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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
- ⅛ 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!
Hannah says
How these then out if I just make pancakes out of the same batter? No waffle maker currently.
Chelsea says
Has anyone used almond milk?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Yes, I've only used almond milk. :)
Susan Williams says
Extremely easy to make and delicious. Thank you Lisa for sharing.
Dacia says
These waffles were awesome. Thank you for the recipe. Instead of using all wheat flour, I substituted 1/2 cup for 1/4 almond flour, and 1/4 flax meal.
Sandi says
I have made these waffles a few times and they are good, but they come out floppy, like pancakes. Any suggestions for making them crisper? I did leave one batch in the waffle iron for a bit longer but they came out a little burned. :(
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Extra butter on the waffle iron helps with crisp. :)
Lily Harmon says
I only have whole wheat pastry flour. Do you think I could use this instead?
Thanks!
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
I have. The texture will change but it certainly works.
Umoo says
Hello, first of all I really enjoy these ww waffles. I already made them a couple of times now and they go well into my diet. However, 9 out of 10 the waffles stick to the waffle iron and mostly split in half. I'm following the instructions of my waffle maker and using the ingredients as shown, except I use olive oil. I also oil the irons when they're heated up and then pour the waffle mix. The waffle iron I use is Tefal King Size WM753D and it has a non-sticking surface.
Do you have any tips to prevent the sticking and falling apart?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. You may need to add more oil on your iron.
Colleen says
How much oil?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hello. The oil is the 1/4 cup butter.
Colleen says
Thank you:)
Britt says
I see add oil in the instructions, but not in the ingredients? How much oil and what kind?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. It is the 1/4 cup butter. :)
Britt says
Thanks!
Sofie_cat_23 says
next time, i would love the nutritional facts. i apologize if there is one. i couldn't find it.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. We do not provide nutrition information. This post helps explain why: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/healthy-eating-defined/.
Laureen says
I have both Dairy and gluten allergies changing the dairy is easy any ideas on how to make them gluten free.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hello. I use a gluten free whole grain blend.
Laureen says
Thank you.
Anna Wright says
I really liked this recipe. Added my twist and tweaked just a little. I will be revisiting this one often. Thanks for sharing
Christina says
Well, I tried this today and it was a kitchen fail. I subbed almond flour since I only had whole wheat pastry flour. I suspect this was my culprit. My batter was extremely wet and basically evaporated in my waffle maker, leaving a burning crust stuck to the grates...anyone else had a similar problem? Is it my flour that was the guilty party? It smelled so good before it started burning, so I really want to try it again.
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. We've no experience making this recipe with almond flour but I do imagine that was the issue. :)
Angela says
These are great waffles! I have found it difficult to transition to whole wheat because my picky 11 y/o does not like the texture, she loved these waffles. I did not have honey so I used pure maple syrup instead, it worked perfectly.
Jenni says
These are fantastic and so easy to make. If I wanted to cut the fat a bit, could I sub apple sauce for the oil?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Yes, I have.
Tina in NJ says
Good, nutty taste, but it didn't rise very much. The batter was initially too liquidy, so I added another 1/2 cup flour. If I make this recipe again, I'll use half all-purpose flour and maybe increase the baking powder. I'll probably go back to my old recipe, though, or some combination of the two.
Bella says
I've tri d this recipes twice they are soo good. I freeze the leftovers and put them in the toaster each morning for breakfast. Thanks for sharing this awesome recipe!
Shanna Chambers says
Hi for the Whole Wheat Waffles or pancakes. Says for Waffles to cook in Waffle Iron. You would just do the Pancakes how each person makes there own pancakes?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Yep, when I use this recipe for pancakes I use it just like any other pancake recipe. :)
Liz says
After my toddler became obsessed with Van's waffles for breakfast I decided I better start making my own. I do a batch of these every week or so and freeze the quarters. He loves them! I use regular whole milk and butter. I did try using vegetable oil once, but found it made the batter much denser, taking longer to cook and then almost impossible to pry out of the waffle iron.
Scarlett williamson says
Are these light on calories?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. We really do not focus on calories. This will help you understand the philosophy behind that: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/01/04/healthy-eating-defined/.
Paulina says
This is my go-to recipe, they expand so much in the waffle maker that even making half the recipe I get like 4-5 waffles. I halved the recipe because I usually just make these for myself.
I made the mistake of using 1 tsp of baking SODA one time and they came out as you would expect, I still ate them though. I use 1 eggs worth of Kirkland liquid egg whites (so 3tsp) and unsweetened vanilla almond milk. I'm a blasphemous woman and use sugar-free "maple syrup" because I'm already eating 463 calories worth of waffles!! Sometimes when I can spare the calories and am having a late breakfast (think 12pm breakfast) I also cook some egg whites so I can hold myself over until dinner :)
You don't even need fancy white whole wheat flour, I use regular ol' $1,50 bag of whole wheat flour and they always come out amazing!
Michele says
I have this recipe printed out from a while back. I added vanilla extract, flax meal and chia seeds to the recipe and my kids gobble it up. The older recipe states you use coconut oil, not butter. Have your thoughts on coconut oil changed?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi. Either melted coconut oil or butter work well in this recipe.
Lindsey says
Can almond milk be used in this recipe rather than cows milk?
Jen says
I just used unsweetened vanilla almond milk and they came out just fine! I also substitutes applesauce for the oil.
Erin says
I've tried this recipe multiple times in the past and it always turned out great. Tonight I made it with white flour because I was out of whole-wheat and it was waaay too runny. I had to add an additional cup of flour. Did the recipe change recently or would it really matter if I used whole wheat rather than white flour?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. Nope, the recipe has not changed. The consistency would be different with white flour because whole wheat absorbs more liquid.
Rachael says
The best whole wheat waffles ever! Makes a perfect batter! I have tried it with whole white wheat and whole wheat pastry flours! I have uses buttermilk and whole milk, works beautifuly either way!
Rachel says
I made these waffles following the recipe to a T and the batter was so runny! I had to thicken it up with more flour!
TKW says
Hi! When you use melted butter, is that 1/4 cup unmelted or melted? Thanks!
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Melted. ;)
Pipi says
I try again
Pipi says
Forgot to rate :-)
Pipi says
I made these for my daughters playdate and they were delicious. I used extra Virgin olive oil, a little extra honey and a teaspoon of vanilla essence. I also made the batter about 1 hour in advance.
Highly recommend, yummie and didn't feel to naughty - till ice cream and maple syrup was put on top (luckily they also loved the blueberries and strawberries :-))
maggie says
can i use this for pancakes? i was hoping for a plain whole wheat pancake when i stumbled on this...
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi there. Yes, I do.
Jamilyn says
I made the recipe exactly and they were perfect. The batter did seem thin but once I put it in the maker they turned out great. It made 6 waffles (3 rounds of 2 each). I have one of those square, no-flip, waffle makers. We had these with Maple syrup. The kids loved them. Thanks for the great recipes!!!!
Brenda Bryan-Wood says
I made these, and I was skeptical as I used Hodgson Mill 100% stone ground whole wheat flour, and the batter seemed very thin. So I added about 1/2 cup of oats to fill it in a bit. They turned out very good. A hearty waffle. Would have been really good with blueberries.
Cori says
They didn't rise properly. And we had to add extra cinnamon. We don't plan on using this one again.
Pat says
does anyone use fresh ground flour? it has the most nutrition
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
Hi Pat. Lisa does grind her own flour sometimes.
Josh says
Too mushy. A good waffle needs an outer crispiness.
Heather says
We love these! Takes about 4 min each set in my waffle maker. And I only have the $10 Walmart waffle maker. It is best if you make the batter the night before or let it set for a while in the morning. And the kids love the leftovers in their lunches w cream cheese on them.
JuliAnn says
We totally love these! Will totally be making them lots. We froze the extra to use on busy mornings. Thanks!
Off Road Cook says
Good to know they can be frozen. I use waffles for egg sandwiches, apple peanut butter sandwiches, just about any kind of breakfast sandwich imaginable. It makes mornings fast and easy.
Art says
Is it possible to get a carb ratio for these awesome waffles!?
Amy Taylor (comment moderator) says
We do not provide nutrition info on our recipes. This post helps explain why: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/01/04/healthy-eating-defined/.
Donna says
Loved them! A super easy recipe and the waffles are delicious. They are light and very tasty especially with warm maple syrup. They took about 5 minutes on my waffle iron. Can't wait to try them with blueberries in batter!