This Could Be a $1 Million Recipe: Chai-Glazed Cinnamon Waffles a Middletown Woman's Hit Creation

Middletown resident Mimi Chang has created what could possibly be the country’s next trendy breakfast craze.

Her chai-glazed cinnamon waffles have gotten the attention of Pillsbury, and this recipe just may take the place of Pillsbury’s current breakfast king, their ever-popular cinnamon rolls.

Chang is among three New Jersey residents who are finalistsin the famous Pillsbury Bake-Off competition, with the final prize a whopping $1 million.

Whether she brings home the prize for New Jersey or not, this recipe is winner. Chang says she was looking to make a breakfast staple that would be simple enough to make, but have an extra twist.

“I was thinking about the Bake-Off completion one day, and how iconic [Pillsbury’s] cinnamon rolls are, while drinking chai from a Starbucks shop. I thought about how no one ever orders just normal coffee anymore- it’s usually something trendy like chai.”

The result was her chai-glazed cinnamon waffles, but there was also a functionality purpose to her recipe.

“The competition only allows a total of seven ingredients, and so you really have to make a dish that stands out, but comes from something simple. Chai tea itself is packed with so many different ingredients: cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom, star anise... there is so much flavor in just that one ingredient in this recipe.”

Chang’s current recipe is just one of many that she has entered in competitive cooking and baking competitions. She was also the winner of the Bobby Flay/Rachel Ray Burger Battle in 2013 and has come in second place for two other gluten free recipes.

Chang works as a legal recruiter, and resides in Middletown with her husband, NYC attorney Cliff Turbitt. The couple has two sons, Decklan, 7, and Kieran, 5. Chang says cooking and baking is a family activity that they all enjoy together, but has been a special passion for her ever since she was a young child.

“I remember my grandparents visiting from South Korea when I was in 4th grade, and I was so excited that I made them grilled rib eye steaks,” Chang says. “They came from a culture where they had never eaten anything other than healthy foods like fish, rice, and vegetables, but they loved it! It’s because it came from a place of love, and it didn’t matter if it was something they would never have normally tried to eat.”

“Cooking for people is a great way to express love, and also a way for me to express myself in general. It’s a creative outlet,” Chang says.

The Pillsbury $1 Million Bake-Off Competition winner will be announced November 3, in Nasheville, Tennessee.

To see the recipe for chai-glazed cinnamon waffles, click here:http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/chai-glazed-cinnamon-waffles/1110739d-3a86-4ca2-ac36-6df02008c1f3

To read more about Chang, and some of her other winning recipe ideas, click here: http://www.godairyfree.org/recipes/black-pepper-balsamic-strawberry-ice-cream-parfaits