Our Classic Recipes

I cannot claim any credit for this recipe-- it comes from my mother-in-law, Julie. David "adopted" this as his friend-winning, girl-impressing recipe during his college years, and made them A LOT. He continues to make them almost every week and loves to deliver them to neighbors, church friends, family... etc.

It has been much-requested in the recent past, so we decided we better post it on our blog for easy access.  We ALWAYS make the dough in our bread maker (we actually have two bread makers now! ha!). So I don't know details about how to make it otherwise. Hence, we ambiguously wrote for you to use "the traditional kneading method" under the directions, for those of you who don't have a bread maker, and hopefully you have an idea of how to accomplish this.

Ingredients:
Dough:
3 c flour
3 T powdered milk
4 T sugar
2 t salt
4 T butter
1 ¼ c water
1 T yeast

Topping:
4 T butter, melted  
Cinnamon, sprinkled until dough is dark brown and completely covered
1/3 c white granulated sugar
1 handful brown sugar
1 dash nutmeg, sprinkled on very lightly

Frosting:
2 c powdered sugar
Milk, add a little at a time until desired consistency is
obtained
½ t vanilla
½ t almond extract
Directions:
1. Make dough in bread-maker or with the
traditional kneading method. Roll dough into a
rectangular shape and spread the following on top, in
order: butter, cinnamon, sugars, nutmeg.
2. Roll the dough up hotdog style, and cut the rolls,
making each about an inch thick. Then put the rolls
on a greased pan. Let them rise for 30 minutes. Cook them in a preheated oven at 390 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
3. Let the rolls cool down a little before drizzling on
frosting for the best results.

Prior to baking, post rising.

Again, prior to baking.

We had sourdough waffles last night for dinner, and as usual, they never disappoint. In fact, between the two of us scarfing them down as soon as they came off the waffle iron, we had no leftovers! Sad, but true. We had ours with butter, strawberries, and maple syrup. We make our own syrup, and the recipe is also included below (super easy).

The sourdough waffles tradition started in our household when David inherited a sourdough starter from Grandpa Lynn. We always have sourdough pancakes when we visit Grandma and Grandpa Parkinson, and have taken up the practice of eating them almost weekly in our own home (partly to preserve and continue to feed the starter, partly because they are so dang delicious)! David prefers waffles to pancakes, so we always do waffles around these parts. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 cup sourdough starter
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 large egg, well beaten
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

*Note: We often skip the first "night before" part, because we hardly ever have the fore-thought to prepare the batter early. However, I assume that your waffles would come out much more sourdough-y if you fermented the batter over night. If you skip the over night fermenting, there is only a very slight sour taste to the waffles, but they are always delicious! I'll probably never buy pancake/waffle mix again.

1. The Night Before: Mix 1 cup sourdough starter with the flour and milk in a large, nonreactive bowl. Place the bowl in a warm place, cover and let it stand until morning. (Be sure to replenish your starter by adding 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 cup water; let stand until next morning; then refrigerate.)

2. The Next Day: add beaten egg, oil, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar to sourdough mixture; mix well.

3. Heat up your waffle iron, pour in the batter, and cook until golden brown.

We are always rewarded with the most light, crispy, delicious waffles :]  For a healthy twist, you can substitute whole wheat flour for the all-purpose flour, and you can even add in a tablespoon of flaxseed!

Now for the maple syrup recipe:

Ingredients:
1 cup water
1 cup white granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon Mapeline (imitation maple flavor)

*Note: If you purchase the Mapeline at the store it will also have this recipe on the bottle. It calls for only 1/2 teaspoon Mapeline, which David prefers; however, I swear that when I first learned how to make this from mom-in-law Julie, she recommended 1 teaspoon. I've made it with 1 teaspoon, and it's not too strong, I promise. So, experiment and do what you like.

1. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a rolling boil on the stove. Stir frequently during this process. Once a rolling boil is obtained, turn off the burner and let cool. Transfer syrup into cup/bottle for dispensing.

I grew up simply using the recipe on the chocolate chips bag to make chocolate chip cookies.  I was never grievously disappointed, but at the same time, I was never totally thrilled with the resulting cookies.  After I got married, I started baking more and started trying different recipes for chocolate chip cookies. I don't know if it was the altitude in Utah or our quirky little oven, but the recipes I tried just never turned out.  Too flat or too crunchy, every time.  

Then, one day, a neighbor friend dropped off some chocolate chip cookies with a thank-you card for a baby shower gift I had given her (I know, talk about going above and beyond)!  Those cookies were so delicious, and she had obviously made them in Utah and in a Wymount oven.  She obligingly gave me the recipe, and I have made these cookies a few times now-- they have always been FABULOUS. Plenty of chocolate chips, and they even stay soft for days as long as I have them in an air-tight container.  Therefore, these chocolate chip cookies will be a staple in our household for many years to come!

Here is the magic recipe.  I recommend using Ghirardelli chocolate chips, if possible.  They are top notch :]

Ingredients:

1 C Butter or Margarine

½ C Sugar

¾ C Brown Sugar; packed

1 Egg

2 tsp. Vanilla

2 ¼ C Flour

½ tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Baking Soda

2 C (12 oz.) Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

Directions:

Stir flour, baking soda, and salt together. In another bowl cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg; beat well. Add dry ingredients gradually to the creamed mixture; mix well. Add chocolate chips; mix. Scoop one tablespoon sized dough balls on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375* for 10-15 minutes.  Serves 3 Dozen!

These are pictures that I took of the actual product!