Caramel Nut Wafers (Griláž)

« »
Print

Griláž, or grilážky, are a favorite treat of mine. I am always looking forward to visiting my grandma Pavka as she makes these often. They are wafer sticks filled with a sweet nut caramel filling. Sandra and I made these last Christmas for our annual Christmas cookie gift baskets.

To make griláž, you will need a waffle iron. Our first experience was with an iron I got from my mom for Christmas few years ago, and it turned out to be a disaster. That iron, a small red thing from Bella Cucina, got too hot to handle, and the waffles came out burned on one side and not done on another. At one time, the lids got stuck, and we had to yank the power plug from the wall before the iron almost caught on fire. This second time we used the Chef’s Choice Waffle Cone Express with much more success. Highly recommended!

Ingredients for “Gourmet Waffle Cone”: 1 whole egg, 1 egg white, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 2/3 cups sifted all purpose flour, 2 tablespoons of melted butter
Ingredients for griláž filling: 1.5 cups granulated sugar (I used brown sugar), 2 cups chopped (not ground) nuts, 1 can (14 oz) of condensed milk (Lechera), 2 sticks margarine
Prep Time: About 20 minutes to make waffles, 30 minutes for the filling, another 20 minutes for filling, and overnight in fridge

waffle cone dough baking waffle cones baking waffle cones
Start by making the waffles. We simply used the recipe for “Gourmet Waffle Cone” that came with the waflle maker. Simply combine the ingredients and blend together. Do not overmix. Preheat the waffle oven and bake according to the oven instructions.
chopped nuts grinding nuts
Next let’s make the filling. Start by grinding the nuts. You can start using a food processor, but to get the smooth texture needed to make the creamy filling, you will need to run them through an old-fashioned nut grinder like the one shown above.
melting brown sugar melting sugar melted sugar melted sugar with nuts mixed in
Melt the sugar on low heat until it turns into caramel. Then add the ground nuts.
caramel with lechera melting margarine in caramel filling for grilaz
Add in the condensed milk and margarine and stir until you get a creamy filling.
waffle waffers filling waffle wafers setting filled wafers in fridge
Once the filling cools down, fill the wafers. We made ours with 4 wafers and 3 layers of filling. Weigh them down by placing a plate over them and place in the fridge overnight to let set. This will make slicing easier as the wafer will soften and be less brittle.
cutting waffle cookies cutting grilaz grilaz waffle cookies
Next day, slice the wafers using a wet knife to make the waffle cookies. Enjoy!