Recipe: Plush's Tomato and Pepper Waffles

A waffle that’s not drenched in butter and maple syrup? There’s zero guilt eating this savory take on a Saturday morning standard. Chef David Zimmerman of Plush starts with a smoked salmon and cracked pepper batter. Once the waffle iron does its thing, this light-as-a-feather waffle gets topped with house-cured salmon, tomato-caper relish, a smear of house-made herbed cream cheese that’s akin to boursin and a drizzle of smoked tomato vinaigrette. Breakfast? Heck, eat this dish any hour you please.

Tomato and Pepper Waffles
Courtesy of Plush’s David Zimmerman
10 to 12 waffles

2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. sugar
½ tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
4 Tbsp. melted butter
½ cup smoked tomatoes, finely chopped*
2 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper
½ lb. cured salmon, thinly sliced
Smoked tomato vinaigrette (recipe below)
1/3 cup boursin cheese
1/3 cup tomato-caper relish (recipe below)

• Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together. Set aside.

• In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, milk and cream until frothy. 

• Slowly add the liquid mixture to the flour mixture, stirring until the batter is smooth.

• Stir in the butter, tomatoes and pepper.

• In batches, pour the batter into a hot waffle iron and cook until golden brown.

• For each serving, place 1 waffle on a plate. Top with 2 slices of cured salmon, 2 ounces of smoked tomato vinaigrette, 2 tablespoons of boursin cheese and 2 tablespoons of tomato-caper relish.

* To smoke tomatoes, soak a handful of apple-wood chips in water for 2 hours. Build a charcoal fire on a barbecue grill. Once the coals are glowing with no flames, drain the chips and place them over the coals. Wash whole tomatoes, place on the grill and cover. Let smoke for 20 to 30 minutes or until just soft and a dark, smoky color. Purée the tomatoes in a blender – seeds, skin and all.

For the smoked tomato vinaigrette, whisk together ½ cup of red wine vinegar, ½ cup of dry vermouth, ¾ teaspoon of chopped garlic, ½ tablespoon of freshly chopped thyme, ½ tablespoon of kosher salt, ½ tablespoon of black pepper, ¼ cup of chopped red onion and 1/3 cup of smoked tomatoes*. Slowly add 2 cups of vegetable oil.

For the tomato-caper relish, combine 1½ diced tomatoes, ¼ diced red onion, 1/8 cup of chopped capers, 1 ounce of olive oil and ½ tablespoon of cider vinegar in a bowl.