be having relatives from out-of-town  this recipe is perfect to serve for a fancy brunch especially if you need to impress someone like that mother-in-law, perhaps.  Besides, you can't believe how easy it is to make your own waffles. 

Did I mention my Belgian Waffle Maker is another one of my flea market finds?  I found the one I'm using this past summer at the local flea market, new in a box, for $3.00! 

What makes me feel even happier is all that money I get to save making my own waffles instead of any of those frozen, cardboard like things that pass themselves off as waffles.  Trust me, you can never go back once you taste these delicious homemade waffles for yourself.

If you don't have a Belgian Waffle Maker, you can use this same recipe in a regular waffle maker.  You'll just get more waffles to enjoy of the skinnier variety!  Thick though waffles are so much tastier to me.

Before you begin to make the waffles themselves, you need to cook up the glaze with your Perfect Puree of Napa Valley Strawberry Puree.  Prepare and chill it before starting your waffles.  Chilling the topping helps prevent your final touch of whipped cream from sinking into your gorgeous masterpiece swimming with hot fruit!

As you know, I reviewed other Perfect Puree of Napa Valley products with wonderful results.  This particular recipe would also work exquisitely with many of their others purees such as:  Cherry, Blueberry, Blackberry, etc.  Do check them out.


Strawberry Glaze Topping:

2 cups of Perfect Puree of Napa Valley Strawberry Puree
2 tablespoons of cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar
Whipped Cream  (final touch on your waffles)

You need to add the cornstarch to the puree and sugar, then cook this mixture till thickened.  It will look like canned fruit topping.  Make this topping and chill before serving on your finished waffles topped off with a few squirts of whipped cream.

My Homemade Belgian Waffle Batter:

2 cups sifted flour
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder (level spoons only)
2 eggs
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 tablespoons canola oil

Sift the dry ingredients together, add eggs and milk.  Then beat with your electric mixer or just use a whisk until everything is lump free.

This is my Homemade Belgian Waffle with Strawberry Glaze Topping.

This is such a special breakfast!

Flea Market Finds: Need a Great Gadget at a Cool Price?

In an earlier post, I told you about how much fun and money you can save visiting your local flea market, swap meet  or garage sale and promised to share my finds with you from time to time. 

You can find many useful things for a fraction of the price.

For me, a treasure does not necessarily have to be a valuable piece of jewelry or some exotic antique.  Though those things are beautiful, indeed,  I search for items I need or want to try  first before spending too much in a store for something I may hate.

Today I thought I would show you the wonderful little gadget I picked up this past summer at a flea market.  Those into baking will probably recognize this plastic gizmo as a bread slicer. 

What I really love about this simple piece of plastic is how uniform your homemade bread slices can be when you insert a loaf and use your electric knife to cut.   You can control how thick or thin to get those slices, which is hard to do when slicing by hand. 

Slicing thin is especially helpful for watching how much of that delicious homemade bread you eat.  After all, homemade bread is so much tastier than that commercial bagged stuff that tastes like sponge.  I guess you can call me spoiled in that respect.

Another marvelous thing about using a bread slicer comes to making big, thick slices for homemade French Toast. 

For $1.00, I think I found a real bargain.  If you ever see one, I highly recommend grabbing it for yourself because it's a fantastic kitchen helper. 

How to Shop for Treasures at the Flea Market

You can find practically anything like my hard-working $3.00 toaster oven.

Some people wouldn't waste their time going to a flea market, swap meet, or garage sale.  They assume that everything is just "junk."  Ha!  The truth is you need to come and shop early or you'll miss that great bargain and end up with the same wrong opinion.

The Early Bird Catches the Worm

I just love hunting for treasures.  As I walk through a crowded flea market and browse tables filled with merchandise, I found some incredible deals, which I'm going to share with you from time to time in this special column.

If you're starting out a home, then you should definitely consider visiting a flea market or some garage sales because you can basically get everything you need to furnish a place cheap. 

Let me show you one of the things I picked up over the summer.  This is not a valuable antique, but it was something I needed since my built-in oven died.  I had needed to buy a toaster oven big enough to bake in, but I happened to stumble on this Hamilton Beach model at the flea market instead.  I never tried baking in any toaster oven until this fantastic $3.00 purchase! 

As you can see from the photograph, this is the same oven that I made my recipes in.  This is continuing to be my only oven until my kitchen is remolded and I'm rid of those 51-year-old built in appliances, which is a nightmare when it comes to replacing.  

My flea market find is larger than the small toaster ovens.  I can fit two bread loaf pans inside or the size of a small sheet cake pan like I shown you in my recipes.  This size is wonderful and I still bake just not the same amounts as I did with my old oven with big cookie sheets.  But for $3.00 I am happily baking and testing out a product I never used before, but I would buy again.  Shopping at the flea market, I got to test it out first before wasting about $100 for a toaster oven I may have hated.

Be Prepared to Walk Away If You Plan to Negotiate

For the record, I didn't even have to negotiate a price.  The seller just wanted to get rid of the oven.  To her, the $3.00 was better in her pocket than sitting around in her basement.

Another plus I learned from using this toaster oven was savings on my electric bill.  With such a good deal like this one, you would be nuts about visiting the flea market for your next bargain too!

How to Get Rid of Clutter and Make Quick Cash

Cleaning your clutter can be profitable.

If you don't know what to do with all those toys the kids don't play with anymore, clothes they outgrew, books you've read, or simply anything in your house that you're tired of--then I have a suggestion.  Plan for a future selling day at your local flea market. 

Decide What You Don't Need and Prep Your Items

Buy several of those plastic tubs with lids and start now.  Once you find something needing to be rid of, price it, and then put it in your tub.  By the time the warm weather rolls around, you'll have those tubs filled and ready to go.

Make sure everything that you stick in your tubs are in good condition.  Clean toys bring more money than ones parked in the garage with grime or dusty books.  Don't expect ripped or spotted clothes and games that are missing pieces to sell. 

Maybe you are without card tables for displaying your merchandise.  No problem!  An old blanket, shower curtain, or spread works well on the ground.  Another solution is displaying your things from your container or boxes.  Customers love to root through boxes, hoping to get  treasures first.

Take Someone With You to Help Setup and Deal With Sales

Encourage your husband and children to join you for a nice family outing.  Kids can learn the value of a dollar selling along Mom and Dad and responsibility as a part of the team.  Allow them to help bag or watch your items.  Reward them with a set amount to search for their own treasure, perhaps, with you or Dad later.  

Your husband may not be able to come.  Take along a friend with you on selling day--and return the favor to help her de-clutter.  A second pair of eyes is helpful to watch your items  when you need a bathroom break.  

A Fanny Pack and Packing Your Own Lunch Is Helpful and a Conversation Starter 

Make sure you wear a fanny pack with enough change to catch that sale.  People usually go to the banking machine and return with twenties for you.  Have a few bundles of change: a ten-dollar bill, five-dollar and five one-dollar bills ready.  

I recommend packing your own lunch the night before.  Make a thermos of coffee or take soda.  Throw in a large straw hat and wear sunscreen.  By all means, bring plenty of plastic bags for all the items you'll sell!

Don't get me wrong.  You won't come home a millionaire.  However, you will come home with some extra money you didn't have before, probably a nice "perk" of something you never expected to find like an out-of-print book you wanted to read for so long but missed or maybe a collectible vase for that vacant spot on your mantel.  The possibilities are endless and you'll have fun!