STICK WITH SWEET | Airy waffles drizzled in a tangy lemon-curd syrup. Justin Walker for The Wall Street Journal, Food Styling by Heather Meldrom, Prop Styling by DSM

SINCE BECOMING a mother, I've also become a prolific waffle-maker. Much as I adore my little boy, these waffles are not for him. No, if I find myself reaching for a mixing bowl at dawn on a Wednesday morning, it is because when a small person pulls you from bed and insists on 16 choruses of "Wheels on the Bus" before coffee, you start feeling you deserve a treat.

I've realized that making waffles is a dangerously easy indulgence for anyone with a few kitchen staples and a waffle iron. Laced with buttermilk, bulked up with buckwheat, studded with berries—I've tried them all. On weekday mornings, simplicity is the greatest virtue: Stir together milk, eggs, flour, butter, baking powder and maybe a sprinkle of sugar. The results will be golden and hot and crunchy and sweet.

A leisurely weekend allows for fancier footwork. Waffles, like their doughnut cousins, tend to fall into two camps: cake and yeast-raised, the former sporting a firmer crumb, the latter, a lighter center and crisper ridges. My go-to Saturday morning recipe is an old one that owes its pleasant acidic edge to a shot of white vinegar—a substitute for what would have been sour milk in thriftier times, when cooks were loathe to let any ingredient go to waste. It starts with a baking-powder-leavened batter and ends in uncommonly airy waffles—a sort of hybrid of the cake and yeast-raised categories. The trick: folding in a small tsunami of beaten egg whites to give the batter foamy body. Topped with a swirl of warm lemon curd, they're a tad sugary, a tad tart and altogether decadent.

For a while, only one thing cramped my waffle-making style: my husband, who is one of those mystifying creatures who believes the words sweet and breakfast should never be uttered together. But I rose to the challenge, inspired by an Italian-American staple of his childhood, the pork-studded loaf known as lard bread. After all, who can resist nostalgia...or ham and cheese?

I based my recipe partly on the yeast-raised waffles in Marion Cunningham's classic "The Breakfast Book," partly on the prosciutto ring in "The Bread Bible" by Rose Levy Beranbaum —plus some taste memories from bakeries across New York's outer boroughs. Swapping in lard for butter lends savory depth; provolone, prosciutto and pepper add richness and slow-building spice; and an overnight rise in the fridge lightens the batter and deepens its flavors. The recipe might be a bit of a Frankenstein's monster, but the only thing scary about these waffles is how addictive they are.

Sour-Milk Waffles With Lemon Curd Syrup

Total Time: 60 minutes Makes: 6 waffles, 1¼ cups lemon curd


For the lemon curd:

Zest and juice of 6 large lemons

1 cup sugar

½ cup unsalted butter, softened

5 egg yolks

Pinch salt

For the waffles:

2 eggs, separated

2 tablespoons white vinegar

2 cups whole milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons baking soda

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ginger (optional)

½ cup butter, melted

What To Do

1. Make the lemon curd: Combine lemon zest and sugar in a bowl and stir well. Add butter, and, using an electric mixer set to low-medium, mix until light and fluffy. With mixer still running, add yolks one at a time. Gently stir in lemon juice and salt. Pour mixture into a saucepan and cook on low, whisking constantly to prevent scorching or curdling, until mixture is glossy and thick enough to coat a spoon, 20-25 minutes. Keep warm.

2. Make the waffles: Place egg yolks in a large bowl and mix well. Stir vinegar into milk, then add milk mixture to yolks and stir to combine. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, sugar, salt and ginger, if using. Working in batches, add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well until evenly combined. Stir in butter until batter is smooth. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until they are stiff and glossy. Gently fold whites into reserved batter. Spoon batter into a waffle maker and cook according to manufacturer's instructions. Serve waffles immediately or keep warm and crisp in a 200-degree oven. Spoon lemon curd over waffles while it is warm and pourable. (Curd will thicken as it cools.) Leftovers will keep in a well-sealed heatproof jar, refrigerated, 2-3 weeks.

Black Pepper, Provolone and Prosciutto Waffles

Total Time: 30 minutes, plus 8 hours for batter to rise Makes: 6 waffles

Prosciutto, provolone and black peppercorns F. Martin Ramin for The Wall Street Journal


1¾ cups whole milk

2 large eggs

8 tablespoons lard, melted

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1½ teaspoons instant yeast

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon freshly ground, coarse black pepper

½ teaspoon paprika

½ teaspoon garlic powder

2 ounces provolone, grated (about 1½ cups)

¼ cup chopped sliced sopressata

¼ cup chopped sliced prosciutto

What To Do

1. In a saucepan, heat milk until just warm. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and melted lard, then stir in warm milk. In a separate, larger bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Slowly whisk warm milk-lard mixture into dry ingredients until batter is smooth. Gently stir in pepper, paprika and garlic powder. Scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until batter doubles in size and flavors develop, overnight or up to 24 hours.

2. When ready to make waffles, remove batter from refrigerator. Whisk batter (it will deflate) and scatter in provolone, sopressata and prosciutto. Spoon batter into waffle maker and cook according to manufacturer's instructions. Serve waffles immediately or keep warm in a 200-degree oven. Garnish with additional prosciutto, if you like.