Power Waffles

There’s something special about the smell of cinnamon in the air on a weekend morning. That was my thought when I decided to make special waffles—power waffles—to start our Saturday a couple weeks ago. The recipe, adapted from one by Rochelle Palermo and published in the March 1999 issue of Bon Appétit, uses a batter that can be started the night before. That makes the finishing steps the next morning quite easy to do.

The batter gets some of its power from combining three grains—oats, all-purpose flour, and buckwheat flour—with the warm taste of cinnamon. The light texture of the waffles is partly due to a bit of yeast that does its rising act overnight in the refrigerator.

The next morning, quickly beaten egg whites, melted butter, and baking powder go in to add even more volume. Yes, due to the buckwheat flour, the raw batter has a hue somewhat like wet cement, but don’t let that scare you.

You will be amazed by the crisp, light, golden waffles that come off the iron.

They are the perfect platform for fresh strawberries, bananas, and sliced almonds.

A drizzle of warm maple syrup tops off the waffles just right.

It turns out that slowing down and smelling the cinnamon is a good power move.

Note: I also had good results when I made the starter batter in the morning and allowed it to rise for one hour at room temperature.

Power Waffles

Sunnyside Cook

Dawn Dobie

Three types of flour give these cinnamon-scented waffles a good crunch and excellent flavor.

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Prep Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 1 1/4 cups low-fat milk or soy milk heated to 105° F to 115° F
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
• 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 egg whites beaten until frothy
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted (or vegetable oil)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• sliced bananas
• sliced strawberries
• sliced almonds
• Maple syrup

Instructions

 

• Mix warm milk with sugar and yeast in a medium bowl. Allow to stand for about 10 minutes, until it becomes foamy.
• Mix the all-purpose flour, buckwheat flour, oats, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Add yeast mixture to flour-oat mixture, stirring to combine. The batter will be very thick. Cover with plastic wrap. Let sit at room temperature for one hour or refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Place a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet.
• Preheat Belgian waffle iron.
• Using a mixer, beat the egg whites until they are frothy. Pour the melted butter over the top of the yeasty batter and mix in with a whisk. Fold in the egg whites, and right before they’re totally incorporated, sprinkle the baking powder over the batter and mix in.
• Brush the surfaces of the waffle iron with a bit of butter.
• Pour about 1 cup of batter onto the waffle iron. If necessary, spread it with a spatula, then close the iron and allow to bake until the waffle is golden and thoroughly cooked, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer the cooked waffle to the cooling rack and place in warm oven.
• Repeat to make remaining waffles.
• Serve waffles with sliced bananas, strawberries, and almonds (or fruit and nuts of your choice) as well as warm maple syrup.

Notes

Recipe can be doubled.

Adapted from a recipe by Rochelle Palermo in Bon Appétit (March 1999)