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What’s for breakfast this weekend? How about some yummy, healthy, easy-to-make, homemade whole wheat waffles!
You do need a waffle iron for this recipe, but I definitely think it is worth the $25-30 investment for a low priced model. I’m still using my parents’ old waffle iron, which has to be at least 20 years old. It is incredibly basic and always does the trick whenever we are in the mood for some homemade waffles.
I made this exact recipe the other morning and lost count at how many my kids ate. I love that they can eat something so wholesome and still enjoy it. I did make sure they ate plenty of fruit before giving them their second and third helpings though.
If you aren’t sure what your kids will think of this for breakfast try adding a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream on top! And don’t forget to freeze the leftovers.
What goes into this recipe for whole wheat waffles?
If you haven’t already noticed from my other posts, I love making real food swaps in recipes to make them healthier. That’s why this waffle recipe uses whole wheat flour, honey (instead of sugar), and real butter!
What I really love is how easy this waffle recipe is, especially since you can use any kind of milk you have on hand. The rest of the ingredients: eggs, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder, are all things you probably have on hand as well!
What’s the best whole wheat flour for this homemade waffle recipe?
I especially love this recipe with whole wheat pastry flour, but you can substitute regular whole wheat flour (or white whole wheat flour) if that’s all you have. We often use King Arthur brand, but any whole wheat flour will work fine in this recipe.
How to make fluffier waffles
There’s an easy trick to getting extra fluffy waffles. Instead of adding the eggs whole, separate the whites from the yolks. Add just the egg yolks with the other liquids and leave the whites aside.
Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form, then gently fold the whites into your whole wheat waffle batter. The whipped egg whites add air into the recipe, which means extra fluffy waffles!
Waffle cooking tips
I’ve had plenty of time to perfect waffle making after making countless batches of this recipe for the kids, so here are my best tips:
- Let the batter rest for a few minutes before cooking.
- Make sure your waffle iron is hot at the start and between batches.
- Instead of a ladle, you can also use a measuring cup to scoop the batter. You may need to experiment with different sizes, depending on the size of your waffle iron.
- Don’t overfill the waffle iron. Remember your batter will expand!
- You may need to spread the batter out in your waffle iron, especially if it’s one of those novelty shaped waffle makers.
- Keep your waffle iron well greased, adding more butter between waffles as needed.
- If you have kids, consider grabbing a second waffle iron or one that cooks more than one waffle at a time.
- Waffles can be removed with something made of wood or silicone (wooden chopsticks work!). Metal tools can scratch your waffle maker. If I use metal silverware, I make sure it only touches the waffle and not the machine.
Healthy topping ideas for whole wheat waffles
We always top our waffles (and pancakes) with real food. For classic waffles, real maple syrup tastes delicious! Other yummy, sweet toppings that we’ve enjoyed are berries, peaches, homemade jam, and no-sugar-added whipped cream.
For savory whole wheat waffle toppings, try Greek yogurt, butter, or natural peanut butter. Another idea is to fry an egg over easy and place it on top. (Bonus protein for a more filling breakfast!)
Other Breakfast Recipes You Might Enjoy:
Whole Wheat Waffles
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1 ¾ cups milk (I have used everything from skim milk to thick buttermilk…so whatever you have on hand should work)
- ¼ cup butter (melted)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon (ground)
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ cups whole-wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- pure maple syrup (warmed, for serving)
- fruit (for serving)
Instructions
- Preheat your waffle iron.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, butter, honey, cinnamon, and baking soda until well combined.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk together just until the large lumps disappear.
- When the waffle iron is hot, dab it with a little butter and then ladle some batter onto the center of the iron. Follow the instructions that came with your waffle maker to know how long it should be cooked (mine takes about 3 – 4 minutes each).
- Keep waffles warm until you finish cooking all of them. Top with pure maple syrup and fruit. Enjoy!
These turned out fluffy, light and delicious! This will be my go-to waffle recipe!
I have been craving a “semi-healthy” waffle that also includes oats. The recipe above looks great. has anyone included oats in something similar to this??
Hi. I’ve replaced the wheat with oat flour. It makes a very heavy waffle or pancake but tasty. :)
I have a great pancake recipe that uses oatmeal and whole wheat flour. I’m sure you could use it for waffles, too. It’s so yummy and tastes like oatmeal cookies!
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups oats
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups nonfat buttermilk
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 eggs
Could I use egg whites here instead of whole eggs? Watching my cholesterol intake.
Sure.
Does anyone have any ideas on how to make pancakes or these waffles using Almond flour? I can not have any wheat products.
Hi there. This might help a little.
Have you ever tried this recipe with coconut oil instead of butter?
Hi. It can be made with coconut oil. Just be sure to melt it first.
Amy I see no comment ?? Am I missing something?
Hi Cathy. I’m not sure what you are referring. My above comment?
I ATE a WHOLE BATCH all by myself! It had been so long since I’d eaten a waffle, let alone one that was not packed with additives and junk. I had to make another batch to freeze. : )
Do these freeze well? Freezer waffles are a staple that I would like to make myself.
Thanks.
They freeze really well. I pack mine with a piece of wax paper between each one so I can pull them out singly.
If I don’t have whole wheat flour could I use white unbleached instead?
Hi there. Though we’ve not tried (because we use only 100% whole grains in most recipes), I think it will work fine.
How do you keep your waffles warm until you finish making them all? Mine always gets cold especially during winter by the time the family sits down. Lucky ones will have those that just come out as I make them. Lol.
I turn my oven on low as it goes and put them I there as they finish. Not on a plate. Or put a cooling rack in a warming drawer and put them in there. I try to keep them single layer.
I put them in my tortilla warmer.
I stick them in my toaster.
I’ve been following this website/blog for over a year now, and this is the first recipe I’ve tried… and it’s delicious! I made these last week for the first time and I’m hooked. This morning I made anther batch and put some raspberries in the batter, too. Mmmm…. so good!
Just made them with ww pastry flour. Great tasting (I doubled the salt and cinnamon) and crispy.
I only have a Belgium waffle maker. Any tips on how to make them crispier?
Hi Lucy. Belgian waffles usually include yeast which makes them light and crisp. Beaten egg whites can have a similar effect.
Great recipe! Could I substitute the oil/butter with coconut oil or almond butter for a healthier alternative?
Hi Claudia. Sure!
Just made these waffles for my kids and they loved them! This is the first “real” food recipe I have tried on them. They did still use standard syrup (Mrs. Butter-worth’s) because we have a kitchen full of processed food. I don’t like to waste so I’m going to use the things we have and slowly replace them with better choices. What really got my attention is when you said your daughter had constipation issues and they went away when you stopped eating processed foods. That is amazing! My daughter and I need to use Miralax a couple of times a week. Seriously, I feel like I never poop (TMI)! The possibility of having a healthy digestive system alone is worth this lifestyle change, not to mention the numerous other health benefits! I’m so excited to learn more! I bought your book and it should be here Thursday! I need to do this for my family! Thank you for opening my eyes!
These are SO good! Super simple recipe. I made them just as directed and they were good- chewy, wholesome. I added an extra pat of melted butter and a little brown sugar and they were even better! I’ll be making these again for sure!
Can you freeze these?
yes! :)
Would any modifications need to be made for converting these to pancakes?
Hi T. This is a very flexible recipe but I am uncertain as to what modifications you mean.
I hardly ever comment online, but I have to for these waffles! These are awesome!! I usually don’t like waffles but my kids asked for them and I found this recipe online. These waffles are the best I’ve ever had – better than the waffles I ate in Brussels, Belgium. I’ll use this recipe for my family tradition starting immediately.
I used buttermilk. I substituted maple syrup instead of honey since I had syrup from my maple trees this year.
Thank you!
These are delicious. Instead of maple syrup, I use fresh strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries to make a sauce. Then I top with fresh whipped cream. Love them! Thank you for the recipe!
does it work without honey and cinnamon?
Hi Erin. You can leave them out if you choose to.
One suggestion though, if you do leave it out, double the amount of sugar you replace it with(2 Tbls) and include just a tiny bit of extra milk(1/2 Tbls).
Great waffle iron – Your mom’s makes waffles like I grew up with. Today’s irons have big cavities, less waffle, encouraging more syrup and topping — I think today’s are wrong.. I’d also like one like my grandma’ in Norway had – it’s all metal, just the two hinged plates with handles, can use home on the stove or a campfire. ( I found your recipe for next time today, to avoid the one I just used with twice the oil. )
When you say that it serves 4-5 I assume that is people? Is that two waffles a person so you can get 8-10 waffles out of the recipe? Thanks!
Hi. Yep, that’s about right. :)
We tried making these this morning, but I only have a Belgian waffle iron, and the waffles turned out soggy and not fluffy or crispy at all. I was so disappointed! Here I am, trying to get my family on the clean eating bandwagon, and the one breakfast I try to make was a disaster that no one wanted to eat. Should I have made some adjustments for the waffle iron?
Hi Marie. Sorry that you had a negative experience. I think it was likely the waffle iron. This recipe is not meant to make crispy Belgian style waffles and we’ve not tried adjusting it to do so.
So, I agree eating whole, natural foods are good, but when you are combining milk, flour, eggs, butter/oil – calories add up, do you see it as eating healthy even when you wouldn’t consider waffles/pancakes and the like healthy foods. This is where my brain has a hard time accepting this as an acceptable food to eat. Love it, but then I think,… oh the calories! Thanks!
This website isn’t about counting calories…it’s about eating whole real foods. My family made the switch in January 2015 and within 3 months, I lost 12 pounds (my last 10 pounds that I could never lose with dieting) and lowered my blood pressure by 20 points (!!!). My husband lost 30+ pounds. We feel amazing and really enjoy the recipes on this site. When you eat whole real food, you are satisfied quicker and you may eat less calorie-wise and also your body recognizes all the ingredients as food. I recommend watching ‘Food, Inc.’ and “Fed Up’. Both are really interesting and answered a lot of questions that I had.
Wonderful recipe! Thank you! Perfect!
Can this be made with whole-wheat flour or only white whole wheat flour?
Hello. Regular whole wheat flour works, too.
have you added zucchini or other veggies to this batter? Any changes to recipe/ratios? Thanks!
Hi. We haven’t tried adding veggies to this one. Sounds interesting, though. Let us know if you try.
These are absolutely the BEST waffles! I’ve been making them for a few years and we love them. This was actually my very first 100days recipe, and the reason I was even curious about giving up processed food!
Can you make these without the baking soda and without the baking powder? Thank you!
Hi Dominika. No, they would not form well in the waffle iron. They need the leavening to be fluffly.
Is there a way to convert this into a pancake recipe?
I love this recipe and have been making big batches and freezing them since I saw this recipe a couple of years ago. My kids love the flavor of this recipe, so hoping it may not be too hard to do.
Hi there. I make these as pancakes all the time without adjusting the recipe.
I am making these for supper at our house and extra for leftover breakfasts. Thanks
This recipe was a bit disappointing. I’m a bit of a waffle snob, I admit, but the problem wasn’t the whole wheat. I’ve made whole wheat waffles before and my family is fine with whole wheat. I lost my old recipe and decided to try this one. These just didn’t crisp up and were very soggy. I measured the flour in the standard baking way- spooning it into the measuring cup and leveling- and the batter seemed way too liquid.
I added vanilla and nutmeg and used buttermilk. The flavor was fine, but the texture was just too soggy. I really think separating the eggs is critical and whipping the egg whites.
Wondering what the carbohydrate count is for these whole wheat waffles? Does anyone know?
Thanks
Sue
From analyzing the recipe, it looks like if you make 5 waffles, each waffle has about 30g carbohydrate (2 carb counts),
Just made them for my husband this morning and he flipped. He loves waffles but I am unable to eat the white gluey flour ones, so these were perfect. I froze the leftovers for his breakfast before work. A big hit!
I have made these many times for my husband and I; it’s a fantastic recipe! It works for me to save leftover batter in the fridge and be able to make more the next day. Thanks!!
Can you add puréed fruit to the batter?
Hi. You can. Depending on the consistency of the fruit you add, you might need to make slight adjustments to the liquids.
Tried these today and substituted flax seed for 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour. My husband ate them with just a little bit of butter.
Wanted to use what was on hand to make a yummy breakfast today and checked out this waffle recipe. My hubby is picky about whole wheat,etc. and he loved this. Definitely a keeper. Love the recipes you share, so far everyone that I have made has been a hit with family :-) Thank you for all you do for Real Food and the accompanying health!
Best waffles ever!!! I substituted coconut oil and vanilla flavored hemp milk. Delicious!!! My kids love them!
This was the perfect base recipe! I doubled it, then sprinkled fresh fruit on top before closing the waffle maker lid. They came out beautifully. They are good by themselves too! I froze a batch and we all ate a batch. I will be using this recipe for years to come. Thank you so much!