I'm trying to make something similar to a waffle. I want the browned part to be crunchy/crispy. But no matter how long I heat it, it remains spongy, even when burnt. The ingredients are pretty generic:
all purpose flour baking powder corn starch milk water egg sugar
Is there something I need to add or remove to make it crispy?
Oil. All the waffle recipes I know of are pancake recipes with extra oil.
Serene
I find potato starch gives a better result (crispy wise) than corn starch. How much corn starch to flour are you using?
marcella
Laurie Anderson , on turning 40.
about 4 part flour 1 part corn starch
What exactly does corn starch (or potato starch) do anyway? If this is not used, or have too much, what would be the effect?
A few years back there was an article in Fine Cooking on waffle making. The author was looking for waffles that were crispy outside and tender inside. She achieved it by reducing some of the flour and replacing it with potato starch.
As my waffles started out crispy but quickly softened as the cooled I thought I'd try it. I found it worked very well. I asked how much corn starch you were using incase it was something meager like 1 T.
The recipe she used started with 2 C flour and she reduced the flour to
1 3/4 C and added 1/4 C potato starch It sounds like you'd be using 1/2 C cornstarch for 2 C flour - an even bigger proportion.marcella
The waffle recipe in the last (before 2006) edition of the Joy of Cooking has options to use a little, medium or a lot--2 sticks--of butter. We use the 2 sticks option whenever we're feeling indulgent and want a crispy waffle. Be sure your waffle iron is hot enough, too. I would stay away from oil, becuase I'd think it would act as a crust tenderizer.
Good luck--
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