Waffling Around

How such an important event slipped under my radar, I'll never know. The second week of September is, apparently, National Waffle Week. Although we should all be honoring this most important of breakfast foods all year long, this is the one time of the year when all good citizens take the time to give thanks to the waffle for all the pleasure it has given us.

As a lad, we were never served fresh, homemade waffles. My mother was too busy actually out earning money so we could afford frozen waffles. I didn't mind a bit. In my youth, frozen waffles were not the round Eggo's™ we have today. Nor did they come stuffed with various ingredients or in assorted flavors. The waffles we had were dinky little semi-flavorless rectanguloids that came six to a box. They were the only kind available back then. Once the mighty Eggo™-style waffle became popular, they disappeared from the marketplace. That's sort of a shame, as every now and again I get a nostalgic taste for them.

Truth be told though, to paraphrase Spencer Tracy, there is no such thing as a bad waffle. Fresh of frozen, or even stuffed with cream cheese and jelly, they are all magically delicious. I don't really like syrup on my waffles. I just like to smear them with butter, so all the pure waffle flavor comes through.

Of course, to truly celebrate this week, we should all make a batch of waffles from scratch. I realize making waffles from scratch is a major pain in the Butterworth. It's a lot of effort, and if you don't have an old fashioned waffle iron, the waffles don't come out quite right. It seems modern waffle irons are all of the non-stick variety, which, while making cleanup a breeze, prevents the waffle from becoming crunchy. To have a superior homemade waffle, you must find a pre-1970's waffle iron, and really grease it up good to prevent sticking. If the ancient wiring in your antique waffle iron doesn't burn the house down, you will be rewarded with a fantastic, crunchy waffle. Just like Mother never made.

I am fortunate enough that my Sister owns an old waffle maker, and actually enjoys making things from scratch. I believe she uses this recipe. Her waffles are truly top-notch. I would say that they are the best I ever had, but having been to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles in Los Angeles, they are only a close second. 

Now that I think of it, if you live in the area, Roscoe's is probably the ideal spot to celebrate this occasion. I would write more about the fabulous food at Roscoe's, but just thinking about it is making me drool, and since I am 3,000+ miles away, I don't want to torture myself. 

My Sister's home would be another good spot to celebrate. Unfortunately she lives a few states away, and while my family puts up with a lot of my nonsense, a 4 hour trip for waffles is pushing it. I also suspect my Sister might not appreciate an unannounced visit from relatives demanding homemade waffles.

So I guess I will be celebrating with plain ol' Eggo's™ (since I don't think waffle fries count) this Holiday. When you think about it, though, it doesn't matter if you eat a waffle that's fresh or frozen. Holidays are really about celebrating special times with the ones you love.

Times like National Waffle Week.

To Boldly Go Where No Waffle Has Gone Before!

Whenever a big Summer blockbuster is released, there is always a whole crap load of connected merchandise released in stores at the same time. I suppose movie makers think, "Hey, if they loved the movie, they'll love the bed sheets!"

Movie tie-ins are usually the usual stuff: fast food kids toys, tee shirts, drinking glasses, action figures and the like. Sometimes though, you spot a movie-related product that is a real head-scratch er. 

Take Eggo™ Star Trek Waffles. Please.

I myself love Star Trek, and I do enjoy a toasted Eggo™ every now and then (although not to the extreme that I run about the house pointing fingers and shrieking, "Leggo my Eggo™!", to my family at breakfast time). Apparently, the folks in R & D at Kellogg's® figured there must be a lot of folks like me out there, who would find the combination of waffles and science fiction adventure irresistible. To fill that demographic need, they produced this breakfast food.

As you can see from the box pictured above, the waffles are your usual Eggos™, but with a circular depression in the middle. Inside the circle is a full color cartoon of assorted Star Trek moments. Not only does the aforementioned circular depression rob the waffle of valuable butter-holding nook & cranny space, but the colored images really give one pause. For one thing, due to the apparent deficiencies in waffle-printing technology, the images look pretty bad. I had one of Captain Kirk sitting in his command chair that looked like he was sitting on the commode. You also have to wonder what they use to color the waffle. Is it harmless food coloring? Let's hope so. The colors definitely add a "flavor" to the waffle that no amount of butter, margarine or Mrs. Butterworth's can mask.

So, I'm sorry, but this is one product tie-in I can't recommend. This is just my opinion, though, you may love them. If you do, start hoarding them. They're out for "a limited time only". Probably just until they release the Shrek 4 Eggos™.

As for me, I'll stick to my Mr. T™ cereal.