Fluffy, airy, and yeasty, crisp on the outside, hot and soft inside: the best waffles in the world.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour or gluten-free flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until the butter melts. Let cool until warm to the touch, about 105° to 110°F (if it’s hot on your finger, it’s too hot).
- Combine the flours, sugar, salt, and yeast in large bowl. Add the milk mixture and whisk until smooth. Whisk the eggs and vanilla in a small bowl until combined, then add to the batter and whisk until incorporated.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and stir until smooth. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 12 hours, and up to 24 hours.
- Heat your waffle iron (always heed the manufacturer’s instructions). Remove the waffle batter from the refrigerator. The batter will be deflated; whisk it to recombine.
- Use about 1/2 cup batter per waffle in a 7-inch round iron or about 1 cup in a 9-by-9-inch iron. Bake the waffles for 4 minutes, or until golden but not brown, and not caramelized or toasted. Serve immediately, or keep warm in a single layer on a wire rack in a 200°F oven while you cook the remaining waffles.
Sweet Cream Ice Cream
1 quart
- 2 2/3 cups whole milk
- 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 ounces (4 tablespoons) cream cheese, softened
- 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
Prep
- Mix about 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a small bowl to make a smooth slurry.
- Whisk the cream cheese and salt in a medium bowl until smooth.
- Fill a large bowl with ice and water.
Cook
- Combine the remaining milk, the cream, sugar, and corn syrup in a 4-quart saucepan, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and boil for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and gradually whisk in the cornstarch slurry.
- Bring the mixture back to a boil over medium-high heat and cook, stirring with a heatproof spatula, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
Chill
- Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese until smooth. Pour the mixture into a 1-gallon Ziploc freezer bag and submerge the sealed bag in the ice bath. Let stand, adding more ice as necessary, until cold, about 30 minutes.
Freeze
- Remove the frozen canister from the freezer, assemble your ice cream machine, and turn it on. Pour the ice cream base into the canister and spin until thick and creamy.
- Pack the ice cream into a storage container. Press a sheet of parchment directly against the surface and seal with an airtight lid. Freeze in the coldest part of your freezer until firm, at least 4 hours.
Blackberry Jam
Makes about 1 1/4 cups
- 2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
- 1 cup sugar
- Combine the berries and sugar in a 1-quart saucepan, bring to a boil over medium heat, and stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Continue boiling, stirring occasionally for 8 minutes. Let cool slightly, then force through a sieve if you want to remove the seeds.
- Refrigerate until cool, at least 2 hours.
- The jam can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Excerpted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream Desserts by Jeni Britton Bauer (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2014.