Incredible Lightness of Being
For Americans, there are three culinary items that are most readily associated with Belgium and that are absolutely délicieuse: Beer; Chocolate; and Waffles. Of the
3, the 'Belgium' waffles tha are offered in too many restaurants across the U.S are very poor representations of the true Belgium waffle. The confusion is that in appearance, the American 'Belgium' waffle has the thickness of the true Belgium waffle. But, it does have the latter's incredible lightness of being, literally. Like me, once you have had a true Belgium waffle, you will reject those of the American restaurants. Like me, you will ask the following question at restaurants before ordering: "Are your Belgium waffles yeast-raised?" You will likely get a confused expression by the waiter/waitress. That is the key question as the following recipe explains. Most often these fake waffles are simply made from pancake batter.
1 package dry yeast
2 cups lukewarm milk
4 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups sifted flour 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar 1/2 cup melted butter
Sprinkle yeast over warm milk; stir to dissolve. Beat egg yolks and add to yeast mxiture with vanilla. Sift together flour, salt and sugar; add to liquid ingredients. Stir in melted butter and combine thoroughly. beat the egg whites until stiff; carefully fold into batter. Let mixture stand in a warm place about 45 minutes or until mixture doubles in bulk. Stir down the mixture, and use 1 cup per waffle.