Southern · Authentic-ish Southern
Benne Wafers
241 kcal a serving, against 300 for the traditional version. That is 59 kcal off, or 20%, with 3.7g of protein. Serves 8. 45 minutes.
What the traditional version is
The standard recipe starts with 120g butter creamed with 180g soft brown sugar, then you beat in an egg and fold in 120g plain flour, 60g toasted sesame seeds, a pinch of salt, baking powder and a bit of vanilla. You drop tiny spoonfuls on a tray and bake them until lacy at the edges and deep gold. The butter gives you the melt, the sugar gives you the snap, and the sesame makes you feel almost healthy.
What changed, and what each change costs
Butter cut from 120g to 80g
You can shave a third off the butter and still get something crisp, as long as you hold your nerve on mixing. Most of the flavour comes from the sesame, so you're not losing everything.
What it costs you. What you do lose is that shattery, sandy melt when you first bite in. The lighter batch crunches, but it doesn't dissolve.
Egg swapped for egg white
Ditching the yolk keeps the structure crisp and lets you add a bit more protein, bumping up what's a fairly meagre number for a biscuit. It also helps the wafer set in the oven.
What it costs you. It isn't as tender. Removing the yolk dries things a touch, but the sugar pulls some moisture back. You'll have to eat these fresh for best snap.
Brown sugar down from 180g to 130g
A deep caramel snap is lovely, but there's a limit. Cutting 50g sugar knocks down the sweetness and the calories without turning it into a health food. The sesame steps forward when the sugar steps back.
What it costs you. The dark caramel note gets lighter, and the colour is a shade paler. It still tastes like a benne wafer, just not quite as decadent.
Sesame seeds bumped up a little
If you cut the sugar and fat, you need flavour somewhere. Adding a few extra grams of sesame ups the toastiness and puts protein on the numbers sheet.
What it costs you. Go too far and it turns gritty. I kept it to 70g for balance.
Egg white adds a trace of extra protein
Egg whites are a gift to a wafer that needs structure. You get a little more albumin and a bit more chew, but not a protein bar in disguise.
What it costs you. Don't expect wonder - it just means the biscuit holds together better after day one.
What goes in it
The ingredients, without the quantities. The weights are what the figures below are computed from, and they are in the book.
- Unsalted butter
- Soft brown sugar
- Egg white
- Plain flour
- Sesame seeds
- Baking powder
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
How it starts
- Toast the sesame seeds in a dry frying pan over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, stirring often, until they smell nutty and start to pop.
- Cream the butter and brown sugar together until light and barely fluffy - don't overdo it, or you'll whip too much air in.
- Add the egg white and vanilla and beat until just incorporated.
The rest of the method, and every weight, is in Authentic-ish Southern.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 300 | 241 |
| Protein | 3.8g | 3.7g |
| Fat | 16.6g | 12.6g |
| Saturated fat | 8.3g | 5.7g |
| Carbohydrate | 35.5g | 29.6g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 1.3g | 1.5g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Southern prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked. How every number is computed sets out the method.
Allergens. gluten, eggs, sesame, milk.
The method is in the book
Call this a classic benne wafer and some old Charleston aunt will know you're bluffing. The missing butter is obvious to anyone who grew up on the originals - it isn't melt-in-the-mouth, it's crisp first and gone second. Still, if you want the flavour and crunch of the original without the sense of instant regret, these get most of the way there with less butter guilt and more actual sesame. Eat on the same day and you'll barely miss the yolk. Eat after two days and you'll need a cup of tea for dipping.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Southern, along with 50 more. Buy the paperback
More from Authentic-ish Southern
- Pecan Pralines, 237 kcal a serving, 40% off
- Lane Cake, 282 kcal a serving, 51% off
- Hummingbird Cake, 431 kcal a serving, 43% off
- Pecan Pie, 477 kcal a serving, 10% off
- Lemon Icebox Pie, 155 kcal a serving, 77% off
- Coca-Cola Cake, 224 kcal a serving, 43% off
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