You're a better cook than I; I just buy the Krust-ez Belgian Waffle mix.

It's worth it! I'd had waffles before, but the first time I had these waffles I was visiting my then-girlfriend, Suz, in Pittsburgh over Thanksgiving break in 1982. I slept over (in the guest room) and her mom made the waffles in the morning. I was bergoggled by their deliciousness. What is this magic you have done?!?! I practically accosted her. "Uh, it's just the Joy of Cooking recipe. You know where you whip the egg whites..."

So I socked that away in my brain and fifteen years later when I had (a) a waffle iron and (b) some competence in the kitchen I made them for the first time.

They're so airy that when the waffle hits your mouth it's almost evanescent (though sadly not the calories) leaving just the flavor of butter and maple in your mouth.

Yay! It was just 11:11:11 11/11/11 here.

My students wanted to do a minute of silence and make a wish. So, we did!

Can you link or send the recipe, Hec? I'll give 'em a whirl (heh) for M over Xmas break.

Can you link or send the recipe, Hec?

Let me see if I can find it online, or I'll type it up for you.

It's not that complicated really.

Thanks; I don't have that cookbook. Guess I'll keep an eye out for it.

I had no idea it was possible to not own the Joy of Cooking. I figured copies materialized on their own as soon as a kitchen came into existance.

Here's the basic waffle recipe.

My notes:

1. I use Bisquick and skip the sifting flour/baking soda part. It works fine. I just stir in the salt and sugar.

2. JoC suggests using between 2 and 7 tablespoons of melted butter. I use about 5 or 6. It's a lot, but you don't need to put any butter on the cooked waffle. It's plenty rich enough as it is, and you just put on the syrup, or fruit.

3. I have a non-stick waffle iron and don't put any PAM or oil on it at all. It comes off perfectly just using a fork.

4. My waffle iron has fairly deep holes, instead lots of little ones. I think this works better with the whipped egg white version.

5. Whip the egg whites last (until you get stiff peaks), and fold them in gently. You don't want to break it down too much. Make sure it's distributed through the batter but you want to do it in just a few strokes (5 or 6).

6. I set the timer for four minutes and then I check. That's usually about exactly right for my waffle iron.

7. This recipe makes about 9 waffles on my waffle iron. They're really rich so eating two is pretty filling.

8. I put a little vanilla in mine. Also a bit of lemon zest works really well. A bright note on all that richness.

9. Your fruit may very but I've had good results with blueberries, strawberries and bananas. I don't cook them in the waffle, just on top.

My coworker brought in a pear cake today with a note that says, "My mother calls it 'cockaigne.'" I was like "Because Mrs. Rombauer calls it cockaigne!!" She had no idea.

It's almost 11:11:11 on the West Coast!

Whoa, looking it up I see that Ron Paul has designated this an important day. It's UFO Reveal Day or something at 11:11.

I told Emmett this and he yelled out, "Ride the pig, Gir!"