I hauled out my waffle maker and made waffles at work last week. My youngest son was astonished. He did not remember the waffle maker surviving our last move. So of course, he said, “I want waffles!”

He doesn’t know I used gluten free flour in his. I cut it with 50 percent regular flour. Thankfully, one of my friends was running a sale on her farm-fresh eggs. I needed four eggs and two egg whites. I dislike egg whites. But I reminded myself that this was not meringue, and the egg whites didn’t need to be perfect. The Internet provided a recipe for dairy free waffles. My youngest has the milk-protein issue. I made eight Belgian waffles. The best secret I have for mass waffle production? Cooking spray. Before you start and before every new waffle because my waffle maker produces lovely waffles, but

it’s a bear to clean.

To be honest, first I checked my older son’s groceries because he often buys a brand of waffle mix that is gluten-free. No luck. Still, it isn’t difficult to mix things from scratch. I did have one complaint about the recipe. The writer likes tablespoons. I had to convert her multiple tablespoons into cups, because I hate repetitive scooping. Still, the recipe made great waffles, so I saved it.

That’s where the extra egg whites were useful. Don’t ask me how, but egg whites and water replace milk. I know the waffles were good because my son loved them. He was not fond of the natural maple syrup. This is one area I refuse to go cheap on. He might love the cheap fake stuff, but ugh! It’s entirely fake. I told him

he just has to get used to the real maple syrup.

I had enough waffles to set aside for another breakfast. That’s a win, because I only have to clean the waffle iron once.