Homemade Waffle Recipe
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Break out your waffle iron and discover the secret behind my go-to waffle recipe. Light, airy, and impeccably crisp, these waffles are sure to brighten up your mornings and bring a little comfort to your breakfast table.
Who doesn’t love waking up to the heavenly aroma of homemade waffles? Yeasted waffles may be the gold standard for their light, crispy texture, but they take time and advance planning. For a quicker alternative that still delivers amazing results, this easy waffle recipe, adapted from Pam Anderson’s CookSmart, is the way to go.
Two simple tricks—whipping egg whites for an airy batter and swapping some flour for cornstarch—ensure a light, crispy texture. Plus, like my homemade pancake recipe, these waffles freeze beautifully, so you can whip up a batch over the weekend and enjoy a delicious breakfast all week long.
“The waffles were delicious and the perfect texture…My whole family scarfed them up.”
What You’ll Need To Make Homemade Waffles
- All-Purpose Flour: Provides the structure for the waffles; use the spoon-and-level method to ensure accuracy.
- Cornstarch: A key ingredient for making the waffles extra crispy on the outside while keeping them tender on the inside.
- Sugar: Adds a touch of sweetness to the batter and helps the waffles brown when cooked.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: These leavening agents work together to create a light and fluffy texture.
- Buttermilk: Contributes to the waffles’ tenderness and adds a subtle tanginess. (Don’t want to buy a whole carton? See my easy recipe for how to make buttermilk.)
- Eggs: The yolks add richness to the batter, while the whipped egg whites are folded in to introduce airiness.
- Oil: Keeps the waffles moist and prevents them from drying out, also contributes to their crisp exterior.
- Butter: Adds flavor and richness to the batter.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Place an oven-safe rack on a baking sheet (this is to put the waffles on after cooking so they stay warm while you cook the others).
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
In a medium bowl, combine the buttermilk, egg yolks, and vegetable oil.
Whisk to combine.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk or beaters, beat the egg whites to medium peaks (when you lift the beaters out of the bowl, the peaks should stand up firmly but curl over slightly at the tip).
Add the buttermilk mixture and melted butter to the flour mixture and whisk until smooth.
Add the beaten egg whites to the batter and fold until evenly combined.
Preheat the waffle iron and cook the batter according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or until the waffles are golden brown.
The waffles will seem a little flimsy and limp straight out of the waffle iron, but they will crisp up almost immediately once off the heat.
Serve immediately or place on the prepared rack/baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining waffles.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, pancake batter and waffle batter are not the same. While they share some common ingredients, waffle batter typically contains more fat (from oil or butter) and sometimes sugar, which contributes to a crispier texture and richer flavor. Additionally, many waffle recipes call for beating egg whites separately and folding them into the batter to make the waffles lighter and fluffier.
Belgian waffles often have a lighter, airier texture due to a yeast-based batter or beaten egg whites, and they are larger with deeper pockets compared to regular waffles. Regular waffles are typically made with a baking powder-leavened batter, resulting in a denser texture, and are smaller with shallower pockets. Because my recipe uses beaten egg whites to achieve a lighter texture, it’s a bit of a hybrid between the two types of waffles, although it aligns more with the American style.
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Homemade Waffle Recipe
Break out your waffle iron and discover the secret behind my go-to waffle recipe. Light, airy, and impeccably crisp, these waffles are sure to brighten up your mornings and bring a little comfort to your breakfast table.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled off
- ½ cup cornstarch
- ¼ cup sugar
- Heaping 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups buttermilk (or make your own)
- 2 large eggs, whites and yolks separated
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted and slightly cooled
- Pure maple syrup, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Place an oven-safe rack on a baking sheet (this is to put the waffles on after cooking so they stay warm while you cook the others).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg yolks, and vegetable oil.
- Add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk or beaters and beat to medium peaks (when you lift the beaters out of the bowl, the peaks should stand up firmly but curl over slightly at the tip).
- Add the buttermilk mixture and melted butter to the flour mixture and whisk until smooth. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the beaten egg whites until just evenly combined.
- Preheat the waffle iron and cook the batter according to the manufacturer's instructions, or until the waffles are golden brown. The waffles will seem a little flimsy and limp straight out of the waffle iron, but they will crisp up almost immediately once off the heat. Serve immediately or place on the prepared rack/baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining waffles.
- Make-Ahead/Freezing Instructions: To freeze, let them cool completely after cooking, then place them in a single layer on a baking sheet to freeze individually. Once frozen, transfer the waffles to a freezer-safe bag or container, separating layers with parchment paper if needed. To reheat, simply toast the waffles (using a light setting) directly from the freezer until they're warm and crispy.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (9 servings)
- Calories: 290
- Fat: 16 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Sugar: 8 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Sodium: 272 mg
- Cholesterol: 57 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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When I saw that this recipe called for separating the eggs and being the egg whites, I wasn’t sure if the extra effort (I also have to make my own buttermilk) would be worth the end product, but my family and I 1000% believe it is! These waffles are significantly lighter and crispier than your standard waffle recipe. You absolutely taste the difference. You probably won’t want to try to make this on a normal weekday because it does take some time, but for a weekend breakfast or a special occasion, these are fantastic! Another 5/5 star recipe for Jenn!
These were fantastic! So flavorful, light and crispy. I think I like them better than the yeasted overnight recipe, although those are good too. They do crisp up in the oven, but I had better success putting them directly on the oven rack, heated to 300-degrees, instead of on a rack set on a sheet pan. I froze the extras and that is also how I heated them up a few days later. Tasted like they were just made. This will be my go-to waffle recipe. Yes, there are a few bowls/steps involved but definitely worth the effort. Thanks, Jenn!
Have you experimented with using part whole wheat flour and part all-purpose flour?
Hi Michael, I can’t say that I have. If you want to experiment with replacing a bit of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat, I’d suggest white whole wheat (which is lighter and milder tasting than regular whole wheat flour but just as nutritious).
Love this waffle recipe. I have a gluten allergy, so I use King Arthur Flour’s Measure for Measure flour in place of standard flour without any other adjustments. These are the best waffles I’ve eaten, gluten free or with gluten (from years ago). They crisp up wonderfully. Exceptional flavor. Highly recommend!
WOW. These waffles are incredible. I have a google doc where I copy in my ultimate favorite recipe, I copied this into that doc because these are the best I’ve ever made (and I’m 40 and my other go-to waffles recipe are very good but not this good). Make this for your family today!
Perfect for a weekend breakfast! We topped ours off with raspberries. It was a great way to start the day. Thanks Jenn!
I was craving waffles and decided to try again after many flops since I know your recipes never fail me!! The flavor was amazing! And they cooked up nicely – better than any other I’ve tried – but they still weren’t very crispy even after putting them in the oven. What am I doing wrong? Maybe it’s my waffle iron? Do you suggest a certain make?
Hi Heather, sorry you found these to be less crispy then you would’ve liked. It’s probably not the the waffle iron. Did you use all of the butter and oil? If so, you might try a yeasted waffle recipe for an extra crisp waffle. I’d suggest you try this one. Hope that helps!
We made these in a little waffle maker and only made a few adjustments and they turned out great! As there are only two of us, I froze the rest and it worked beautifully.
Used slightly less cornstarch as we ran out (adjusted with more flour) and whisked the egg whites by hand as our mixer wasn’t working.
Have loved all of your recipes and have the cookbook as well-thanks so much for sharing!
The whole family loved these. What’s really nice about them is that you don’t have to plan ahead as you would with yeast waffles. Both my wife and I loved them and the kids wanted seconds. They were just as Jenn described – nice and light and beautifully crispy . These will be our go to waffles from now on!
Had to add an extra 1/2c flour for the recipe to have the correct consistency. Even then, Way too watery for the as is proportions.
Luckily it was for my kids so thr end result was still good enough for them. Will not be trying this recipe again.
My family loved these waffles, light, crispy and delicious. We ate them with fruit, no syrup needed. My little one requested chocolate chips on his waffles, which turned out really yummy also.
Thanks, Jenn. I love your recipes