This week we were in the mood for waffles!
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup broken walnuts
- 2 to 3 T chopped candied ginger
- 1 cup whipping cream, whipped
- Cream together shortening and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and spices; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Stir in walnuts.
- Bake in pre-heated waffle baker. Fold candied ginger into whipped cream, serve atop waffles.
This recipe is out of the Better Homes & Gardens Bread Cookbook from 1963. I got this last year (I believe) and I hadn’t cooked anything out of it, so when Tom was hungry for waffles I finally had an excuse to dig through it and see what it had to offer.
There were lots and lots of pancakes and waffles to choose from, all spread out on about ten stained pages (The best pages of mid-century cookbooks are always the stained ones!). Spicy Party Waffles just barely edged out some orange cream-cheese filled pancakes that I though sounded really good. But we had just finished up the last of our orange juice, so waffles won!
Pretty early on in this recipe (while I was creaming the shortening and brown sugar) I realized that this recipe was actually a cake recipe, and not a traditional waffle recipe. Not that I was complaining. Whipping egg whites and folding them into batter is one of the more tedious of tasks when cooking. I realize what a difference it makes in the finished product, but I would rather just toss a whole egg into batter any day.
Another big clue that these were cake? They were crumbly and soft instead of sturdy and crispy.
“These are really good.”
“Thank goodness. They smell really amazing and I can’t wait to eat one.”
“They’re pretty crumbly, though. And not very crispy.”
The Verdict: Delicious, but not Waffles
From The Tasting Notes –
These were very good and very spicy, especially by mid-century standards. They had a great flavor and we all devoured them. However, if you are looking for a traditional waffle (crispy on the outside and fluffy/creamy in the center) these are not it. They were basically cake. I have a feeling that I could have scooped the batter into a cupcake pans and gotten just as good of a result. It was really good cake, but it wasn’t a waffle. The outside was very soft and these crumbled easily. Maybe if the shortening in the recipe was switched out for butter, they would be crispier? In any case, these would be a really fun interactive dessert for dinner party guests or to entertain your family this fall. These were good with the whipped cream and candied ginger, but they would also be good with apple topping, ice cream, caramel or all of the above!
These sound really good…. I’ve been told that when baking cookies, it is the shortening that makes them crisp, and butter that makes them softer. I’ve never made a cake with shortening, but cookies? yes.
Well now I want the recipe for the orange cream cheese filled pancakes!
Ooooh, yum, sounds like an ideal Belgian waffle.
I have served this dessert twice since seeing it posted, both times to RAVE reviews. I left out the walnuts and served them with sliced fresh peaches, whipped cream, and a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar. The second time, I drizzled a homemade caramel sauce (from the Pioneer Woman) on the plate for extra pizzazz.
Thank you for posting this, so much fun!
Hey Karen! I am so happy that you are enjoying the waffles! They do make a great dessert, we have been having ours with berries and whipped cream. Yum!