PRPG:
Celebrate National Waffle Day with these interesting facts about waffles.

6 Facts About Waffles

August 24, 2015

It’s National Waffle Day. Here are some facts to get you griddling.

Celebrate National Waffle Day with these interesting facts about waffles.1. The verb waffle means to be indecisive and it comes from a Scottish term “waff” that means “to yelp like a puppy.” The noun waffle, meaning the excellent gridded breakfast food, comes from the Old German wefan, which meant to weave something into the shape of a honeycomb. (Makes sense!)

2. Arguably the most famous waffle outlet in the United States is the Southern chain Waffle House. Since opening 60 years ago, they’ve served just over 877 million waffles, which works out to about 145 each minute.

3. Waffles originated in Western Europe in the Middle Ages. Batter was poured between two metal plates, which were made with a grid pattern to catch the batter and prevent it from falling out the sides as it cooked over an open flame.

4. World’s largest waffle: An eight-foot-long, 110 pound brunch bomb created by Stitching Gouda Oogst in the Netherlands in 2013.

5. There are three main types of breakfast waffles:

Belgian: Also known as a Brussels waffle, it’s light and crispy but with deep ridges and leavened with yeast.

American: A waffle that’s been leavened with baking powder instead of yeast.

Liege: Also invented in Belgium (but predating the Belgian waffle), the Liege is made with a yeast-based dough and is softer, denser, and due to a carmelized sugar coating, sweeter.

6. Why is August 24 “National Waffle Day”? Because on this day in 1869, Cornelius Swarthout received the first U.S. patent on the waffle iron.