Yeast Waffles

There are over 430 Waffle House restaurants in Georgia.  Chances are that if you live in this wonderful state, you reside within 10 miles of at least 2 different Waffle House locations and probably at least one within walking distance.  If you're not a Georgia resident but you've ever had the privilege of driving through our beautiful state, there's no doubt you took notice of our state restaurant.  😂  You won't have to drive far from an exit off of any major highway to satisfy your most imminent waffle emergency.

According to their website, Waffle House serves 341 strips of bacon, 238 orders of hash browns, 127 cups of coffee and 145 waffles -- EVERY MINUTE!!!  That is a LOT of waffles.  When I first moved to Georgia, I thought that everyone went to this popular establishment for the waffles.  Turns out, people flock to this chain restaurant because it's open 24 hours a day - 365 days a year, it's relatively cheap and it serves greasy spoon comfort food.  

What I find fascinating about this iconic restaurant, is that no matter what time of day I pass by any given location, there are cars in the parking lot and people sitting at the counter with steaming cups of hot coffee.  I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but I've been in a Waffle House at 3:00 in the morning and there were plenty of other hungry diners happily enjoying a meal alongside me.  

This is not going to be a popular opinion but I'm not actually a big fan of the waffles at Waffle House.  My very favorite waffles are the still the ones that I make in my own kitchen. They're light, fluffy and delicious and even though they may be not be as popular as the Waffle House waffle, I think they're far better.  And as it turns out  - my kitchen is open 24/7 too.  💁🏻‍♀️

Yeast Waffles
1 3/4 cups whole milk
8 Tablespoons butter
2 cups flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons yeast
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

​Heat milk and butter in saucepan until butter is almost melted.

​Whisk together flour, sugar, salt and yeast.

​Stir in warm milk. 

​Combine eggs and vanilla.

​Whisk into batter. 

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. 

​In the morning, pour batter into a hot waffle iron. 

Serve with fruit and powdered sugar (Amy style) or drizzle with maple syrup.  

Weekends were made for waffles.  With a little planning and prep work the night before, you can have fresh homemade waffles in under 15 minutes.  That might actually be faster than I can get to a Waffle House and order a waffle.  🤷🏻‍♀️

​Ciao!

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