Real Belgian Waffles...Finally!

All these years of making Belgian waffles from scratch went down the drain. I thought that what I was making was a recipe for Belgian waffles. Boy, was I wrong! As you may know, we spent a month touring in Europe. One of the countries we visited was Belgium and what else do you have to try when you're in Belgium? Belgian waffles of course! We did not go to a restaurant for this or waited for breakfast to try it, why? Belgian waffles are eaten as a snack in Belgium and are available everywhere. Yes, even in a small snack stand in the beautiful Antwerp Hauptbanhof (train station).

I still remember my first bite of this Belgian waffle. It is crispy and the chocolate sauce and fresh whipped cream just melded with the warm waffle. Gosh, was I in heaven! From that moment on, I vowed that I will find the 'authentic Belgian waffle' recipe. My Dutch friends told me that this waffle's batter is unlike the ones we make here in the US. It is not a liquid batter but a soft dough which gives the Belgian waffle it's irregular shape as you can see in the photo. The Belgian waffle is also sweet, you can eat it by itself unlike the US counterpart where one needs Maple syrup on it.

The photo on the left is the beautiful train station of Antwerp.
So now, I am on a quest to find the AUTHENTIC BELGIAN WAFFLE recipe. I found a couple on the internet and will try the first one tomorrow. I'm crossing my fingers that it will be just as good or at least close enough to the real Mc Coy.

P.S. Do you also know that the French Fries was invented in Belgium? Oui!

This recipe is for the crispy and light Belgian waffle. This is not for the waffle pictured above. I'm still on a quest for the perfect recipe.

Brussels Waffle

10 tablespoons butter
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon salad oil
1 tablespoon vanilla flavoring
2 cups milk
2 cups water
1 ounce fresh yeast or
1½ envelopes granulated yeast
4 cups sifted flour
4 eggs, separated
½ cup sugar

Heat ½ cup of the water to lukewarm. Dissolve the yeast in the water. Put the flour into a large bowl. Stir in the egg yolks, the sugar, and the yeast. Beat in the remaining water, the milk, the butter, salt, salad oil, and vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth. Beat the egg whites until they stand in stiff peaks. Fold them into the batter. Let the batter stand for 1 hour, stirring it 4 times. Bake the waffles in a waffle iron as usual. Serve with whipped cream, fruit, jam or sugar.