Light and Crispy Waffles

I love pancakes. My husband prefers waffles. But after whipping up a batch of these on a lazy Saturday morning, I may be changing (or at least sharing) my allegiance to the starchy breakfast food category. These waffles are everything I love about a good waffle--lightly crisped and slightly crunchy on the outside, while perfectly moist and airy on the inside. Top with your favorite syrup or a smorgasboard of fruits and whipped cream, and you've started your day off right! 

Light and Crispy Waffles

recipe adapted from annies-eats.com

Makes about 6 waffles. 

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1-1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup buttermilk*

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 large egg, lightly beaten

3/4 tsp vanilla extract

*Make your own buttermilk: Combine just under 1/2 cup milk plus 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice. Let sit for 2-5 minutes.

Directions

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar.  Whisk together to blend.  In another mixing bowl, beat together the whole milk, buttermilk, oil, egg and vanilla.  Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients and whisk just until incorporated and few lumps remain.  Set aside to rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat a waffle iron.  Fill waffle wells and cook according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Cook until crisp and golden.  Serve immediately.

---------

Don't miss a recipe! Subscribe.

Perfect Pizza Crust: Revisited

I've made a few different pizza crusts in the past, and for the last year or more I have resorted to the bread machine variety. It worked well and it was super easy. But today I decided we needed something new--something AMAZING. This was definitely the right recipe to choose. Though I had attempted this same recipe in 2009, I wanted to give it another try. I am so glad I did. 

The crust was out of this world! It was crisp on the bottom and cooked thoroughly, yet thick and soft and moist. Our bread machine crusts always turn out delicious, but very crisp all the way through. If I lowered the baking time, the crust was uncooked in the center which did not make me very happy. 

This recipe solves all of those problems and results in a homemade pizza that far exceeds your favorite restaurant variety. And the best part is, you can do the work once, and freeze the extra dough for later!

Basic Pizza Dough

recipe adapted from Annies-eats.com

Yields: 3 medium or 2 large pizza crusts

Ingredients

1/2 cup warm water (about 110°)

2-1/4 tsp instant yeast

1-1/4 cups water, at room temperature

2 Tbsp canola oil

4 cups flour, plus more for dusting

1-1/2 tsp salt

olive oil or non-stick cooking spray for greasing the bowl

Directions

Measure the warm water into a 2-cup liquid measuring cup.  Sprinkle in the yeast and let stand until the yeast dissolves and swells, about 5 minutes.  Add the room temperature water and oil and stir to combine.  

Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Briefly combine the dry ingredients at low speed.  Slowly add the liquid ingredients and continue to mix at low speed until a cohesive mass forms.  Stop the mixer and replace the paddle with the dough hook.  Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.  Form the dough into a ball, put it in a deep oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.  Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 ½ to 2 hours.  Press the dough to deflate it.

To bake, place a pizza stone in the lower third of the oven.  Heat the oven to 500° for at least 30 minutes.  Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface.  Divide the dough into two equal pieces.  Form both pieces of dough into smooth, round balls and cover with a damp cloth.  Let the dough relax for at least 10 minutes but no more than 30 minutes.

Working with one piece of dough and keeping the other covered, shape the dough and transfer to a pizza peel or round of parchment dusted with semolina or cornmeal.  Top as desired.  Slide the dough onto the pizza stone.  Bake until the crust edges brown and cheese

Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup

You won't believe it. But it's true. This is the first time I've ever made chicken noodle soup. I KNOW, right? Moving past the initial shock of MOI putting off THIS recipe for so long, let's take a minute and experience the glorious qualities of chicken noodle soup. 

It's warm. 

It's hearty. 

It's healthy. 

It's everything that makes you think of "home."

My favorite form of chicken noodle soup is not one of the broth-heavy types. That genre of soup is perfect for cold and flu season, but if I want a bowl of soup, I want some consistency, you know? So I filled my pot full of vegetables and chicken, and finally, the perfect amount of noodles. The result was exactly what I love--and everyone else loved it too (we shared with our small group.)

Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup

serves: 6-8 

recipe by adorkablerecipes.blogspot.com

Ingredients

5 cups chicken broth (or bouillon)

5-6 cups water

2 cups carrots, sliced thin

1 cup celery, sliced thin

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp parsley flakes

1/2 tsp dried basil

1 tsp pepper

2-3 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast

1 cup dry egg noodles

Directions

Mix all ingredients except the noodles into the crockpot pot. Keep chicken breast whole (or use pre-cooked, cut up or shredded chicken) and cut up or shred before adding in noodles during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Cook on high 4 hours, then turn to low until ready to serve. 

Italian Pizzelles

Fact. I am one fourth (1/4) Italian.

Fact. You would never know it aside from the foods I make and eat and the way I do so. 

Fact. My dad's family is very Italian. 

Fact. I grew up in a town where at least half of the population is Italian.

Fact. I never knew the quirks of my life and my town and my family were quirks until I moved away. 

Ok, now that you have the facts, I would like to introduce to a cookie that is a staple for Italian families and Italian towns. These tasty, light, crispy waffle cookies are in every grocery store and in a tin on the counter of every Italian family. That's just the way it is, and frankly, I like it that way. 

I give you the Pizzelle: 

(prounced with a "tz" as in "pizza." It's pitzelle not pizzzzzelle.)

Italian Pizzelles

recipe adapted from Cuisinart Pizzelle Press recipe book

Yields: 36-40 pizzelles

Ingredients

1-3/4 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

3 large eggs

3/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 Tbsp vanilla or anise extract (or combination)

Directions

Preheat the pizzelle press. 

In a small bowl, stir together flour and baking powder. Place eggs and sugar in a medium bowl and mix together on medium speed for 1 minute, until thickened. On low speed, add the melted butter and the extract in a steady stream. Mix until combined. Add the flour mixture and mix just until combined (about 10-15 seconds)--do not overmix.

If necessary, lightly grease the top and bottom girds of the pizzelle press. Use a 1 Tbsp cookie scoop (or spoon) to drop dough onto one of the grids and then the other. (Dough should be dropped just slightly above center.) Close and lock the lid (you will need to press down to do this.) Bake 1 to 2 minutes or according to manufacturer's directions. 

Pizzelle is cooked when it is very lightly browned. Cookie will still be soft and pliable.

Remove pizzelle from the press using a heat-safe plastic spatula and place on a cooling rack to cool completely. 

Additionally:

• Warm pizzelle may be wrapped around a thick dowel to form cannoli shells or wrapped around a waffle cone form. 
• Cooled pizzelles maybe be dusted with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Subscribe to my Recipe Feed and don't miss a post!