Liege Waffles

Add the yeast to the warm milk and allow it to proof for about 7 minutes. The milk will make the yeast clump up. Just whisk it vigorously and it’ll be okay.

To a mixing bowl, add the flour, 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar, and salt and stir to combine. Add the yeast mixture to the flour and mix on low speed (using a paddle attachment) just until it is mixed in. Add the vanilla, then the eggs one at a time, allowing them to become incorporated after each addition. Add the butter, one tablespoon at a time until incorporated. Don’t add the pearl sugar yet!

Cover the dough and allow it to rest in a warm place for about 1 hour or until doubled in size. Punch down the dough and add the pearl sugar and stir to combine. Cover and allow the dough to rest for about 15 minutes. This final resting time allows the gluten in the dough to relax some before you have to spread it out in your waffle iron.

Heat your waffle iron. If you can control the temperature of your waffle iron, set it at 370F. When hot, spray the waffle iron (both the top and bottom grates) with some cooking spray and add some dough to the waffle iron. How much? I have no idea. I’ve never measured it. The amount to add depends on the size of your waffle maker anyway. Add some dough and try to spread it out as thinly as you can, which will be somewhat difficult. Using two forks to help spread the dough helps a lot. Work quickly and then close the lid. With all of the sugar in these, they can burn easily so be sure to watch the waffles when you cook them.

When the waffles are nice and brown, remove them from the waffle iron. Be careful—the sugar gets really hot and makes the waffles prone to sticking. They should be nice and crispy. No need to add butter or syrup. In Belgium, liege waffles are a common street food. They are wrapped in a paper napkin and people eat them on the go.

Note: don’t want to go through all of the trouble of getting pearl sugar? Buy some sugar cubes instead. Use a sharp knife to cut the sugar cubes in half then cut each half into four pieces. Don’t get the pieces too big or too small or you will affect the texture of the dough.