You Have To Memorize Martha Stewart's Decadent Waffle Technique

Martha Stewart is the go-to girl for all things homemaking, hosting, and cooking. She shares attainable ways for anybody to add a bit of lavishness to their everyday lives, from simple steps to elevate a classic recipe to easy-to-throw-together tablescapes you don't need a special occasion to display. It should come as no surprise that Stewart even has a trick to make basic waffles extra special. She shared on Instagram that to whip up stuffed waffles in a flash, she sandwiches Nutella between store-bought puff pastry sheets, cuts them out with a cookie cutter, and presses them in a waffle machine. 

The buttery puff pastry creates a rich, crispy waffle that is the ultimate vehicle for maple syrup. Not to mention, there's no scooping and leveling or whisking involved. As Stewart advises in the recipe shared on her website, simply roll out one sheet of store-bought puff pastry, slice it in half crosswise, and dollop your filling by the spoonful onto one half (about 1/4 cup total of spreadable filling should do the trick). Then place the second half of the pastry on top, and gently press around each dollop of filling to seal the two sides together. Use a cookie cutter to cut pieces out around each spoonful of filling, and pop them into the freezer for a few minutes. Then toss them into your waffle maker and let them cook for around five minutes.

You can use this technique to create the stuffed waffles your heart desires, customizing the filling to your liking. We can't help but imagine how tasty peanut butter-filled, banana-topped waffle puffs would be, or raspberry jam sprinkled with chocolate chips. Theoretically, you could even turn them into more savory waffles, perhaps dolloping goat cheese between the puff pastry sheets, cooking them, and topping them with apples, walnuts, honey, and maybe even crispy pancetta. Thanks to a hefty amount of butter, puff pastry is already prone to crisping up nicely, but if you're serious about crispy waffles, try using a cast-iron waffle maker. 

Martha Stewart is coined the O.G. influencer for good reason; the tips she shares are so easy to implement that tons of people are "influenced" to do so. And when it comes to her advice, there's no shortage of it. Martha Stewart has several tips for making soup, and an even longer list of tricks for perfecting cookies. She'll have you inspired to go the extra mile to make a gourmet meal in the middle of the week, or use simple hacks, like this waffle shortcut, to make it seem like you went the extra mile, when all you really did was take a few baby steps.