Brown Sugar Kitchen’s cornmeal waff les with apple cider syrup
1 hour, 15 minutes, plus proofing time. Serves 12
APPLE CIDER SYRUP
1½ cups firmly packed brown sugar 1½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar 1 quart apple cider 2 cinnamon sticks ½ cup (1 stick) butter
In a large pot, combine the brown sugar, vinegar, cider, cinnamon and butter. Bring to a boil, then reduce the mixture to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1 ½ cups, about 45 minutes. Discard the cinnamon. The syrup can be made up to 1 month in advance; cover tightly and refrigerate until needed, then warm and stir well before serving.
WAFFLES
2 teaspoons active-dry yeast ¾ cup warm water 3 eggs 3 cups milk 1 cup cornmeal 2 cups plus 2 heaping tablespoons (9 ounces) flour 1½ teaspoons kosher salt 1½ teaspoons sugar ¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter, melted Vegetable oil for the waffle iron ½ teaspoon baking soda
1. In a small bowl, combine the yeast and warm water. Set aside until foamy, about 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk. In another large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, salt and sugar. Add the yeast mixture to the eggs and milk, then whisk in the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Whisk in the melted butter until just combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, up to overnight.
3. Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Heat the waffle iron and grease lightly with oil. Set a wire rack over a baking sheet.
4. Remove the batter from the refrigerator and whisk in the baking soda. Ladle some batter into the waffle iron, close the lid, and cook until the waffles are golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes or according to the manufacturer’s instructions. This makes about a dozen waffles, depending on the
size of your waffle iron.
5. Transfer the waffle to the rack to keep warm in the oven. Repeat with the remaining batter, placing the cooked waffles in a single layer on the rack.
6. Serve the waffles warm with warm apple cider syrup.
Note: Adapted from a recipe in “Brown Sugar Kitchen: New-Style, Down-Home Recipes From Sweet West Oakland” by Tanya Holland.