I saw this recipe for ham and cheese waffles while I was reading the March issue of Bon Appetit on the way home from Florida.
I immediately thought of my friend Francie, who introduced me to the concept of waffles and beer for dinner. This was going to take it to the next level. I simply had to make and blog these. For Francie.
Problem is (was) that I don't personally own a waffle iron and since I've lived happily without for so long, I couldn't justify buying one simply to make one recipe. So I had to dog-ear and shelve the idea until my mother got home from Florida last month, and then ask to borrow her waffle iron. Then she had to find it and she had to get it to me, blah blah blah...
Finally all the stars aligned last night. Jeeps was in the city. Redman was content with a scrambled egg. Panda and I were going to make these waffles for ourselves.
I halved the recipe, as always when trying something new. And I'll skip to the happy ending: I wish I had made the whole recipe because they were AWESOME. As the magazine piece put it, "pillowy and steaming, studded with crisp bits of ham...cheese for an oozy factor and lacy, crunchy edges..."
Oh very yes and yesser. I will be keeping Mom's waffle iron for the summer.
Yet the road to the prize was fraught with danger. Read on...
Francie's Ham and Cheese Waffles
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 3 eggs, separated
- 1 cup (2 sticks) melted butter
- 1 cup buttermilk (I used milk with a little greek yogurt stirred in)
- 3/4 cup soda water (I assume they mean seltzer water, which I didn't have, so I used regular water and couldn't tell that anything was amiss with the resulting waffles)
- 3-4 slices of ham, diced
- Shredded sharp cheddar cheese (I only had mozzarella on hand)
Preheat your oven to the lowest setting and place a plate on the rack. This is just your holding tank to keep the made waffles warm. If people are just going to be eating them as they come off the iron, don't bother.
Heat waffle iron until very hot
Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl
Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl until soft peaks form
Whisk the egg yolks, melted butter, butter milk and soda water in a third bowl. Whisk this into the flour mixture and then fold in the egg whites.
Coat waffle iron with Pam. Pour batter onto iron, spreading it to edges.
Sprinkle a rounded tablespoon of ham, and a rounded tablespoon of cheese over batter. Close lid and cook until golden brown and cooked through.
Now I know you're excited, but please, don't peek. I repeat:
DO NOT PEEK AT THE WAFFLE WHILE IT IS COOKING!!
You peeked, didn't you? Oh, stop crying. Just accept blame, unplug the iron, let it cool down, clean it up and try again. Your daughter will eat all the edible scraps you pick out anyway. It's going to be fine.
Try again. This time, close the lid and leave it.
There you go. See how nice?
Serve with butter and maple syrup.
And beer.
Die.
