John F Kennedy's Favorite Breakfast Was Full Of Nooks And Crannies

John F. Kennedy grew up in a very rich and privileged family. His parents, Joseph and Rose, had multiple residences and employed plenty of people to maintain them, including cooks. It's presumable that the large family could have requested whatever foods they were in the mood for at any given time. With that said, John F. Kennedy's regular breakfast order, even into his presidency, was simple and relatable: eggs and toast. However, what he absolutely loved to eat for breakfast was waffles with butter and syrup.

The National Archives maintains a copy of President Kennedy's favorite waffle recipe, which was documented when he was a Senator. It's made with the things you'd expect to be in a waffle recipe, like flour, buttermilk, eggs, and sugar, but the recipe calls for the egg whites to be beaten separately and then folded into the batter, resulting in light, tender waffles. 

Adding to the fluffy texture of these waffles is the use of cake flour instead of all purpose flour. This type of flour is ground to be very fine, lending an airy texture. It's also superior in absorbing liquids, which adds moisture to baked goods. If you don't have it on hand, you can easily make cake flour with ingredients that are probably already in your pantry.

American presidents' favorite foods are always of some interest to historians, with many U.S. presidents' preferred breakfasts being well documented. For example, we know Woodrow Wilson liked the curious combination of raw eggs and grape juice while Ronald Reagan preferred fruit and cereal. John F. Kennedy's wife, Jacqueline, unwittingly gave historians a peek at some of the foods her husband enjoyed when she wrote down his meal preferences for the couple's chef and housekeeper, Tania Herbst, at their home in Georgetown, in 1958. While she didn't mention waffles, she specified that Kennedy liked poached eggs on Pepperidge Farm white toast, marmalade, oven-baked bacon, and orange juice.

Mrs. Kennedy also noted that he enjoyed hamburgers, baked potatoes, and legume purée. When he was in Boston, Kennedy's favorite spot was the Union Oyster House. It's also been noted that the 35th President liked New England fish chowder, which is no surprise seeing as the Kennedy family is famously connected to Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. Joseph and Rose purchased their iconic "Kennedy Compound" there in the 1920s, and John and his siblings spent summers at the mansion, and sailing around Cape Cod. JFK also liked baked beans and a variety of seafood, along with lamb chops, steak, and chocolate for dessert.