You could leave your waffles unadorned, but the combination of toasty buckwheat flour, fresh lemon zest, a tickle of nutmeg and pockets of fruit make these practically irresistible. The blueberries here could be fresh or frozen, and feel free to substitute other berries you have on hand. Serve warm with a pat of butter and a generous drizzle of maple syrup or honey. The batter can be prepared ahead and stored refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 24 hours. Remove from the refrigerator and cook as directed in Step 3. The cooked waffles can be tightly wrapped and stored in the freezer for up to 2 weeks. To serve, toast a frozen waffle in a toaster, toaster oven or an oven set to 375 degrees.

Buckwheat Blueberry Waffles

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups/174 grams buckwheat flour

• 3 tablespoons/42 grams dark brown sugar

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (such as Morton)

• 2 large eggs, at room temperature

• 1 cup/240 milliliters whole-milk buttermilk

• 2 tablespoons/30 grams unsalted butter, melted, plus more for waffle iron

• 1 cup/140 grams fresh or frozen (not thawed) blueberries

• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh, finely grated lemon zest (from 1 to 2 lemons)

• Warm maple syrup, for serving

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, grated nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Separate the egg yolks from the whites and put the whites in a medium bowl. Drop the yolks in the center of the dry ingredients. Add the buttermilk and stir together gently to form a batter. Do not overmix.

Beat the egg whites to medium peaks using a whisk or a hand-held mixer. Add the whipped whites to the batter and, using a rubber spatula, fold them in by gently scooping up some batter from the bottom and folding it over the whites on the top. Rotate the bowl and repeat until just incorporated. Fold in 2 tablespoons melted butter. Add the blueberries and lemon zest, and gently fold in.

Heat a waffle iron and, using a pastry brush or paper towel, lightly coat with melted butter. Cook waffles (using about 2/3 cup batter per waffle) until golden and crisp. Butter the iron between batches as needed.

Serve waffles immediately as they are ready, or keep them warm in a 200-degree oven until ready to serve. Top with warm maple syrup.

Total time: 25 minutes, makes 4 waffles.

© 2024 The New York Times Company