I'm makin' waffles!

I can't help but hear Eddie Murphy's voice when I say that. "I'm makin' waffles!" (Are you feelin' the Shrek in there?)

Well, my darling girl who turned nine yesterday request breakfast for dinner for her birthday. YESSSS! And she doesn't mess around. She is lover of all things breakfasty that can be covered with whipped cream.

I am soooo thankful that you brought the Joy of Cooking into my life a few years ago, because WOW. Best. Waffles. Evah.

And how happy is it to be at the start of the strawberry season for toppings to go with that waffley goodness? (Carrots have nothing to do with this post, but look what beautiful carrots we got at the organic farm?)

I have to share the waffle recipe I made (and slightly altered, of course), just for the folks who don't have the Joy of Cooking, or just need a reminder that once you make waffles from scratch, your life with waffles will never be the same. Eggo is a four-letter word to me now. Well, I guess it was all along. You know what I mean.

Check it. I do not know what makes this batter so incredibly fluffy. It was not like any batter for pancakes or waffles that I've ever made. It seemed too thick - it would not pour, but had to be scooped - and lo. It was perfection.


Buttermilk Waffles, pg. 647

Whisk these dry ingredients in a large bowl:
1 3/4 C flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 T sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Whisk these wet ingredients in a small bowl:
1 stick melted butter, (slightly cooled)
1 1/2 C buttermilk
3 eggs
1/2 tsp almond extract (my addition!)

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour the wet into the well, and mix "with a few swift strokes of the whisk".

Scoop a heaping 1/2 cup of batter onto the hot, ungreased waffle iron. If you're using a regular waffle iron, it claims to make about 6 waffles. With my belgian waffle iron, it made nearly 5.

{And since the waffle iron can only cook one at a time, I kept the others heated in the oven at 250. I moved them directly onto the oven rack because on the plate in the oven, they were getting softish underneath from the steam. Keeping them right on the rack preserved the crispiness.}

Voila. I want it for dinner once a week.



Ya know, it is the kind of thing that I may not want to make on a Saturday morning because it takes longer than using the boxed pancake/waffle mix. But for dinner, it's actually quicker than a lot of things I would make. It feels more worth it to be a dinner meal. Just for some protein, I paired the waffley goodness with some smoked chicken and apple sausages. Those I did not make from scratch. Gross.



My birthday girl did "big eyes" when we told her that her special glass was one we used in our wedding.  This time, however, it contained apple juice, Pellegrino and berries.

I didn't whip my own whipped cream. I know it is so many light years better than the canned kind. But what's fun about whipped cream on your birthday if you can't try some straight from the can?

Yeah. I shoulda taken a picture of that. I promise it was her, not me.