Best Waffles Ever

I have the pickiest child in the world. In the history of mankind, maybe. What kid doesn't like watermelon? Or hot dogs? My kid, that's who.


She does like these waffles, though, and you bet I'm going to make them for Easter Brunch this Sunday. 

Also delicious with ice cream... just sayin'...

Best Waffles Ever


(Makes about twelve large waffles. These freeze really well.)


3 cups flour, sifted
1 cup cornstarch
2 tsp salt
2 tesp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups buttermilk (I buy it in those dried packets and add it in with the dry ingredients. The water goes in with the milk. Follow the directions on the box and you'll be fine, or go ahead and buy a carton of buttermilk.)
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups veg oil - yeah, that's a lot of oil. But this makes a lot of waffles.
4 eggs, separated
4 TBS sugar
2 tsp vanilla


Heat oven to 200 degrees. Mix flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder and baking soda (and the buttermilk powder if you're going that route)  in a large bowl.


Measure buttermilk, (or just the three cups of water if you're doing the powdered buttermilk thang), milk, and vegetable oil in a small bowl. Mix in yolk and set aside. At this point you want to start heating your waffle iron.


Beat egg whites to almost soft peaks. Sprinkle in sugar and continue to beat until white and glossy. Beat in vanilla extract.


Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed. Add egg white mixture in dollops. Fold them in until just incorporated.


Add batter to hot waffle iron and cook until crisp and nutty brown. Set waffle on rack on a baking tray in oven to keep warm, unless your family devours them right out of the waffle iron, like mine does.


Serve with syrup and fresh fruit to make you feel better about that oil.


Of course, you can add chocolate chips, wheat germ, orange zest, coarsely chopped dried cranberries....

Brunch Ideas

It's coming up to Spring Holiday time. Whether you call it Easter, Passover, or Spring Solstice, there are birds in the trees and pollen in the air.

At Casa DeLuca, we do an Easter Brunch. I always serve the Best Waffles Ever, and if you are very good I'll share the recipe this week. I make crepes and an egg strata, and plop a huge plate of bacon on the table. Stand back, and let the carnage begin.


Here is what I would really like to serve, although there are reasons that I do not serve these things:


1. Robin's Eggs - Those brightly egg-shaped malted milk balls in a candy shell. I could eat them for brunch and have them for dessert afterwards. Why don't I serve them? Because I would eat THE ENTIRE BAG, THAT IS WHY.

Nom nom nom

2. Bellinis - The combo of champagne, freshly squeezed orange juice, peach nectar, and a dab of peach liquor : Hang on, I do serve them at brunch. Carry on.

Let's all start drinking at breakfast! Okay!

3. Peeps: The more neon the peep the better. And did you ever have a chocolate covered peep? That's right, dunk the little chick or bunny in melted chocolate and let it set in the fridge. But apparently they are frowned upon as a brunch food, so I'll just have to steal one or two from my kid's basket later.

And yes, I have to puncture the box so they get a little crunchy. It's just how I roll.

4. Matzo Ball Soup - My friend makes the best MBS ever. EVER. I don't think I can get the recipe for you, though. She gives us all one small container each year, and I suck it down faster than Norm with a beer at Cheers. I don't serve it because I don't have her recipe. (Hi, girlfriend! Waving at you! Yes, this is a hint!)

5. Crispy Bacon Crisps - Because they are good any time, any place. But I only have one bag that I smuggled into the country from the UK, and I don't share them.

Go get your own.

The French Disconnection

I've noticed a growing trend in television and films (such as Mad Men and Awake) lately, and one that occurs in some of the best written scripts. There  seems to be a strange disconnect between the characters, as though they are all speaking a different language and cannot understand each other.

I first saw it in Lost, when I was such a huge fan. Someone (usually Hurley) would say something that  was perfectly pleasant, and no one would respond with corresponding pleasantness. Then, when someone else would say something nice to Hurley, he would respond with a cutting remark or an incredulous scoff - there are loads of incredulous scoffs, if you begin to notice- and walk off, alone.

Of course Sawyer was a master at this, with his oft-repeated "Yeah, well, what do you know about it, doc?"

It happens in Twilight - in both the books and the movies - where Alice, as hard as she tries, just  can't seem to connect with Bella in true friendship. I see it in Awake, although there I give the writers a pass, since they are dealing with themes of  recent loss and devastating life changes. I do hope that  some connections begin to develop between Michael and his partners, however.

Mad Men is a repeat offender. The women in the office just can't find a footing for a friendship beyond bitching about the boss or snippy gossip. In fact, the one way the characters really connect is with sex. And I say all this with love - I am a Mad Men fiend.

It was particularly noticeable when Peggy defended  Joan, and that gorgeous redhead responded by biting back. Peggy's reaction to that was, "Excuse me?!" And I felt like applauding.

Is it  a mark of good writing to have constant loneliness and a lack of friendship between the characters? Has that become a hallmark of a well-written script? Perhaps that is why Pulp Fiction and The Shawshank Redemption stand out for me, since they showcase believable friendships and continuing, deepening connections.

Maybe, in a plot-driven show,  it is difficult to give time to a real human connection - but, no. I refuse to believe it. It  can be done. The writers are incredibly talented, and I hope that friendship does become a bigger theme in the future.