Time to celebrate National Waffle Day!

The United States tends to come up with some odd unofficial holidays — take, for example, National Walk Around Things Day, Lumpy Rug Day or Do a Grouch a Favor Day.

On the other hand, we’ve also come up with some great ones — including National Waffle Day. 

It falls on Saturday this year, and we’re focusing on it for two reasons: First, the holiday has Capital Region roots; and secondly, the area has plenty of fluffy and decadent waffle options to try. 

Historians have traced the waffle’s history all the way back to ancient Greece, though the Dutch are often credited with bringing the culinary treat to America. 

Here’s where the local connection comes in. Cornelius Swartwout of Troy patented the first waffle iron on Aug. 24, 1869, (hence the holiday). According to the National Museum of American History, Swartwout (or Swarthout, depending on who you talk to) wanted to make an improvement in the waffle irons available on the market. His creation looked similar to modern-day designs, with the one major difference being that his didn’t use electricity. 

Since then, waffles have maintained their popularity on both brunch and dinner menus, beloved by many, especially by writers such as John Green, who has described them as “just awesome bread”; and characters like Leslie Knope of the NBC series “Parks and Rec,” who said, “We need to remember what’s important in life: friends, waffles, work. Or waffles, friends, work. Doesn’t matter, but work is third.”

Send Me Waffles, Clifton Park

True to its name, this company, run by a Niskayuna couple, will send waffles right to your door.

But they’re not exactly the waffles you might be used to. 

Ilene Friedman and Keegan Bailey started the company in May, a few years after discovering Belgian Liège waffles. 

“We’d never had anything like it before and my husband became obsessed with trying to reproduce it. It’s a dough-based yeast batter, almost like a brioche instead of a batter-based,” Friedman said.

The dough has to go through three different rising processes before it’s ready to hit the waffle iron. Then, Friedman will package each waffle individually and send them out. 

It usually takes between one and three days for the waffles to arrive at their destination. People can order plain waffles called the Send Me Sugar waffles, or their stuffed waffles with Gatherer’s Granola Chipmunk’s Choice Granola inside. 

In celebration of National Waffle Day,Send Me Waffles will be serving up a beer-grain waffle at Frog Alley Brewing from 2-6 p.m. on Saturday.

Made with flour produced from grain waste created in beer production, the beer-grain waffle is higher in fiber and has a hearty flavor. 

For more info on the waffles, visit sendmewaffles.com. 

Read the entire story here: 

https://dailygazette.com/article/2019/08/21/time-to-celebrate-national-waffle-day