They say that the 35th President of the United States, J.F. Kennedy, was really not one for eating well or eating much. On the contrary – he was the sort who had to be constantly nagged into putting that mouthful in. But despite that, Kennedy adored the waffles his wife Jackie made, and the first lady herself was spoken of at the time as a genuine diva of the waffle – various cookbooks wrote about her technique of adding plenty of baking powder and stiffly beaten egg whites so that the waffles came out light and „airy”. 🥞 Letters held today at the J.F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum show that the Kennedy family was constantly asked about Jackie's waffle recipe, which led to the recipe being published in 1959 in a recipe collection in Tallahassee, USA. 📜
The best part is that if you make a mess of them, or they taste like nothing much at all, you can always excuse yourself with „the president liked them exactly like this – it's his favourite recipe!” 😁😁😁 Which is why I too am shedding all responsibility and giving you the plain, bare Kennedy waffle recipe. If you don't like it, remember that this is precisely how Mr President liked them. 😂
Political Pot Luck: A Collection of Recipes from Men Only, 1959. Photograph taken from TheAwl.
And now my comment on these waffles. Although who am I to comment on the president's favourite waffles? 😁 But comment I shall. Respectfully.
I made them twice and both times they came out very soft for me, perhaps even too soft. The first time I stacked them on top of one another while they were still hot, so in the end they reminded me more of pancakes than waffles. The second time I cooked them and cooled them on a rack – and then some degree of crispness appeared. To be honest, while making these waffles I began to worry that my waffle iron is counting its last days…☹ so I was left not knowing whether the recipe needs modifying a little or whether the iron needs replacing for the waffles to be more waffle and less pancake. 🤔 but let's say „this is how the president liked them” 😁. The waffles themselves are not sweet. Not at all. Which is why they absolutely need a knob of butter and looooots of maple syrup. Then they are an absolute treat.🥞 Perhaps vanilla ice cream would work too?
So there we are. My verdict – not the best waffles on earth (goodness, how dare I?!), but genuinely not bad. This recipe is for sentimental people like me, who adore recipes with a history and a breath of the past about them. I am proud that I had the chance to cook to a president's recipe, since he was and always will be one of the greatest people in history to me.🗽
And for anyone who can't quite make out the scan, I have written the recipe out at the bottom of the page.⬇
