berarducci brothers galette iron

Back in the dot-com days, Dave, Jen and I all worked together in a cube in a big empty building in Laurel. Jen would make us all kinds of tasty foods (she thought that I was too skinny and Dave’s meals too bland) and share them with us each week, and one day she brought in some little waffle-looking things. She explained that they were called galettes, and her ancient Pennsylvanian ancestors had made these while carving out a living mining coal and making moonshine. The recipe calls for prodigious amounts of butter, sugar, eggs, and most importantly, Four Roses whisky, which give the galettes a certain holiday flavor.This recipe is a family secret, passed down from her grandmother on a handwritten index card (now half-obliterated with butter) and guarded jealously, almost as much as the galette iron itself.

It’s made by an outfit called the The Berarducci Brothers Mfg. Co., from McKeesport, PA; it’s Model G1-3, “French, Belgium Iron”, size Large, and I can’t find a fricking thing on the Web about it other than the fact that the Brothers have long since ended production. More sleuthing to be done.