Cornmeal and Ricotta Waffles

As a kid, I grew up with frozen waffles. That's, most likely, why I wasn't wild about waffles--though my brothers were. I always thought that they had the texture of roof tiles, and they were just plain boring. 

Unless, of course, you pile strawberries and whipped cream on top.  This is a game changer and puts me in a whole new league of breakfast deliciousness!

Now, that I'm all grown up, and I've learned that pancakes and waffles don't necessarily need to come from a box mix-- or the freezer section at my grocery store-- I've had a change of heart.  I've discovered that scratch-made waffle batter makes all the difference in the world.

These Blueberry Sour Cream Waffles are easy to make, and got five stars from the family.

 During the holidays, I'll make these Gingerbread-Pumpkin Waffles. 

I've brushed past any kind of breakfast waffle recipe that requires whipped egg whites. I mean, who wants to go through all that for breakfast?   One morning-- out of the blue-- I had a memory of Cornmeal & Ricotta Waffles that I had at a church breakfast.  I did a little research and settled on a recipe that I found on the Food & Wine website.  There it was-- fluffy egg whites!  Surrendering to my resistance, I got busy in the kitchen. 

Cornmeal are two of my favorite ingredients.  I'm a huge fan of polenta and I make mine with cornmeal.  Ricotta is, pretty much, a staple in my refrigerator. I love using it in baking and in savory dishes.  Cake flour is used, and the separated egg yolks are whisked into the ingredients.

I like to add about couple teaspoons of Lorann's Buttery Sweet Dough for a bit more depth of flavor. 

I appreciate my Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer, because it does make whipping egg whites pretty effortless.

So, now we add melted butter. (I didn't say this was low-cal!)

...and now we, gently, fold in the whipped egg whites.

Warning-- you get a lot of waffle dough!  I'd say, enough to feed six hungry people-- maybe more!

They come out of the waffle iron with crispy edges...

We used Blueberry-Maple Syrup. But plain pure maple syrup is a good way to go, too.

Of course, when I serve Candied Bacon, the men in my life are thrilled.

 

 Was it worth separating eggs and whipping egg whites? Yes!  

TASTING NOTES:  Just be warned, that keeping the waffles in a 200F oven causes them to lose a bit of the initial crispness.  Still, there is a very subtle crunchiness of the corn meal, and a lot of moisture from the ricotta.  So, now, it's going to be a toss of the coin if I make Sour Cream Waffles or the Cornmeal Ricotta Waffles.  I liked them, equally.  A printable recipe card is at the end of this post.