buttermilk ricotta waffles


Food on the brain. I suffer from a case of this daily. Even in the throes of a nasty stomach bug this weekend, I found myself in bed, trying to muster up the energy to go buy artichokes. Unless I'm out of town, I never miss the Saturday Greenmarket at Grand Army Plaza. And ever since buying the first artichokes of the season a few weeks ago, I've had them on my mind.

My body had not an ounce of energy to get dressed, let alone drive a car, so instead, I wandered in and out of sleep all day Saturday, dreaming of these artichokes. I'm not kidding. Stuffed and steamed as my family used to make them. Sauteed hearts in brown butter as I recently prepared them. It will have to wait until next week.

While I'm feeling much better now, my sleep cycle is all off. Not that it was ever really normal. So, my eyes woke at 4:00am. Try as I might, my body decided sleep was done for the night. Finally, as the church bells around the corner chimed 5:00am, I figured it wasn't too insane a time to start the day. As I write, the smell of freshmade ricotta wafts through the apartment.

What else would a food-obsessed woman do before the sun even rises?

Actually, I've been planning this since my Saturday sick day. Ever since making these buttermilk ricotta waffles a couple of weeks ago, I've had them on my mind. In between dreams of artichoke hearts, I'd promised myself to make a fresh batch of ricotta as soon as I was feeling better. And so, at 5:57am I was pouring milk, buttermilk and cream into a pot to gently simmer on the stovetop, secretly praying the Mr. wouldn't wake to see my insanity.

Last time I served them with the remaining jar of peaches I canned last summer. This time I've got a fresh batch of peach syrup ready and waiting.

As the girls rub the sleep from their eyes this morning, they'll be greeted with some warm, crisp waffles. The baby will certainly devour them, since these days she pops from her crib saying "eat Mommy, eat". I guess it's true—the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

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buttermilk ricotta waffles

makes four 7-inch Belgian-style waffles

1 3/4 cups/7.5 ounces flour

2 teaspoons/10 grams baking powder

1 tablespoon/15 grams sugar

1/2 teaspoon/4 grams baking soda

1/2 teaspoon/2 grams kosher salt

1 1/2 cups/10 ounces/300 ml buttermilk

1/2 cup/2.5 ounces fresh ricotta

2 large eggs

4 tablespoons/2 ounces butter, melted

Preheat waffle iron.

Add flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt to a medium bowl. Whisk to blend; set aside.

In a separate bowl, add the buttermilk, eggs, ricotta and melted butter. Beat with a fork until well mixed. Pour egg mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Pour batter into greased, heated waffle iron and cook until steam no longer comes out the sides. This usually indicates the batter is fully cooked, though you may want to leave them in a bit longer if you like darker, well-done waffles, as we do.

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