This is another one of those waffle recipes that I decided to sneak onto the breakfast table even though it's really meant to be more of a dessert. (That said, there are a lot of things that get billed as breakfast foods that really should be considered more of a treat/dessert, so I feel that this is fair.)

As with some of my other recent recipes, I substituted sweetened red wine for the port and slivered almonds for sliced. I also used a mix of white and whole wheat flour for the waffles. I pretty much stuck to the script otherwise though.

Waffles with Cherries in Port Syrup and Whipped Goat Cheese

Slightly adapted from Waffles: Sweet, Savory, Simple by Dawn Yanagihara

Ingredients

• 1 c. port (or 1 c. red wine + 2 Tbsp. brown sugar)
• 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 10 black peppercorns
• 1 strip orange zest
• 1/4 vanilla bean
• 250g fresh or frozen cherries, pitted and halved
• 140g fresh goat cheese (chère)
• 1/4 c. heavy (35%) cream
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 4 plain, malted, or Belgian waffles
• 1/4 c. sliced almonds¹, toasted

Directions

1. Combine the port, sugar, peppercorns, orange zest, and vanilla bean section and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
2. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, until reduced by ~1/2.
3. Strain the syrup and pour it over the cherries. Let stand for 1 hour.
4. Meanwhile, beat the goat cheese with the cream and sugar until smooth and somewhat fluffy.
5. Make your waffles (or recrisp them in the oven if they were made ahead).
6. Spoon some cherries and syrup over each waffle and top with a dollop of goat cheese.
7. Sprinkle with almonds and serve.

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¹ Slivered will do in a pinch here if you don't have sliced, but I do think that sliced would have been nicer texturally. ^Back