Yeast Waffles -- When Your Hands Need Something to Do and Your Family Needs Something to Eat

Week four of lockdown. The new normal is becoming normal in a way that is both adaptive and unsettling. We've established rhythms: school at the table, meals together, evening walks around the neighborhood in the spring air. The evening walks have become my favorite part of the day. Five of us — sometimes six if Sofia isn't studying — walking the same loop, the kids finding the same things interesting each time, which tells you something about what children find sustaining.

Hector called more this month than he has in years. He doesn't like the isolation in Las Cruces — he's a man who moves through his community, who talks to neighbors and goes to the hardware store and sits in the church parking lot after mass talking to people he's known for decades. All of that is gone. He sounds smaller on the phone than he did in December. Mom says he's eating less. I'm worried in a way that the distance makes worse, not better.

I've been making bread. This is apparently what everyone does in a pandemic. I resist characterizing my sourdough as a cliché because the activity itself is real: the hours of attention, the biological puzzle of wild yeast, the way a good loaf represents days of intention compressed into a single afternoon. I'm not making it because it's fashionable. I'm making it because my hands need something to do and my family needs something to eat and these two facts align neatly in a kitchen.

My starter is named after Ruben. I didn't plan to name it. It just happened. I was talking to Lisa about how to tell if it was ready and I said "he looks ready" and she looked at me and I said "Ruben" and she said "okay, Carlos" with the kind of okay that means she understands completely.

The same instinct that drove me toward sourdough — hands busy, family fed, the slow patience of yeast doing its quiet work — led me eventually to these waffles. You make the batter the night before and let it sit, let the yeast bloom in the dark while everyone sleeps, and in the morning the kitchen smells like something good is already happening before anyone has had to try. That felt right for this season. Ruben the starter taught me that fermentation can’t be rushed, and neither can the kind of worry I carry for my father in Las Cruces — but breakfast, at least, can be ready when the family comes downstairs.

Yeast Waffles

Prep Time: 10 min (plus overnight rest) | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 8 hr 35 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (one standard packet)
• 1/2 cup warm water (about 110°F)
• 2 cups whole milk, warmed
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Proof the yeast. The night before, combine the warm water and sugar in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the top and let it sit for 5–10 minutes until foamy and fragrant.
2. Build the batter. Whisk the warm milk, melted butter, and salt into the yeast mixture. Add the flour and whisk until smooth and no dry streaks remain. The batter will be fairly loose.
3. Rest overnight. Cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and leave it at room temperature for at least 8 hours, or overnight. The batter will bubble and roughly double in volume.
4. Finish the batter. In the morning, lightly beat the eggs together with the baking soda and vanilla. Fold this mixture gently into the overnight batter — do not overmix; a few streaks are fine.
5. Heat your waffle iron. Preheat your waffle iron according to its instructions and lightly grease the plates with non-stick spray or a thin brush of melted butter.
6. Cook the waffles. Pour enough batter to fill your waffle iron (typically 3/4 to 1 cup depending on iron size). Close and cook until the waffles are deep golden brown and steam has mostly stopped escaping, about 4–5 minutes. Repeat with remaining batter.
7. Serve. Serve immediately with maple syrup, fresh fruit, or a dusting of powdered sugar. Leftover waffles can be frozen and toasted straight from the freezer.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 370 | Protein: 10g | Fat: 18g | Carbs: 42g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 390mg