Yeasted Waffles

Of all the waffles i've made from scratch, these were my favorite. They were extremely crunchy, buttery, and slightly sour from the yeast. I dipped them in syrup. I dipped them in coffee. I slathered them with the last of my Nutella.

Since I was only cooking for two, I ended up with a gallon sized plastic bag stuffed with leftover waffles. I've been reheating them in the toaster, which works perfectly well if you don't mind the occasional burnt edges.

I'm working on a doozy of a cake (chocolate, caramel filling, chocolate mousse filling, milk chocolate caramel glaze...) for my friends who come over for Top Chef. I'm hoping it will turn out well; I definitely charred some candied orange peels yesterday and spilled chocolate cake batter inside the oven...

Someone asked for the rhubarb compote recipe I used. I can't remember where I found it, but it involved rhubarb, sugar, and orange juice and zest.


Yeasted Waffles
adapted from Cook's Illustrated

The batter must be made 12 to 24 hours in advance. If you want to keep waffles warm, place them on a wire rack set above a baking sheet, cover them with a clean kitchen towel, and place the baking sheet in a 200-degree oven. When the final waffle is in the iron, remove the towel to allow the waffles to crisp for a few minutes. (They are better fresh though). You can also freeze cooked waffles and reheat them in the toaster on a very low setting.

1 3/4 cups whole milk , or low-fat milk, or skim milk
8 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into 8 pieces
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Heat milk and butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat until butter is melted, 3 to 5 minutes. Cool milk/butter mixture until warm to touch. Meanwhile, whisk flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in large bowl to combine. Gradually whisk warm milk/butter mixture into flour mixture; continue to whisk until batter is smooth. In small bowl, whisk eggs and vanilla until combined, then add egg mixture to batter and whisk until incorporated. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 12 and up to 24 hours.

2. Following manufacturer’s instructions, heat waffle iron; remove waffle batter from refrigerator when waffle iron is hot (batter will be foamy and doubled in size). Whisk batter to recombine (batter will deflate). Bake waffles according to manufacturer’s instructions (use about ½ cup for 7-inch round iron and about 1 cup for 9-inch square iron). Serve waffles immediately or hold in low temperature oven.