One of my fondest memories growing up was weekend waffles with my dad. I don’t know if it was because he was out of town a lot, or because my mom did most of the cooking growing up, but those waffles seemed extra special. It’s where I honed my mild obsession with tasting batters and dough. I could always be seen licking the spoon or dipping a finger in for another taste. So hygienic. So much raw egg that I have never gotten sick on [as I knock on some wood]. I hold all waffles to these waffles of my dad’s. It’s not very often that I find anything that comes close. I’m not biased or anything.

I think that’s probably why most of the time you find me making pancakes. Pancakes can’t touch my dad’s waffles.

That is until cornmeal was involved. I mean, I love cornbread more than life most things. I’m not usually a fan of super-sweet anything breakfast. If I have anything sweet, it’s usually balanced with savory. It seemed rather perfect that you could make a savory cornbread-esque waffle and throw some eggs and salsa on top. I had a ton of extra roasted veggies [that may or may not have been from the Icelandic stew] so I threw those on there, too. Brilliant.

The batter was awesome, in case you were wondering. Slightly sweet. Totally corny. Just right. Too bad they still don’t have anything on Dad’s.

Inspiration: Pink Parsley

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper

Pinch of cayenne powder

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 eggs

1 1/4 cup buttermilk [I used almond milk with vinegar]

3 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped

Preparation

Warm up your waffle iron while you prep the batter. Preheat your oven to 200° with a baking pan inside to keep waffles warm. Whisk together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl [or large measuring cup], mix the wet ingredients. Make a well in the dry ingredients, pour in the wet, and stir to incorporate. Don’t overmix. Make the waffles according to your waffle maker’s directions. Why is it that the first few always suck? I hate that.