My (Emily's) parents are not from Texas. The both grew up in places many thousands of miles away from Texas, in fact, and growing up, they encouraged my brother and me not to be overly influenced by Texas: for example, neither of us said "y'all" until we were in college. Despite being staunch coastal liberals, there was ONE Texas thing that, when I was a kid, my parents fully embraced.
That, dear readers, was the Texas shaped waffle.
The Texas shaped waffle iron we had growing up was amazing. It produced dark golden brown waffles, and had a big star right where Austin is that was PERFECT for overflowing with maple syrup and butter. A few months ago, Olivia discovered that Texas shaped waffle irons were a thing and got one for her birthday; I recently became the proud owner of one from my parents' kitchen, though oddly NOT the one we spent years using (they had...multiple...Texas-shaped ways to make waffles). We used our new one to make Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Waffles, which we drenched with New York maple syrup made by Olivia's friend, Jim the Builder. These waffles would be good in any shape, but we're sure that Texas' shape makes them a little tastier. Also, the Rio Grande Valley is really good for pouring maple syrup along.
Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Waffles
•3/4 cup cornmeal
•3/4 cup all-purpose flour
•1 1/2 tsp baking powder
•1teaspoon baking soda
•1/2 tsp kosher salt
•1/3 cup grated cheddar
•1 tsp maple syrup
•1 cup buttermilk
•1 egg
•4 tsp melted butter
•2 peppers (we used one jalapeño and one serrano pepper)
Makes 4 waffles
1. In a large bowl, mix together cornmeal, flour, backing powder, baking soda, salt, and cheddar.
2. In a smaller bowl, mix together maple syrup, buttermilk, egg, and butter.
3. Combine wet and dry ingredients.
4. Stir in the peppers.
5. Let sit for 10 minutes.
6. Follow the cooking instructions according to your waffle maker (we used about 2/3 cup per waffle).
7. Top with maple syrup and butter. Enjoy!