CHOCOLATE BUTTERMILK BELGIAN WAFFLES

Rise and shine with these Chocolate Buttermilk Belgian Waffles!

“Whyyyyy does it feel like a weekday?” he moaned as he shuffled into the kitchen. “That’s because it is. It’s Monday.” I realized I was being perfunctory and factual. Poor little guy. Turns out you can have the case of the Mondays even when you’re on summer vacation.

A sweet way to start your day.
I had frozen half the batch of Chocolate Buttermilk Belgian Waffles I made over the weekend – he had been asking for waffles all last week and I kept deferring to the weekend. After all, who has time to make waffles during the week? Weekends are for waffles, that is, if you don’t have the foresight to make extra to freeze just for mornings like this, when you need a little extra love to get you through the weekday blues.

He readily agreed. After all, he was thrilled when I surprised him on Sunday morning not just with regular waffles, but deep dark chocolatey ones. The kitchen smelled like baked brownies and I couldn’t resist stealing a triangle for myself to eat with a dollop of cream and berries. I loved seeing his eyes grow wide when he realized the waffles were chocolate, and I was secretly patting myself on the back for having frozen the leftovers. I warmed them up, they eased us into Monday, and brought a little sweetness of the weekend to our day.

CHOCOLATE BUTTERMILK BELGIAN WAFFLES

INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted (if you have Dutch process cocoa, even better)

1/3 cup granulated sugar, to taste (see notes below)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 cups buttermilk

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 large eggs

fruit topping, for serving

whipped cream, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the waffle iron. If you will not be serving the waffles immediately, preheat the oven to 175°F and place an ovenproof metal cooling rack in the center of the oven.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk the buttermilk, melted butter, and eggs. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture, stirring until just combined; do not overmix, a few lumps are ok.

When the waffle iron is ready, pour the batter in the waffle maker sprayed with baking spray (about 1 cup per waffle, depending on the size of your waffle mold), and bake for 3 minutes 15 seconds. Transfer the waffles to the metal cooling rack (be sure not to stack waffles as this will make it soggy) in the oven until serving, or serve immediately. Enjoy with a fruit compote and whipped cream.

NOTES
Chocolate Buttermilk Belgian Waffles Tips

These waffles are not overly sweet, which allows you to enjoy them with powdered sugar or maple syrup. If you prefer a sweeter waffle, add more sugar to the batter to taste.
The quality of your buttermilk really makes a difference – use good, thick buttermilk (I like Clover Sonona buttermilk which is deliciously thick). If you make your own buttermilk by adding lemon juice or vinegar to milk, then really give it time to thicken; the batter may require less since it is likely to be a thinner consistency.