Waffling: A Tribute to Irma S. Rombauer

My kids are like wolves: If they sense the slightest hesitation or weakness, they will hone in for the kill. The four year old will issue deeply wounded, plaintive cries beginning with phrases like, "You NEVER let..." And the six-year-old will badger me into submission with her impeccable memory: "Remember, LAST WEEK, you said..."

So that's how I ended up making waffles for Sunday breakfast, even though I didn't really feel like it at first. I was planning on making pancakes, which I'd already promised the day before, and knew I couldn't get out of, even though I was tired. You see, I'd stayed up into the wee hours watching a particularly bad John Travolta movie on TV, all by myself because my husband was away at a conference. I don't know why I did it; but I did, and now it was 7:30 am, and they wanted waffles. "Well," I said, "I don't know... they take more time... I have to get out the waffle iron..."

You know that feeling of inertia which is so great it makes even the simplest of tasks seem like an unscalable mountain? That's how digging out the waffle iron felt to me. The kids sensed my indecision, my incoherence, my waffling, if you will, and unzipped their sheep costumes. The wolves came out and went for the jugular. I had no choice but to get down on my knees and root around in the back of a very full cabinet for the waffle iron.

Despite my grumbling, it wasn't so bad. It only took a couple of minutes to extricate it from the tangle of cords and jumble of seldom used pans. I plunked the waffle iron on the counter with a self-satisfied feeling of achievement. There! It felt good. I felt the boulder of my inertia slowly starting to roll downhill. I thought, why not try a different waffle recipe? Why not seize the day, accomplish something in life? I had already gotten the waffle iron out. What could be harder than that?

So I turned to my favorite mother-daughter team, the Rombauer ladies, to see what they had to say about waffles. It turns out quite a bit. You don't write a book containing more than 4,300 recipes by being taciturn. (I'm talking about my 1964 edition of The Joy of Cooking.) In addition to several creative serving suggestions, including illustrated instructions for cooking strips of bacon directly into your waffle, I learned that the more fat you add to your waffle batter, the crispier your waffles will be. I never knew that! Then, I hit this: "We also suggest beating egg whites separately for a superbly light waffle."

Internal groan. Oh crap, do I have to? I already got out the waffle iron. Isn't that enough? Can't I just mix the eggs in whole?

Then I thought about Ms. Rombauer, and how her husband committed suicide by shooting himself through the mouth with a shotgun, and needing a source of income, she, a complete amateur, decided to write what turned out to be one of the most ubiquitous, and used, cookbooks in America. (She self-published the first edition. I like to think of her as a proto-blogger.)

No. You are going to separate those eggs, if it's the Last. Thing. You. Do.  So I did it. I let the mucousy whites slip through my fingers into a bowl, and I deposited the velvety yolks into another bowl. I beat those egg whites until my arm hurt, and then beat them some more until my arm was numb. Then I gently folded the white foam into the batter, just like Ms. Rombauer told me to.

And? She was right. My waffles turned out superbly light. In fact, they turned out so superbly light that I'm going to have to make my waffles like that every time from now on. There's no going back, sore arm be damned.

(A little tip: Put your leftover waffles in the fridge or freezer, and then warm them up in the toaster when you are ready to eat them. Just like store bought! But way tastier, as long as you don't burn them.)

Superbly Light Waffles
Adapted from The Joy of Cooking (1964 edition)
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
3 egg yolks
3 tablespoons canola oil
1½ cups milk
3 egg whites

Start heating your waffle iron. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar to a large mixing bowl and mix well. Separate three eggs, then beat the yolks. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, and add the yolks, oil, and milk. Stir until just combined and moistened. Do not over-mix. Using a wire whisk, beat the egg whites until they are all foamy. Fold the egg whites very gently into the batter. Scoop ladlefuls of batter onto your waffle iron and make the waffles according to your waffle iron's instructions. (On mine, the little green light which signals the waffle is done is broken. I can tell the waffle is done when no more steam is coming out.) Serve with butter and maple syrup or honey. And a badly needed cup of coffee.