Chocolate Chip Waffles

Since so much of our week is filled with rushed mornings, our tradition is to take advantage of lazy Sunday mornings to create nice family breakfasts shared around the kitchen table. My son has been a bit obsessed with chocolate chip pancakes for a while now (completely my fault for introducing them in the first place!) and I decided to mix it up a bit and attempt to switch him to waffles for a change. I used my belgium waffle maker for these and he actually ate a good half of one of them-- a stellar amount for my little man! They were actually a hit with the grown man in my life as well! :) The batter was nice and light and had a really nice consistency when cooked. They were rich with the mini-chocolate chips included, so they actually went further than I had expected. One batch made 6 large belgium waffles.

Chocolate Chip Waffles

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 large egg white, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups milk, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted, plus more for brushing the iron
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup mini-chocolate chips

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Separate the 2 eggs and put all of the egg whites (3 total) in a large bowl. In a large liquid measuring cup or bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, milk, vanilla and 1/4 cup melted butter. Whisk the milk mixture into the flour mixture until a batter is formed. Take care not to over-mix the batter. Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until they just begin to hold a loose peak. Scatter the sugar over the whites and continue beating until they hold a soft peak. Fold a third of the egg whites into the batter to lighten the base, then fold in the remaining whites. Gently fold in the chocolate chips.

Preheat a waffle iron to medium high. Brush the inside surface of the waffle iron with melted butter. Pour in enough batter to barely fill each hole of the waffle iron (keeping in mind that the batter will spread once the lid is closed). Close the iron and cook until crisp and the waffle iron stops steaming, about 5 minutes. Serve as the waffles come off the iron or transfer to a dish in the oven heated to 200 degrees F. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Source: Annie's Eats, originally from the Food Network Kitchens