Anything you wake up to knowing it's *almost ready to go for breakfast is my kind of weekend treat. I LOVE this recipe. You can toss it together the night before, and then when you wake up, add two eggs, a 1/4 tsp of baking soda, and your batter is set.
Aside from the simplicity of these, I also love the batter's slight complexity. With a mixture of flours and some overnight fermenting the result they yield offers a subtle sourdough flavor along with this lovely balance of lightness from the yeast, yet earthiness from the grains. I'm not saying these are health food by any means. They have integrity though. You feel like you are eating a nourishing special delight. Safe to say, we make these almost every weekend. I don't anticipate that changing anytime either.
Ingredients for the night before:
3 cups flour (I like 2 1/3 cups all purpose and 2/3 cup buckwheat as its a very intense deep grainy flour, yet if you can't find or don't like buckwheat whole meal, or spelt also work, and you can up the ratio to 1 cup whole meal or 3/4 cup spelt. Play about and use your favorite combo)
1 packet yeast or 2.5 tsp yeast
1-2 tbsp honey, maple syrup, brown rice syrup ... a bit of something sweet
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups milk (I use 1 cup whole milk and 1 cup water, if you are using skim milk, rice milk, or a less full body milk I recommend using 2 cups of that straight up. If you are using a milk with some fat to it like cashew almond or whole then doing 1/2 that and 1/2 water makes sense)
1 stick or 1/2 cup melted butter or earth balance
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup warm water
For the next day:
2 eggs
1/4 tsp baking soda
In a large bowl place the 1-2 tsp, a dollop really, of sweetener, aka yeast food. Add in 1/2 cup warm water and sprinkle on top of that the yeast. While the yeast is doing its magic melt 1 stick of butter, and measure out 2 cups of the milk of your choice into either a large measuring cup or a small bowl. Add the vanilla and cooled melted butter to the milk for your wet ingredients. By the time thats done, add your flours to the large bowl with your yeast, and on top of the flours add your salt. This way the salt doesn't directly come into contact with the yeast. Then pour in your wet mixture and mix. No need to over mix this, yet if you do that's ok too. The beauty of this resting so long is that the flours will have time to rest and the yeast will start to break things down a bit anyways. Once ready place a lid or clean dish towel over the bowl and set aside on your counter until the morning. It needs to rest a minimum of 6 hours for that breakdown to really occur. That being said it's a forgiving easy batter. I'v through this together as early as 6 pm the night before for a breakfast the next morning at 9 am (a good 13 hours of resting), to as late as 10 pm the night before for a 6 am breakfast (8 hours of resting). It's always delightfully delicious.
The next morning you'll see the batter has fermented from rising and falling several times through the night and is now bit bubbly and spongey. To this add two eggs and 1/4 tsp of baking soda. Pre-heat your waffle iron. I usually use the middle setting temperature wise. You can brush melted butter or oil on your waffles iron, or use a cook spray. The coconut oil cook spray is a favorite. Once your iron is ready, using a 1/2 cup ladle or scoop add in about 1/2 cup of your batter and close the lid following your waffle iron's directions. Once it's ready, carefully take it out and plate up to your liking. Enjoy!!
This recipe makes far more than our family of three can eat in one sitting. I finish cooking them off and then freeze them for mid-week snacks and quick breakfasts. If freezing a stack, let them cool, then place a piece of parchment paper between each one to keep them from sticking together in the freezer and you have your own frozen waffles. You can pop them in a toaster over or run under the broiler for a few min and you are good to go.
"Making someone breakfast just may be on of the kindest acts one can do next to bringing them their first cup of coffee in bed. Once I met creature who did both. I married him straight away." - G. Lingone
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