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| Buttery cookies made with brown sugar, vanilla and almond |
My Aunt Niece (Berniece) introduced us to them because she had Belgian heritage. My first cousin, her daughter, Susan says,
"My great grandmother brought our family gallet iron over with her when she came from Belgium. [in 1893]. When I was growing up, my uncle, aunt and mom would take turns using it. You'd schedule time to use the gallet iron."She also told me that they are New Year's cookies in Belgium. The story she was told was that children would go from house to house and say
"Bonne Annee, give me a gallet and I'll go away."Susan ---with her husband, Terry's help--- still make a full batch (30 dozen) at Christmastime, but use an electric 4-at-time waffle maker. Gallets make great gifts. Susan says all of her 8 first cousins on her mother's side make them for their families at Christmas. Plus they will be made for weddings, where cookie tables are part of the culture, in the Pittsburgh area.
If my memory serves me, we used to receive batches of them in tins, mailed to us from Pennsylvania, to our outpost in Texas. At some point, Aunt Niece gave us a waffle iron of our own, and we started making them with enthusiasm every Christmas. I fondly remember my dad making them (with my mom's help who prepared the dough.) Later, after I was an adult and I had moved away, he would mail them to me. I think we all have good memories and associations of my dad and gallets.
Eventually, all of my siblings began making them for their families. And now some of their kids, my nieces and nephews, are making them, too. My younger brother has the official Hall family gallet iron, but everyone else has found a version to acquire. My brother-in-law, Rex has hunted them down on eBay with success. And there is place in Minnesota called Belgian Cookie Irons that makes both stove-top and electric types. And Palmer Mfg makes electric ones, but not sure about their quality.
Ours was not electric. But they do speed up the process. Otherwise, it is one at a time, an all-day affair of making stacks of cookies. The original recipe makes 30 dozen! That's 360 cookies!
To make a more reasonable quantity, I have downsized the recipe:
Gallets (Belgian Waffle Cookies) (1/4 Original Recipe)
Makes 90 cookies
Plan on 3 hours for making them, if using a single stove-top iron.
1/2 lb butter (2 sticks), softened
12 ounces light brown sugar (1.5 cups)
3 eggs, at room temperature
4 cups flour, up to 5 cups, as needed
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. almond extract
Cream together butter and sugar, on medium high, until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating them in, after each addition. Add vanilla and almonds extracts and stir until combined. A little at a time, on medium-low, add the dry ingredients, starting with the salt and cinnamon before the flour, mixing until well-combined. The batter will become very stiff. It should not be too wet. Add more flour if needed until the texture is dry enough to roll into small fingers which hold their own shape.
A new iron might require seasoning, i.e., coating it with several light coats of vegetable oil or cooking spray before beginning to bake the cookies. You don't want them to stick. Once your iron is used it may not require coating with oil before using. The first few might not be perfect, but will be perfect for feeding the cook.
Heat to medium high, and begin producing cookies. Depending on your stove, they may take 30 - 60 seconds on each side. You will have to make some tests to determine the ideal timing.
When perfectly browned, lift the iron, open it up and let the baked cookie fall out onto the counter or a rack to cool.
Ideally, you would have evenly browned cookies on both sides, crispy and cooked all the way through. The cookie should break in two with a nice snap.
To keep your cookies crisp, store them in plastic bags, or airtight tins.
B
P.S. from Emily: Gluten free is as good as the original. :) I used a gluten free storebought flour called Cup 4 Cup developed by the French Laundry restaurant available at stores like Target and on Amazon. But I like King Arthur Gluten-free Measure for Measure flour better. It doesn't have milk.
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| Emily's Gluten Free Gallets made in Texas |
P.S. from Colleen: The iron that Steve got from your parents was made by Nordic Ware and it was stamped Gaufrette. I found a new one on eBay and got it for Steve as the old one's handle had failed and it was dangerous to use.
Colleen says she makes half the original recipe and Steve makes them in the waffle iron, usually on Christmas eve.
