Okay folks…going to get a little naughty here. I have had a little trouble with sugar over the years. It is my addiction. Some folks drink and do drugs…I like me some sugar. Pizzelles are one of my weak spots. I love them. There will be many other posts on healthy life choices I promise. In this post, I will honor my paternal grandmother Rose. I debated on sharing this recipe because I am Italian and we are kind of funny about those things. I wanted it to be special for my girls. However, here I am sharing it with the world. I thought my family would really like this one. I have altered the recipe anyway.
My grandma Rose lived in the house I grew up in, in Syracuse, NY. She moved south to Florida and my parents took over the house at some point. I didn’t see her often but she used to send us the most delicious grapefruits which she grew in her back yard. I didn’t care for the oranges. Sorry grandma, they were too sweet for my taste. Those grapefruits however were amazing. Growing up in NYS you don’t get to sample many varieties of grapefruits. You get white and pink from the grocery store. The white ones were bitter. Grandmas were so different. They were thin skinned, tart and delicious. They were not bitter at all. Oh how I wish I knew what variety they were. If you know me, you know I am an investigator type. I even looked up the house grandma lived in (she has passed several years ago) to see if I could contact the new owners to get some seeds or a cutting. To my utter dismay someone cut down the trees and put in a pool.
When I was a kid, I remember visiting grandma in Florida. She would make me lots and lots of fresh squeezed grapefruit juice…as much as I would like. She also made me pizzelles. By chance you do not know what pizzelles are, they are a bland, crisp Italian cookie made with a press or pizzelle iron. They are delicious to me and my family.
Grandma Rose was a spunky little petite lady full of life. She was always working on something. I remember her as an older lady sitting outside our second story windows to clean them. She wasn’t afraid to tell you her opinion either. While I didn’t get her petite size…okay, I got the petite height…just not the width, lol…I have plenty of her spice. I also continue on her tradition of making pizzelles for my family.
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I got this new cookbook about 4 years ago with plastic slide in sheets to protect the recipes. I really like it. I hope it keeps the recipes I use safe for my girls and maybe their children one day.
My variation: I use whole ground organic unbleached spelt flour. I get that locally through Regional Access. The Grindstone Farm picks up there. I use avocado oil in place of the butter from Aldi and add in 2 Tablespoons of nutritional yeast and 1/2 a teaspoon of salt. This combination gives a nice buttery flavor without the dairy. I prefer 2 teaspoons of almond extract instead of the anise & vanilla. I get my extracts from my local co-op most of the time. Sometimes I toss in some flax meal too. My batter is dark because I use unbleached ingredients. Some notes: Do not use extra virgin olive oil…it does not taste good in this recipe. The flavor is too strong. Regular olive oil is fine. Coconut oil isn’t my favorite in this recipe. They tend to brown too fast. DO NOT WALK AWAY while using the iron. They cook very quickly. I overcook a few just about every time because I try to multitask. Don’t do the dishes 😉 Wait.
I have the Chef’s Choice Pizzelle Pro maker. I make these for the kids birthdays, road trips, etc. Or just because… but I am trying not to do that these days!
You can use a stand mixer if you want but I generally use a batter bowl and a whisk. They whip up fine that way. I do love to use cooling racks. I use these things for everything. You will see them in many posts from basic food uses to holding sterilized canning jars to curing soap, lol. I prefer the stackable. I like Pampered Chef the best as they have a smaller grate pattern so you don’t tend to loose as much food but the first ones I linked work well for most things.
Pizzelles cool and harden quickly. You can shape them if you work fast…and don’t mind burning your hands! You can use them as an easy canolli shell (I use a fat stubby piece of dowel) or make cones out of them.
These dress up a table nicely in a long skinny basket. I hope I have inspired you to make pizzelles for your family! Enjoy! Once in a while that is…and maybe think of my grandma and smile.