Posted by Susan L on November 29, 1997 at 23:15:33:
In Reply to: Re: PIZZELE IRON posted by Susan L on November 29, 1997 at 13:35:06:
: Note the variant spellings here (“piazelle,” “piazella,” “pizzele”) which may constitute one of your problems in searching the Web for this thing ...
not that there appears to have been all that much out there to begin with.
Silly me! I used "pizelle" (Chuck Williams' spelling in 1986) to search Yahoo! As you knew, the spelling is "pizzelle" in 1997, and it's hot! Just go to the bottom of this message, click on the link for Yahoo!, enter "pizzelle" and click on "Go to Alta Vista" to look at lots of possibilities, including:
• Photo of a 1930's Italian pizzelle iron posted by the Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies (http://www.libertynet.org/~balch/musegud/ec1.htm)
• Pizzelle features and equipment review on "The Perfect Pizzelle" (http://www.brandywine.net/users/hils/equipment.htm)
• Two vendors who might be up to your standards -- RDP Foodservice (http://www.rdpfoodservice.com/catalog/975.htm) and especially
Appliances On-Line (http://www.appliances.com/dept14.html) which has pictures of the stovetop and electric models. Once you see them, you'll probably say, "Oh, *those* things!" and know just where to find them. By the way, I talked about pizzelle irons with some Williams-Sonoma people today -- the store people said that the catalog carries them, while the catalog people said that the stores carry them, and everybody said that their computers were down (grrr) ...
Anyway, best of luck. Attached is Nick Magieri's recipe from "Baking with Julia."
Regards,
Susan L
from “Baking with Julia,” by Dorie Greenspan (NY: William Morrow & Co., 1996) based on the PBS series hosted by Julia Child (page 323)
Pizzelle
Makes about 2 dozen wafers. These are the wafers that you find fanned out atop a scoop of gelato or served alongside fresh sugared berries in Italy. They are among the simplest cookies to make -- the batter is whisked together in under five minutes and the wafers are baked on fancifully imprinted pizzelle irons in less than half that time. Traditionally flavored with anisette, crispy pizzelle can take vanilla or almond extract or a few spoonfuls of freshly grated lemon zest. Whether you use a hand-held, over-the-burner iron or an electric iron, follow the manufacturer’s directions when it comes to seasoning and greasing it.
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 large eggs
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon anisette or 1 teaspoon pure anise extract
3 oz. unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting
Preheat the pizzelle iron, and grease or spray it if suggested in the manufacturer’s instructions. Set out a cooling rack for the baked cookies.
Put the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl and whisk to blend; set aside.
In another bowl, whisk together the eggs and salt until foamy, then gradually whisk in the sugar. When the mixture is smooth, whisk in the liqueur or extract, followed by the melted butter. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the reserved dry ingredients. You’ll have a shiny, fairly thick batter that mounds easily on a spoon.
Baking the Pizzelle: Using about 2 teaspoons of batter for each pizzelle, place the batter in the center of the iron, close the iron, and bake for about 2 minutes, or until golden and firm. Don’t open the iron to peek until the steam stops. As soon as the pizzelle is baked, remove from the iron to the cooling rack and continue making pizzelle with the remaining batter. Should any of the pizzelle need coaxing to come off the iron, nudge them with a spatula or fork and then peel them off with your fingers. If you want to cut the pizzelle into quarters or roll them into cones, do so the instant they come off the iron, piping hot and still pliable. Dust with confectioner’s sugar before serving.
Storing: Stacked between sheets of waxed paper in an airtight container, pizzelle will keep at room temperature for at least 1 week.
Contributing baker Nick Malgieri