Photo: Great grandparents at their farm in Blandinsville, IL, with five of their six children .. my grandpa was yet a twinkle in grandma's eye. Stable boy and governess also pictured. Hodges farm, circa 1903-4

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Sourdough Waffles

In the past, I've started sourdough starters and have given up.  One method makes a very thick 'paste' starter that you end up throwing most of it away to keep feeding it.  (I gave up because I don't like to waste).  Another recipe called for using rye flour .. which seems to have more natural yeast on the grain.  For some reason, I gave up on this one too.  So about 6 weeks ago, I just followed this recipe here ... only I didn't have any 'starter' to start the starter :) ... I just mixed equal parts of filtered water (1 cup) with un-bleached all purpose flour, loosely covered the bowl (you want some air exposure to capture natural yeast spores) and set it on the counter.  After about a week, we had a starter growing.  Read the article in the link it gives the hows/whys of it all.

Typically, we use whole grain wheat that I sprout and dehydrate .. then grind when making bread, pancakes, waffles, etc.  A few years ago we purchased a grain mill; which we use several times a week grinding just enough needed flour at a time.  Soaking and sprouting the grain improves the nutritional value and makes it easier to digest (read here if you're interested) (and here).

wheat sprouted then dried
 When maintaining my starter, I use the un-bleached all purpose flour .. and then use the whole grain/sprouted flour along with the starter in my recipes.

Recipe for sourdough waffles (makes about 5-6 large Belgian style .. you may get more from a standard waffle maker.

The night before you make waffles:

1 cup sour dough starter
waffles freeze well .. bye-bye Eggo!
1-1/2 cups flour (I use sprouted freshly ground soft spring wheat) ... use whatever you want.
1 cup filtered water

Mix these ingredients in a large glass bowl using a wooden or plastic spoon (metal supposedly reacts poorly with the starter).  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a lid and leave on the counter.  This mixture will rise so make sure the bowl is large.


In the morning, whisk together two eggs, 1 tablespoon melted butter (or coconut oil), 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional), 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and 1 tablespoon sucanat (minimally refined cane sugar) in a small bowl.   Add this to the large bowl and stir well.  You want the mixture to be similar to pancake batter .. if it's too thick, add a little milk or water.  If it's too thin, add a little more flour.
additional ingredients mixed in. (yes I used a metal fork here .. it's OK to use just prior to cooking)


Lastly, add 3/4 teaspoon baking soda and give it a good mix and let the batter rest for a few minutes.
Heat and grease the waffle iron and add up to 1/2 cup of batter.  Bake as directed for your particular waffle iron.

Serve with fruit topping or a little real maple syrup.

4 comments:

Pat said...

That sounds so good, I was just wanting some sourdough bread today!

Anonymous said...

Sounds delicious!

Becky said...

OHHHH! i'm off to the store!! thank you!!!

Felisol said...

Mmmm.
I've got to show this to Gunnar, our home baker. He makes bread of only spelt, and uses only 1/2 tea spoon of yeast powder. Then he blends with orange juice and let the dough wait for twelve hours before he divide it into three breads and waits three more hours before baking.
I admit, I don't have patience for this, but he got this recipe from his specialist doc, so he's been willing to try it out. He now hardly can eat ordinary wheat at all.
The entire family is on spelt, my mother meant he needed more salt in the bread, so he has slightly changed the recipe for her.
Your waffle recipe is interesting . Waffles are my favorites. I use baking soda and sour cream and fresh strawberries!!