Go ahead, waffle on International Waffle Day

A Rabbit Hill Inn guest prepares to enjoy his Hazelnut Waffles. Rabbit Hill Inn photo.

Leslie Mulcahy at the Rabbit Hill Inn clued me in via Facebook that today (March 25) celebrates International Waffle Day.  This illustrious day is not the day to make important decisions.  In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Today is the one day of the year you’re allowed to waffle on decisions and eat one too!

According to Holidayinsights.com, International Waffle Day originated in Sweden and is called Våffeldagen.  International Waffle Day coincides with the Feast of the Annunciation. The day was generally considered the first day of spring in Sweden and Europe too.  Somewhere along the way it became a custom for Swedish families to celebrate the two events by making waffles on this day, thus giving the holiday its name.

For serious International Waffle Day revelers, this day is not to be confused with National Waffle Day, which celebrates the patenting of the waffle iron by Cornelius Swarthout of Troy, New York on August 24, 1869.

The waffle dates back to the 1300s in Greece. Greeks cooked flat cakes between two metal pans. At the time, they topped it with cheeses and herbs. Waffles evolved considerably since then.  According to a brief history of waffles in TIME Magazine the Pilgrims discovered waffles in Holland where they spent time prior to arriving in the United States and brought the recipe with them.  Legend has it that Thomas Jefferson bought a waffle iron in France as a sort of culinary souvenir and began serving waffles in the White House, helping spark a fad for “waffle parties” nationwide.  Belgian waffles were supposedly first introduced to the United States at the 1964 World’s Fair.  There you have it…all the waffle trivia you need for watercooler chat on International Waffle Day!

If you’re waffling about which waffles to make, put the cookbooks aside and plan a visit to any of the Distinctive Inns of New England.  Here you’ll find a wide variety of creative waffles from fruit-topped to sweet potato, pecan and hazlenut served with creative sides and none of the mess to clean up afterward.  No waffling on this – breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Why not enjoy it at a distinctive country inn?  It’s not too late to make plans to visit your favorite inn this weekend or next.