Waffles

I don't need to tell you how good waffles are. They are the perfect vehicle for cream, honey, syrup, berries or chocolate. Or you can go the savoury way with gravy, chicken or cheese. Either way, waffles are amazing.

Waffle batter is pretty similar to that of pancakes but there is one prominent distinction - butter. Not that pancakes dont call for butter, but waffles always call for a fair amount of butter. Butter is what gives waffles its crisp light texture and ensure that it releases easily for the waffle iron. The more butter in the batter (sounds like a tongue twister no?), the richer, crispier the waffle. For lactose intolerant peeps, you can substitute 3tbsp vegetable oil for evey 4tbsp butter.



Makes approx. 8 waffles

2cups flour
1tsb baking powder
1tbsp castor sugar*
1/2tsp salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk
1 cup melted butter**

*Since I was going to top my waffles with whipped cream and strawberry compote, I went a little low on the sugar in the waffle batter. 1tbsp sugar is also perfect for making savoury waffles. If you will be eating the waffles as is, add in another tbsp of sugar

** Use 4tbsp of butter for a 'low calorie' waffle, 8 tbsp (or 1 stick) for a classic fluffy waffle or 200gms for the crunchiest waffles ever

In a large bowl mix all your dry ingredients i.e: flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. In another bowl, mix in the wet ingredients i.e: eggs, butter and milk. Ensure that your melted butter is not hot while mixing it with eggs. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Whisk to combine.

Heat the waffle iron until your indicator shows its ready. Ladle on the waffle batter, enough to cover around 2/3rd of the grid surface. Close the lid. My waffle maker takes 7-10mins to make a batch of waffles. Cooking time will depend on individual waffle makers. A waffle is ready when steam stops emerging from the cracks of the iron. If you lift the top and the waffle shows resistance, it means that the waffle is still not done.



Waffles can be kept warm in an oven on low heat. This will also help retain its crispiness until you are ready to serve. Leftovers can be refrigerated for 2-3days or frozen for several months.

I served mine in two batches: one with strawberry compote and whipped cream, and the other with some irish cream and whipped cream. Yummy in my tummy!



Tip: you can separate the eggs and beat the whites separately and incorporate for a lighter, fluffier waffle

Strawberry Parfait

It's that time of the year again! Fruits are aplenty and strawberries are leading the pack. Now I had a lot of leftovers from all that Christmas baking - a little cream here, a little jelly there - and the most obvious thing to make would be a trifle. But this post is titled parfait and not trifle so this begs the question, what is the difference between a parfait and a trifle? They are both layered desserts which pretty much look the same. Well after a lot of digging around I think it fundamentally boils down to two key ingredients that make a trifle which do not usually feature in a parfait - one is cake and the other is custard. Cake and custard is essential for a trifle while a parfait usually is made of ice cream or whipped cream. Not earth shattering distinctions if you ask me but tasty all the same.



My parfait today comprises of everything I had leftover from Christmas, namely whipping cream, mascarpone cheese and cranberry jelly. So I just got some strawberries (because everything is better with strawberries!) and whipped up this dessert.



It makes more sense to serve this dessert in fancy glasses as individual portions, but you can also layer it in a trifle bowl if you like.

Makes enough for 12

250gms digestive or glucose biscuits
2tbsp melted butter
250gms of cranberry jelly *
250gms Mascarpone cheese
250gms whipping cream
50gms castor sugar
500gms strawberries

*adding jelly is optional, I had some homemade cranberry jelly in the fridge and hence I used it up.



Whip the whipping cream till triple in size. Add the mascarpone cheese and sugar and whip again. If the mixture looks too thick, add a little milk. You can also add a little booze or liquor to cream if you like.

Crush the biscuits to a coarse crumb texture. Drizzle in the melted butter and mix thoroughly. Slice strawberries into bite sized pieces. You can also choose to slightly mash the strawberries with a fork. If your strawberries are too tart, sprinkle some castor sugar on top of it and then mash.

To assemble, line up all the serving glasses. Add the biscuit mix to the bottom of the glass and gently press down. Now add in the jelly. Top with a big spoonful of strawberries followed by the cream mixture. Repeat the strawberry and cream layer until the glass is filled.



 Top with some grated chocolate if you like. Refrigerate and serve chilled.

Chocolate Mousse

First post of 2015 had to be something sweet.



200gms chopped dark chocolate
3tbsp unsalted butter
1tsp vanilla essence
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites
3tbsp sugar
1/4tsp cream of tartar
1/4cup sugar
1/2cup whipping cream



In a large bowl melt the chocolate. You can melt chocolate in the microwave or a bain marie. For detailed instructions please refer to this page. Set aside.

In another heatproof bowl whisk together egg yolks and sugar (use powdered sugar if possible). Set the bowl in a double boiler and whisk constantly until thick and resembles a silky sauce. Remove from the water bath and whisk thoroughly into the melted chocolate. Do not wait for the egg to cool as it will scramble the mixture. Set aside to cool at room temperature.



In another large bowl, beat egg white until triple its volume so as its light and foamy. Add the cream of tartar and beat till peaks form. Incase you don't have cream of tartar, you can use a teaspoon of vinegar or omit it all together. Gradually beat in the sugar until the peaks are stiff.

Fold in the egg white mixture into the chocolate mix one quarter at a time.



In a smaller bowl, beat whipped cream till soft peaks form. Gently fold the cream in the chocolate mixture. Divide equally into bowls or ramkeins or even fancy martini glasses and refrigerate for 6hours or till the mousse is set.

Serve as is or with a dollop of whipped cream or white chocolate shavings.