Waffles and...

Recently our small group said farewell to one of our members due to a move and for the send-off party we indulged in one of her favorite treats: waffles & ice cream.  I knew this to be one of her faves since that is what she served the very first time she hosted small group a few years ago.  I’d heard of people having waffles & ice cream as a dessert from watching a fun little cooking show called “The Take Home Chef” on TLC.  But this was a new experience for several individuals in our small group.  They were slightly mystified at the prospect of putting these two treats together. 

But no one was disappointed.  Everyone loved the combo.  What’s not to like?!  We topped the waffles with vanilla bean ice cream (fat free vanilla for Jake, poor guy) and then chocolate and/or caramal syrup & sprinkles, if desired. 

I made a somewhat half-hearted attempt to procure a waffle iron for the event, but came up short so we just went the route of Eggo.  Which was fast & fine.  I did get a new toaster for the occasion, spending a whopping $7 on it.  Our old one was just that – OLD.  Seriously, it was probably from the Reagan era.  We don’t have a lot of use for such things at our house, what with my dislike of bread and all. (Cook’s choice, people.)  We do enjoy our BLT’s on toasted bread, so in the summer when we have garden fresh tomatoes (from someone else’s garden, of course) we do whip out the old hunk of metal.  But lately it’s been somewhat lacking – it either burns or doesn’t toast hardly at all.  So goodbye, ‘ole pal!  Hello, new hunk of junk.  (I mean, if it cost under $7, it can’t be all that great, but I don’t require a lot of it.)

Another interesting waffle combo: waffles & chicken.  This is apparently a southern fave and has been a featured menu item on Man v. Food quite a bit at various restaurants.  The "chicken" part is usually some form of fried chicken or chicken strips.  My brother recently mentioned on Facebook that he was attempting a try at this pairing.  I don’t care too much either way about this idea, but Jake is pretty astounded that people would combine the two on one plate.  We’ve yet to try it, but again, I’m not opposed.  But I don’t think it will make my top 10 dishes to try either. 

What’s your take?  What would you like to eat your waffles with?