Submitted by brettmancan t3_10ioxat in BuyItForLife
Hey folks, long time lurker of the bifl reddit community and long time advocate of all things bifl. My motto is "always buy quality" whenever it matters. That said, waffles are starting to make the list.
tl;dr: I need a waffle maker that will last, can make multiple waffles at once (at least 4, preferably more) and costs under $200. Quality matters too! Crispy outside is important. Prefer electronic over cast iron stove top model. Thank you!
Fun background/numbers stuff:
I have four kids and potentially more coming (plus sometimes they have friends over). We've started making waffle sandwiches and other waffle delights. We could easily go through two 24 boxes of eggos per month (we're currently over that amount right now). So naturally I calculated the payback period of a $50 waffle maker using a basic waffle recipe. Cost per eggo is just over $0.26 (in a 24 pack) and cost per waffle (depending on ingredients) is about $0.17. Assuming 50 waffles per month that puts me at an 8 month payback period. With a $200 waffle maker at 50 waffles per month it's a 2.9 year payback period. Considering the number of kids I have, the expected growth as they move into teen years and food consumption starts to get out of control, I think I need a waffle iron that makes at least 4 per round as a bare minimum. One waffle per 3-5 minutes isn't going to work when you're trying to feed a crowd. Ideally four waffles per three minutes would give me a dozen waffles in ten minutes - which is enough for now, but more is definitely better.
I did look at other postings on this but didn't see one that would work for us. A lot of vintage flairs out there and one suggestion for a $450 waffle maker that is out of budget.
Thanks for reading!
MonkeyMom2 t1_j5fnq76 wrote
Make ahead and freeze. Toast as needed. Good project for kids with supervision.
I have a Waring Pro bought at Costco 15 years ago. Works a charm.