International Waffle Day (March 25) originated in Sweden where it is called Våffeldagen. It occurs nine months to the day before Christmas - the day the Archangel Gabriel told the Virgin Mary that she was pregnant. As the holiday progressed, it also began to commemorate the first day of spring. Waffles come into play because on March 25th the women of Sweden would set aside their winter tasks like chopping wood and knitting, and began their spring tasks... the most notable of which was preparing waffles.
Silly? Perhaps. But 1.) It's a WAFFLE HOLIDAY and 2.) it's really very fun to say.
How can one resist?
...Also, my mom bought a waffle-maker on black friday and demanded that I make her waffles for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That was a while ago.
Buttermilk Waffles with Maple-Glazed Bananas
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 3/4 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, separated
1/2 stick of butter, melted and cooled
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Canola oil for the waffle pan
2 large bananas, cut into thick slices
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp rum
[Note: If you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can substitute by mixing 1.25 cups of milk at room temperature with 2 tablespoons white vinegar. Let sit for 10 minutes. Also, remember these banana slices need to be quite thick, since they sort of... melt when you cook them.]
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.
In a large bowl, fully combine the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix together the buttermilk and the egg yolks. Stir in butter and vanilla.
Brush the waffle iron lightly with oil and preheat it. Stir the wet into the dry ingredients. Beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Stir them gently into the batter.
Spread a ladle or so of batter onto the waffle iron and bake until the waffle is done (approximately 3 to 5 minutes). Serve immediately or keep warm in the oven.
While the waffles are baking (?), heat up the 2 tablespoons of butter in a large pan. Add in the rum and let cook for a minute. Lay the banana slices flat across the bottom of the pan, and cook on each side for a minute. Remove bananas from pan. Add the maple syrup to the pan and continue heating the sauce until it thickens a little (couple of minutes). Pour on top of waffles and bananas. (I also added in some fresh banana slices).
Top with some freshly whipped cream and serve.
Makes 4-6 servings.
