Waffle

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This article is about the food item. For other uses, see Waffle (disambiguation).

Brussels waffle

A waffle is a light batter cake cooked in a waffle iron patterned to give a distinctive and
characteristic shape.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 Varieties of waffle
• 2 Medieval origins
• 3 Mass production
• 4 See also
• 5 References

• 6 External links

[edit] Varieties of waffle

• The Brussels Waffle[1] or Belgian Waffle is prepared from a yeast-leavened

batter, and is often a more light and crisp waffle compared to other waffle
varieties. It is often served warm by street vendors, dusted with confectioner's
sugar, and sometimes topped with whipped cream or chocolate spread. It may also
be served as a dessert, with fruits, whipped cream or ice cream.
Liège waffles with berries

• The Liège waffle[2] (from the city of Liège, in eastern Belgium) is a waffle usually
bought and eaten warm on the street. They are usually freshly made in small
shops, but it is also possible to buy them in supermarkets. They are smaller,
sweeter and denser than "Belgian waffles". The last-minute addition of nib sugar
to the batter produces a caramelized sugar coating. This gives a distinctive flavor.
Most are served plain, but some are vanilla or cinnamon flavored, and can be
served with toppings like fruits, creams, and chocolate. The Liège waffle was
invented by a cook of the prince-bishop of Liège in the 18th century.

• American waffles[3], common in the United States, are made from a batter
leavened with baking powder, rather than yeast. They are usually served as a
sweet breakfast food, topped with butter and various syrups. but are also found in
many different savory dishes, such as chicken and waffles. They are generally
denser and thinner than the Belgian waffle. Waffles were first introduced to North
America in 1620, by pilgrims who brought the method from Holland. Thomas
Jefferson brought a waffle iron from France, and waffle frolics or parties became
popular in the late eighteenth century. Waffles were eaten with both sweet (e.g.
molasses or maple syrup) and savoury (such as kidney stew) toppings.[4]
• In Ireland, the UK and south-western Germany, the potato waffle, is a savory
frozen food in waffle shape, made of reconstituted potato, oil and seasonings.
These waffles may be baked, grilled, prepared in a toaster or fried, and are used as
a side dish or snack.
• Hong Kong style waffle, in Hong Kong called a "grid cake" (格仔餅), is a waffle
usually made and sold by street hawkers and eaten warm on the street[5] . They are
similar to a traditional waffle but larger, round in shape and divided into four
quarters. They are usually served as a snack. Butter, peanut butter and sugar are
spread on one side of the cooked waffle and then it is folded into a semi circle to
eat. Egg, sugar and evaporated milk are used in the waffle recipes, giving them a
sweet flavor. They are generally soft and not dense. Traditional Hong Kong style
waffles are full of the flavor of yolk. Sometimes different flavors, such as
chocolate and honey melon flavor are used in the recipe and create various colors.
Two stroopwafels

• Stroopwafels (Dutch: syrup waffles) are thin waffles with a syrup filling. They
were first made in Gouda in the Netherlands, during the 18th or 19th century. The
stiff batter for the waffles is made from flour, butter, brown sugar, yeast, milk,
and eggs. Medium sized balls of batter are put on the waffle iron. When the waffle
is baked, and while it is still warm, it is cut into two halfs. The warm filling, made
from syrup, brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon, is spread in between the waffle
halfs, which glues them together.[6] They are popular in Belgium and the
Netherlands.

A waffle iron for Scandinavian waffles

• Scandinavian waffles are soft and generally divided into four or five segments,
traditionally vaguely heart-shaped. The segments are often separated and eaten
one by one or folded in pairs like a sandwich. Scandinavian waffles are mostly
eaten with whipped cream and berry jam, for example raspberry jam or blueberry
jam, or with butter and cheese. The "Scandinavian" waffle is believed to originate
from Sweden[citation needed]. In Sweden these waffles are also referred to as
"frasvåffla" which roughly translated means crispy waffle.

[edit] Medieval origins

The modern waffle has its origins in the wafers-very light thin crisp cakes, baked between
wafer-irons-of the Middle Ages[7]. Wafer irons consisted of two metal plates connected by
a hinge, with each plate connected to an arm with a wooden handle. Some plates had
imprinted designs such as a coat-of-arms or landscape, while some had the now-familiar
honeycomb/gridiron pattern (there is evidence that in the 14th century only wealthy
kitchens would have irons[citation needed]). The iron was placed over a fire, and flipped to cook
both sides of the wafer. These irons were used to produce a variety of different flat,
unleavened cakes (usually from a mixture of barley and oats, not the white flour used
today). Some were rolled into a cone or tube, others were left flat. In 14 C. England,
wafers were sold by street vendors called waferers.[8] The modern waffle is a leavened
form of wafer.

"Wafer" and "waffle" share common etymological roots. Wafre (wafer) occurs in Middle
English by 1377, adopted from Middle Low German wâfel, with change of l into r.
Modern Dutch wafel, French gaufre, and German Waffel, all meaning "waffle", share the
same origin. The Dutch form, wafel, was adopted into modern American English as
waffle, in the 18th century.[7][9]

[edit] Mass production

Waffles are mass produced and frozen, to be eaten quickly and with little effort in many
flavors. Many companies produce frozen waffles, most notably Eggo.
Pancake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

For other uses, see Pancake (disambiguation).

Pancakes are a type of flatbread prepared from a sweet batter that is cooked on a hot
griddle or in a frying pan. They exist in several variations in many different local
cuisines. Most pancakes are quick breads, although some are also made using a yeast-
raised or fermented batter.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 Regional varieties
o 1.1 North America
o 1.2 Australasia
o 1.3 Europe
o 1.4 Africa
o 1.5 Asia
• 2 Details
• 3 Pancake Day
• 4 See also
• 5 Footnotes

• 6 External links

Regional varieties

North America
North Americans (The United States and Canada) sometimes style pancakes with banana
slices.

American or Canadian pancakes (also known as hotcakes, griddlecakes, or flapjacks

in the U.S.) contain a raising agent, usually baking powder, and contains different
proportions of eggs, flour, and milk or buttermilk, which create a thick batter. Cinnamon
and sugar can be added. This batter is either ladled or poured onto a hot surface, and
spreads to form a circle about ¼ or ⅓ inch (1 cm) thick. The raising agent causes bubbles
to rise to the uncooked side of the pancake, at which point the pancake is ready to be
flipped. These pancakes, very light in texture, are often served at breakfast topped with
maple syrup, butter, peanut butter, jelly, jam, or fruit.

North American pancakes can be made sweet or savory by adding ingredients such as
blueberries, strawberries, cheese, bacon, bananas or chocolate chips to the batter. In
addition, some recipes call for the addition of spices such as nutmeg or cinnamon, or
flavoring agents such as vanilla extract. A "silver dollar" pancake refers to a pancake
about 3 inches (7 cm) in diameter - these are usually served in portions of five or ten.

Stacks of "silver dollar" pancakes.

Flapjacks in the U.S. are sometimes larger, thinner and more crisp than a regular
American pancake, sometimes as broad as 12 inches in diameter.

Vermont pancakes usually have oatmeal or buckwheat flour added to the wheat flour,
and require more baking powder to rise. The texture is coarser and the flavor more
intense.

"German Pancakes" or Dutch baby pancakes served in American pancake houses are
shaped like a bowl and come in a range of sizes. They are commonly eaten with lemons
and powdered sugar, jam, or caramelized apples.

Mexican hotcakes, are similar in style to pancakes served in the U.S., hotcakes are more
often made with cornmeal as well as or instead of wheat flour. Hotcakes are popular
breakfast items at restaurants throughout the country, and are often sold by street vendors
in cities and during the local celebrations of small towns through the day and evening; the
vendors usually sell a single hotcake topped with different sauces such as condensed
milk, fruit jam or a sweet goat milk spread called "cajeta."
Australasia

In Australia and New Zealand, ingredients for pancakes usually consist of egg, milk,
flour etc. (similar to the English style, rather than the American version), and are
typically eaten as a dessert, although, like in America, can be often served for breakfast.
Popular toppings include maple syrup, butter, peanut butter, jelly, jam, or assorted fruits
such as strawberries. Pancakes in Australia can also be served as a savory meal.

Europe

Scottish pancake and fruit crumpet.

English pancakes have three key ingredients: plain flour, eggs, and milk. The batter is
quite runny and forms a thin layer on the bottom of the frying pan when the pan is tilted.
It may form some bubbles during cooking, which results in a pale pancake with dark
spots where the bubbles were, but the pancake does not rise. These pancakes may be
eaten as a sweet dessert with the traditional topping of lemon juice and sugar, drizzled
with golden syrup, or wrapped around savory stuffings and eaten as a main course. When
baked instead of fried, this batter rises because the air beaten into the batter expands,
without the need for baking powder, the result is known as Yorkshire pudding. English
pancakes are similar to French crêpes, and Italian crespelle, but are not "lacy" in
appearance. English pancakes can be stuffed after cooking with a wide variety of sweet or
savory fillings. Both versions can be sweetened after cooking by pouring on syrup or
sprinkling with powdered sugar.

Scottish and Irish pancakes, locally known as drop scones, pancakes or griddle cakes,
are more like the American type and are served as such (see below). Scottish pancakes
are made from self-raising flour, eggs, sugar and milk with Irish pancakes being made
with soda-flour and buttermilk.

Pancakes similar to the North American pancake but smaller (usually about 3.5 in / 9 cm
in diameter) are known in the UK as Scotch pancakes or drop-scones (after the
traditional method of dropping batter onto a griddle (a girdle in Scots)), and in northern
England, Australia and New Zealand as pikelets. They can be served with jam and cream
or just with butter. In Scotland pancakes are served at teatime but mostly as breakfast.
They are made plain and as fruit pancakes with raisins. In Scotland larger thinner
teacakes made to a similar recipe are called crumpets. These are cooked on the girdle on
one side until browned, then lightly cooked on the other side. Both Scotch pancakes and
crumpets can be made with plain flour and baking soda as an alternative to self-raising
flour.[1]

Crêpe opened up

French crêpes, popular in France, Canada, and Brazil (where they may be called
pancakes or crêpes) are made from flour, milk, and eggs. They are thin and are usually
served with a large amount of sweet or savoury filling, ranging from fruit and/or ice
cream, to seafood (in Brazil, most usually ground meat).

German pancakes are the same as English pancakes. In some regions they are called
Pfannkuchen; in others (Berlin, Brandenburg, Saxonia) pfannkuchen are Berliners, a type
of doughnut, and pancakes are called Eierkuchen. In Swabia sliced pancake strips
(Flädle) are often served in soup.

Palatschinken, Central European pancake

In the Netherlands and Flanders, pancakes are called Pannenkoeken and eaten at
dinnertime. Pancake restaurants are popular family restaurants and serve many varieties
of sweet, savory, and stuffed pancakes. Pannenkoek are slightly thicker than crepes and
usually quite large (12" or more) in diameter. The batter is egg-based and the fillings can
include sliced apples, cheese, ham, bacon, candied ginger and many other ingredients -
alone or in combination - as well as "stroop", a thick syrup. One classical Dutch filling is
a combination of bacon and stroop.

In Austria pancakes are called Palatschinken, a word derived from Latin placenta by
way of Romanian, and are usually filled with apricot jam, chocolate sauce or hazelnut
spread. Similar pancakes with similar names can be found throughout the former
Austria-Hungary (today Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bosnia,
Croatia and Serbia), see Palatschinken.
In Poland pancakes called Naleśniki are similar to those in Austria. They can be served
as a main dish. They can be served sweet usually with fresh fruits (e.g Bilberry), Powidła,
fruit jam. Also with variety of savory fillings e.g. fried chicken or even tuna with
different additions like cheese potatoes or ham. In Poland Naleśniki are also used for
making croquettes.

Scandinavian pancakes are similar to English pancakes. They are often served with jam
and/or ice cream or whipped cream, and sometimes as a main dish with a variety of
savory fillings. Traditional Swedish variations can be somewhat exotic. Plättar resemble
tiny English pancakes, and are fried several at a time in a special pan. Others resemble
German pancakes but include fried pork in the batter; these are baked in an oven. Potato
pancakes called raggmunk contain shredded raw potato, and may contain other
vegetables (sometimes the pancake batter is omitted, producing rårakor). Raggmunk and
rårakor traditionally eaten with pork rinds and/or lingonberry jam. Norwegians like their
pancakes with sugar or blueberry jam, and they are often served with hot soup.
Norwegians eat a great deal of rice pudding/porridge - leftovers from this can be made
into small pancakes called "lapper".

In Russia, Poland and Ukraine, blintz and blini are made from wheat or buckwheat
flour, yeast, butter, eggs and milk. Blini cooking has an ancient history in Russia dating
back to the pagan traditions and feasts.

In Hungary, palacsinta is made from flour, milk and/or soda water, sugar, and eggs and
served as a main dish or as a dessert, depending on the filling. Sweet wine can also be
added to the batter.

Africa

Pancakes in South Africa are similar to English pancakes. They are traditionally
prepared by the Afrikaans community on gas-stoves, and called pannekoek in Afrikaans,
often eaten on wet and cold days. Pannekoek are most commonly served with cinnamon-
flavored sugar[2] (and sometimes lemon juice); the sugar may be left to dissolve onto the
pancake; if eaten immediately the pancake has a crispy texture. This is a staple at Dutch
Reformed Church fetes.[3] American-style "silver dollar" pancakes are also eaten in South
Africa, where they are known as "plaatkoekies" or "flapjacks".

Asia

Dosa, Indian pancake with chutney and sambhar

In Malaysia and Singapore, a pancake-like snack known as Apom Balik (in Malay) or
Ban Chian Kuih (面煎粿 in Chinese). The Chinese version is made with a filling,
traditionally ground peanut with sugar, butter and additional condiments like sweetened
coconut or egg. Increasingly non traditional condiments like cheese, kaya (egg & coconut
milk custard), blueberry or chocolate are used in response to demand for more interesting
twist. There are other interesting variations, such as those made with soya bean milk
replacing egg and water. The Malay version (Apom Balik) frequently has sweet corn and
condensed milk as filling.

In the Philippines, pancakes or "hotcakes" are also served with syrup (maple or
imitation corn syrup) margarine and sugar or condensed milk. They are usually served for
breakfast, but there are roving street stalls that sell smaller hotcakes topped with
margarine and sugar as an afternoon snack.

In Vietnamese cuisine, there is a wide variety of traditional pancakes; these include

bánh xèo and bánh khọt in southern Vietnam, and bánh căn and bánh khoái in central
Vietnam.

In India, a dish called the Pooda (sometimes called Cheela) is a variety of Pancake. They
can be made either sweet or salty and are of different thickness as per region. Is made in a
frying pan and of a similar batter as its European couterparts. Dosa could be said to be
another Indian pancake. It is prepared by fermenting of rice batter. However the most
correct definition would be what Punjabis call a Meetha Pooda and are a common
Breakfast food item in Punjab. Its is sweet yet could be eaten with Pickle also.

In Korea, pancakes include jeon, pajeon, bindaetteok, kimchijeon, and hotteok.

Banana pancakes, in particular, are a popular menu item in Western-oriented backpackers'

cafes in many Asian countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, India, and China.

Details

Pancakes with strawberries and cream.

Pancakes are comparable to waffles without syrup traps, although waffles often contain
more eggs and are cooked in a waffle iron. Most types of pancakes, but not the Breton
galette, are cooked one side at a time on a griddle and flipped halfway through the
cooking process to cook the other side of the pancake. The process of tossing or flipping
is part of the essence of the pancake, and one of the skills that separates the experienced
cook from the beginner.
In Canada and the United States, the pancake is usually a breakfast food, but it is so
popular that a franchised restaurant formerly called International House of Pancakes, now
referred to as IHOP, has more than 1000 restaurants serving at all hours of the day. A
"pancake supper" can be a social event (in the manner of an ice cream social or
barbecue), with pancakes served at dinnertime. Pancake suppers are sometimes held as
fund raisers.

In Australia and Britain, pancakes are eaten as a dessert, or served savory with a main
meal. They can sometimes be eaten as a main meal (the savory variety, also known as
crepes), as they are in the U.S. and Canada. It is so popular that franchised restaurants
called Pancake Palour and Pancakes on the Rocks are present.

In Sweden and Finland, it is traditional to eat yellow pea soup followed by pancakes on
Thursdays.

A smaller pancake, often called a "silver dollar" pancake, is sometimes used in the
creation of hors d'oeuvres in place of crackers or other bread-like items.

Pancake Day
Main article: Shrove Tuesday

In Canada,[4] the United Kingdom,[5] Ireland,[6] and Australia,[7] pancakes are traditionally
eaten on Shrove Tuesday, which is also known as "Pancake Day" and, particularly in
Ireland, as "Pancake Tuesday". (Shrove Tuesday is better known in the United States,
France and other countries as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday.) Historically, pancakes were
made on Shrove Tuesday so that the last of the fatty and rich foods could be used up
before Lent.

It is traditional to turn pancakes over by tossing them in the air using the pan and without
using any other implements. This is a tricky manoeuvre that requires practice to perfect.

Charity or school events are often organized on Pancake Day. One popular event is a
"pancake race" in which each participant carries a pancake in a frying pan. All runners
must toss their pancakes as they run and catch them in the frying pan. This event is said
to have originated in the town of Olney, England in 1444 when a housewife was still
busy frying pancakes to eat before the Lenten fast when she heard the bells of St Peter
and St Paul's Church calling her to the Shriving Service. Eager to get to church, she ran
out of her house still holding the frying pan complete with pancake, and still wearing her
apron and headscarf. Pancake Day is widely celebrated in Australia; ready-made pancake
mixes often sell out.

Every Shrove Tuesday since 1950 the towns of Olney, England and Liberal, Kansas, USA
have competed in the International Pancake Race. Only local women may compete; they
race along a previously agreed course and their times are compared to determine the
international winner.
The Rehab UK Parliamentary Pancake Race also takes place every Shrove Tuesday, with
teams from the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the Fourth Estate battling it
out for the title of Parliamentary Pancake Race Champions. The fun relay race is all about
raising awareness of the work of national brain injury charity, Rehab UK, and the needs
of people with acquired brain injury.