It’s Autumn,

Colorful foliage, wind, rain, and public service strikes—all reliable signs that we’re deep into this season.

Based on the classic light Brussels waffle, this recipe gets a double umami twist.

For about ten waffles:

• 250g flour (150g Type 80 and 100g high-gluten/Manitoba flour if you have access to different types of flour to enhance the rise)
• 125g butter
• 12g fresh yeast
• 2 eggs
• 20–30 cl milk**, to adjust consistency depending on your waffle iron

• 100g mature Cheddar
• 1 to 2 sheets of Nori seaweed** (the kind used for sushi)
• A pinch of salt

We’ll prepare the waffle batter in two steps. First, we’ll let a slightly too-thick dough develop, then adjust it to the right consistency at the last moment by incorporating our additional ingredients.

Everyone has their own approach to waffle batter. Some take the aggressive route and throw everything into a food processor, but here’s how I prefer to do it:

1. Melt the butter in half of the total milk, without letting it boil.
2. Prepare the beaten eggs.
3. Crumble the yeast finely into the flour.
4. Quickly mix the flour with the eggs in a stand mixer.
5. Gradually add the liquids while mixing until you get a smooth batter.

Let the batter rise for a good 1 hour and 15 minutes.

For the umami twist:

– Finely grate the Cheddar.
– Chop the Nori into small pieces (0.2 to 0.5 cm²).

This is where you define your waffle’s personnality: adding 1 Nori sheet will let the Cheddar dominate, resulting in a fairly classic cheese waffle. Adding up to 2 sheets shifts the balance, with the seaweed’s briny flavor taking the lead.

Incorporate these into the batter, which you’ll have adjusted in liquids content to the proper consistency for your waffle iron.

baking :
No more than 5 minutes. For soft, fluffy waffles, aim for 2–3 minutes. Beyond that, they’ll be crunchy