Heart-Shaped Waffles

 HEART-SHAPED WAFFLES

They’re so quick to make from scratch, and so delicious and festive and homey. I put a recipe for them in my LOVE Book (p.41) … but recently I found the most perfect waffle iron, not electric! and wanted to show you because there will be many times in the months to come where heart-shaped waffles will be the perfect thing. This time I used a girlfriend-approved gluten-free waffle recipe made with crunchy cornmeal . . . so here we go! First, into your mixing bowl goes 3/4 c. medium-grind cornmeal. (Don’t worry I’ll put the full recipe at the bottom of this post.)

. . . then add the same amount of gluten-free all-purpose flour. I got mine from King Arthur Flour ~ measure for measure, and completely interchangeable for “real” flour.

Whisk in baking soda and baking powder   . . .

add cinnamon and nutmeg . . .

And a tiny bit of sugar . . . and whisk all dry ingredients together well.

Mix a cup of buttermilk with two beaten eggs . . .

Melt two TB of butter over low heat . . .

Add the buttermilk-egg mixture to the dry ingredients along with the melted butter, and whisk until well blended. It’s supposed to be thick.

And here’s what makes it fun. You know whenever I get something I love I try to carry it in our web store? Well, this pan makes these waffles so easy ~ all you do is pour the batter into one side of the pre-warmed pan. (It’s coated so nothing sticks, although I also spray it lightly with vegetable oil~ the top separates from the bottom for easy cleaning). And something I didn’t do, because this was my first time using this pan, I didn’t take a spatula and spread the batter evenly. But you can and should. The first time you use this pan, it seems like you might have to hurry . . . but you don’t, you have all the time in the world, because you can regulate the heat under it. And the handle doesn’t get hot!

You just fill one side of the pan with batter, put the lid down, and wait a few minutes while it cooks over medium-high heat. And yes, you can peek! And if it’s going too fast, pull it off the heat, or lower it . . . and yes, it works with an electric stove too.

And while I was waiting the few minutes for it to cook, just outside my kitchen window  . . .

… a squirrel was having his breakfast too!

He saw me see him! Here’s where he tried to decide if I was real, and if I was, how actually close was I? He finally figured it all out, and went right back to stuffing his face, confident of the double-glass that separated us, oblivious to me and my camera!

I turned the waffle maker over, cooked a bit longer to brown the other side, and there they were! You can lift the lid and put it back down until they are the crispness you desire. You can see that if I had spread the batter better, the hearts would have been perfect! But perfect?

Joe thought they were perfect, buttered and syruped. And that’s all that mattered.

Here’s the pan … it’s very thin and can even go into the dishwasher. Way better than the old electric waffle irons!

When we sell them in our store, we include the recipe card above, with the original recipe. Hope you get a chance to try them! (By the way, the recipes work in any shape waffle iron!) Next time I’m going to add a little bit more milk, and put in 1/4 c. cocoa powder and make chocolate waffles!

With all my L O V E …. XOXO 

H E A R T  –  S H A P E D ,   G L U T E N  –  F R E E ,   C O R N    W A F F L E S 

  • 3/4 c. gluten-free all purpose flour
  • 3/4 c. med. grind cornmeal
  • 1 Tbsp. sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 c. milk or buttermilk
  • 2 Tbsp. melted butter

Lightly spray your waffle iron with vegetable oil, and preheat it. Melt 2 Tbsp. butter. Whisk dry ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk eggs well, whisk in buttermilk. Add egg mixture to dry ingredients along with melted butter and whisk until well mixed.  Use a measuring cup to pour batter into the waffle maker, filling each heart, spreading the batter to get into all the holes. Close waffle maker, cook for a few minutes, turn the pan over, cook for a bit longer. Check for color, and cook until browned and crisp. They pop right out of the pan when you are ready. Keep warm in the oven while you make more, or serve immediately, hot with butter and heated maple syrup, powdered sugar, or fresh fruit. If you’d like chocolate waffles, add 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder to dry ingredients, and 1 TB additional milk. ❣️