They look a little weird, but so what

Not quite rectangular, but delicious.

I've been wanting a waffle iron for a long time but I'm such a guilt-ridden person that I just couldn't justify adding another specialty appliance to our small kitchen. "Just eat pancakes," I'd tell myself. Same thing, really.

About a month ago I was at an estate sale (you know, just to see the house) and I came upon a small waffle iron which I was able to purchase for $4. The small amount of cash, and the small size of my find, added up to a guilty pleasure that seemed acceptable, even to me. The house, by the way, was a wonderful craftsman that the new owners had purchased furnished. They were selling the furnishings so they could move their stuff in, and I just hope their things were at least half as nice as the furniture they were getting rid of — so many beautiful, classic craftsman style pieces.

My first attempt at gluten-free waffles resulted in a sad, crunchy mess that had to be scraped and picked out of the waffle iron, which was disheartening as I'd just spent a long time thoroughly cleaning it and making it look like new before using it the first time. The little crumb chunks I managed to save tasted great, but I was thinking maybe I'd have to get a new waffle iron after all if I wanted actual, whole waffles. Or, maybe I should have used a recipe.

My second batch had a more normal shape.

So, today I tried again. This time I used my silicone brush instead of a wadded up paper towel to lightly but thoroughly coat the waffle grids with oil. I still used Bob's Red Mill GF flour mix but I made the batter thicker. I made flax eggs that I whipped into gluey blobiness with a wooden spoon before adding it to the batter. I carefully measured out 1/3 cup of batter onto each waffle grid, closed the top and waited.

At the end of the cook time the waffles popped right out! They were a weird shape but they were crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside and great tasting. For the next batch I spread the batter more carefully, and got more of a rectangular waffle. I think I've got the basic waffle down, and am considering what delicious variations I can try next time. But I have a question. I just realized I forgot to add baking powder to the batter. The waffles were light and perfect and I'm wondering why. Should I leave the baking powder out?

Update 10-12-13: The answer to my question is, "add the baking powder." Just made my third batch, and they were the best yet, using a combination of Bob's Red Mill GF baking mix and quinoa flour. My husband proclaimed he couldn't tell they were gluten-free.