World Class Belgian Waffles

E & I got a waffle maker as a wedding gift. I LOVE waffles. E didn't love them as much as I do... but then on his birthday weekend, I used my mom's recipe and made some Belgian waffles for him. He is now a waffle lover.

With our waffle maker, this recipe makes between 5 and 6 waffles. And if you buy some strawberries & whipped cream and some bacon and/or sausage, you will have an even better breakfast :) It's also a lot cheaper to make these at home than it is to go out to one of those expensive breakfast places. And you don't have to change out of your pjs or wait an hour to be seated in the restaurant (the good places usually have long waits on weekend mornings).

Ingredients:

• 2 and 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
• 3 TBSP. sugar
• 1 pckg of rapid rise yeast
• 3/4 tsp. of salt
• 2 c. warm milk (110 degrees) - luckily we got a digital thermometer as a wedding gift :)
• 3 lg. eggs separated
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 2 tsp. of vanilla
• Pam spray
  

Directions:
1. Beat the egg whites until they are fluffy
2. In a large bowl combine all ingredients in the order listed, except for the egg whites (but DO add the egg yolks).
3. Mix until just blended.
4. Fold in the egg whites.
5. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size. (We heated our oven to 200 degrees and then turned it off. Then we put the bowl in the oven with a kitchen towel over it and left it in there for 30 minutes.)
6. Spray your waffle iron with Pam and pre-heat it.
7. Pour 3/4 cup to 1 cup of the mix onto the iron (or follow the waffle iron's instructions).