This recipe for fluffy whole wheat waffles proves that a wholesome breakfast can be absolutely delicious. Made with 100% whole wheat flour, these waffles have hearty flavor, lightly crisp edges, and soft centers. They’re a feel-good weekend breakfast the whole family will love. Plus, they freeze and reheat beautifully, making them perfect for quick and easy weekday breakfasts.
I originally published this recipe in 2017, and I’ve since updated it with new photos and extra success tips for consistently excellent results.
I have to admit, I don’t whip out the waffle maker very often. But for special occasions, I love making classic buttermilk waffles, pumpkin waffles or gingerbread waffles.
Sometimes, though, we want something we can feel good about any day of the week. That’s exactly why I was excited to develop this recipe for fluffy whole wheat waffles.
Whole wheat doesn’t have to mean dense or boring. These waffles bake up golden with lightly crisp edges and a soft, tender center… so delicious they feel like an indulgence, even though they’re made with 100% whole wheat flour.
How do we achieve that? The secret to fluffy whole wheat waffles is balancing the whole wheat flour with enough moisture, fat, and leavening so the waffles cook up crisp on the outside and tender inside, not dense or heavy.
One reader, Austin, commented: “These were FANTASTIC. I subbed brown sugar for honey. We topped them with homemade whipped cream. Best breakfast ever! ★★★★★”
Another reader, Paula, commented: “These waffles are truly the best I’ve ever had…. Thanks to this recipe we’ll be having waffles way more frequently. Wow! ★★★★★”
Another reader, Terry, commented: “I’ve made these several times. They are a family favorite. I also freeze them and pop them in the toaster on a busy morning and they work wonderfully. ★★★★★”
Why You’ll Love These Whole Wheat Waffles:
- Naturally wholesome & extra satisfying: Made with 100% whole wheat flour.
- Perfect texture: Buttermilk keeps the waffles tender, while baking powder gives a lift to keep them light.
- A perfect base for toppings: Use your favorite.
- Great for freezing and meal prep: Make a batch ahead of time and freeze for easy breakfasts during busy weeks.
Ingredients You Need & Why
Just like my whole wheat pancakes recipe, the secret to fluffy 100% whole wheat waffles lies within the careful ratio of ingredients.
- Whole Wheat Flour: I use 100% whole wheat flour, but feel free to use white whole wheat flour if you’d prefer a slightly lighter flavor and color.
- Baking Powder: This is the primary leavening that helps the waffles rise and stay light instead of dense.
- Cinnamon + Salt + Vanilla: Flavor enhancers extraordinaire!
- Butter: Key for flavor as well as texture.
- Eggs: Eggs not only bind everything together, they also help make these whole wheat waffles light and fluffy.
- Brown Sugar: Use just a bit of brown sugar for necessary sweetness. If an unrefined sugar sounds better to you, I’ve tried these with coconut sugar, honey, and maple syrup. All very good! Especially the maple syrup—extra maple flavor in your stack!
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk adds richness and tenderness, but you could also use whole milk or a nondairy milk to make this easy buttermilk substitute.
How to Make Whole Wheat Waffles
These whole wheat waffles come together quickly with a simple two-bowl method—whisk the dry ingredients, whisk the wet ingredients, then combine and cook in your waffle iron. Easy!
Make sure you preheat the waffle iron and grease it before using. The amount of batter per batch depends on the size of your waffle iron, so follow your particular waffle iron’s instructions.
- Here’s the waffle maker I own and love.
- And this waffle maker is another great choice. (It’s what I used for the pictured waffles!)
Close the lid and cook the waffles until golden and crisp. All waffle makers are different, so check your waffle maker’s instructions for suggested cook time.
Then repeat with the remaining batter:
Classic & Creative Topping Ideas
Serve warm with your favorite toppings, like the classic maple syrup or whipped cream, or try something new:
Yes. Let the waffles cool completely, then freeze them in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. Reheat in a toaster or toaster oven until warm and crisp.
For the crispiest reheated waffles, reheat them in a toaster or toaster oven until warmed through. This helps bring back their crisp edges!
Yes, but I think you’ll enjoy my whole wheat pancakes even more (which are formulated to be pancakes!).
Fluffy Whole Wheat Waffles
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes (includes batches)
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 9 waffles
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Made with 100% whole wheat flour, these waffles bake up golden with crisp edges and a soft, fluffy center. A wholesome breakfast that freezes and reheats perfectly.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (260g) whole wheat flour (I use this), spooned & leveled
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons (25g) packed light or dark brown sugar*
- 1 and 3/4 cups (420g/ml) buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat waffle maker on medium-high heat. Preheat oven to 200°F (93°C). Place a wire rack on a baking sheet; set aside.
- In a large bowl, preferably with a pour spout, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In another large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, eggs, and brown sugar. Whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and then whisk gently until combined. Do not over-mix. Some small lumps are OK.
- Grease the preheated waffle maker (I use nonstick spray). Pour about 1/3 cup of the batter into each well of the waffle maker (could be more or less, depending on the size of your waffle maker) and close the lid. Cook the waffles until crisp, about 4–5 minutes. (Follow the cooking instructions for your waffle maker.) Transfer the cooked waffles to the wire rack and keep warm in the preheated oven as you cook the rest. Repeat to cook the remaining batter.
- Serve the waffles immediately with your choice of toppings.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Waffles are best enjoyed freshly made. I recommend freezing any leftover waffles. To freeze, let the waffles cool completely, then freeze them in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. Reheat in a toaster or toaster oven until warm and crisp.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Waffle Maker or Round Waffle Maker
- Sugar: Instead of brown sugar, try coconut sugar, maple syrup, granulated sugar, or honey. Do not skip the sugar; the waffles will taste bland and dry.
- Buttermilk: You can substitute whole milk for buttermilk if desired. Acidic buttermilk isn’t needed in order for the waffles to rise since we’re using baking powder. However, if you’d like the tangy flavor, which I highly recommend, you can make your own buttermilk substitute. Add 1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup. Add enough milk to make 1 and 3/4 cups. Whisk together, then let sit for 5 minutes before using in the recipe. Whole milk is best for the DIY sour milk substitute because you’ll get the best, fluffiest, richest tasting waffles. However, lower-fat or nondairy milks can work in a pinch.
- Waffle Maker: You can use this recipe in either a Belgian or traditional waffle maker or iron. The batter amount to use for each waffle and cooking time in the recipe are just suggestions. Follow the cooking instructions for your specific waffle maker.
- Can I make these as pancakes? Yes, but I think you’ll enjoy my whole wheat pancakes even more (which are formulated to be pancakes!).
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 waffle
- Calories: 207
- Sugar: 5.2 g
- Sodium: 173.9 mg
- Fat: 9.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 25.1 g
- Protein: 6.6 g
- Cholesterol: 63.6 mg
Reader Comments and Reviews
love the recipes!
Thank you for this recipe ! I can’t wait to try it. Can I use a banana in place of sugar ?
Hi Liz, we haven’t tested it, but one of our reader’s reported success using 1 banana instead of the 2 Tbsp of brown sugar. Let us know if you give it a try!
Excellent waffles! Can you provide nutritional information?
Hi Lisa, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Can you share how many grams of protein it is per waffle ? Followed you yummy recipe but use regular 2% milk.
Hi Debby, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Flavor was excellent and they really were fluffy! I used white whole wheat flour and had to add regular milk at the ens to thin it out because as others mentioned the batter was very thick. I measure with a scale so it wasn’t my error. I have a vertical waffle iron and the batter wouldn’t even pour into it. That’s why I took away a star. Perhaps less flour would have done the trick.
Made these for New Year’s Day brunch – we didn’t have buttermilk so I thinned some sour cream instead; probably could have thinned a bit more as the waffle batter was very thick – sort of had to spoon/spread into my waffle maker. However, I thought the flavor was delish and they were somehow both dense and fluffy? Not overly sweet and great with either maple syrup or PB. Definitely will make again.
I made these and they were fantastic! Do you think I would be able to add protein powder to them?
Hi Jodi, we’ve never tested this recipe with protein powder, but some readers have reported adding it with success. Let us know if you try it!
Why can’t you people on these sites put the measurements in the directions? Is it really that difficult!
I’ve made a lot of whole grain waffle recipes in my lifetime and I am finally done searching. This recipe is delicious and light (for whole grain) with a wonderful texture. I did sub 2 flax eggs and 1/4 tsp of baking soda for the 2 eggs which worked beautifully.
I really like sallysbakingadditon tastiest and easy steps!
This waffle recipe was sensational.
I followed the suggestion to use soy milk and coconut oil due to a needing it dairy free.
Worked perfectly!
We’ve got an obsession with churros style waffles so they were pressed lightly into a shallow dish of cinnamon sugar.
Served with a scoop of plant based ice-cream… just wow!
My waffle maker is the Breville one, so I set it to the buttermilk option and timing was automatic. They were just nice between soft inside and crisp outside. I personally like extra crispy waffles so toasted mine in the toaster for about 2 minutes.
These waffles were phenomenal! Cooking them in my waffle maker for 5 minutes was just right. Four minutes was done and soft. Great flavor and liked that I could use just Whole Wheat flour with no all-purpose mixed in. The brown sugar was not all that noticeable but still made beautiful waffles. I will be keeping this recipe for future use. I made the mistake of putting my eggs with my pseudo-buttermilk instead of the butter and brown sugar, but it didn’t appear to make a difference as far as I can tell. Delicious!
So good, quick, and easy! Probably could have added a bit more cinnamon to mine, or nutmeg.
Just a quick comment Your waffle recipe and some others do not let you leave a review
Buttermilk waffles are excellent but I can not comment anywear and found no other way to let you know
Thanks for letting me know; I have my tech team looking into it. Appreciate the heads up!
Can you bake these waffles in the oven using a silicone waffle mould? Thank you.
Hi Elisabeth, we haven’t tested that, and didn’t know those existed! Let us know if you give it a try.
The benefit of a waffle iron is the crispy exterior from the heated iron. I would be surprised if a silicone mold could achieve a crispy exterior without drying the inside of the waffle
I make these every Wednesday as written. We love the recipe. Today I was adventurous and replaced the 2T sugar with 2T honey and the 6 T of butter replaced with 6T. Avocado oil. It worked great and the waffles turned out a little crispier. That you for sharing this recipe and others.
I made these tonight and we really enjoyed the favour but the dough was so thick that even after I added an extra half cup of buttermilk it was still thick. I couldn’t pour, had to spoon it out. Do you have any suggestions?
Hi Patricia, we’re so glad you enjoyed the waffles! How did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure the flour isn’t overmeasured, which can make the batter overly dry and thick. It will also thicken as it sits, so you may need to rewhisk the batter to help thin it out if baking in batches.
I’ve encountered the same issue. Could it be the hydration of the specific whole wheat flour? I’m using whole foods organic whole wheat flour. I made a half batch, measuring 130g of flour and all other ingredients were appropriately halved. Very thick batter.
Can I make the batter & store it for later? How do I store it & for how long? Also do I substitute sugar for honey/maple in the same measurements? Please & TIA
Hi Balderich, we don’t recommend making the batter ahead of time since the baking powder will be activated once wet. You could make the wet and dry ingredients separately and store overnight, then make fresh in the morning. Or, baked waffles can be frozen for up to 3 months, then warmed in the toaster.
What is best to substitute the eggs?
Hi Joy, we haven’t tested an egg-free version of these waffles, so we’re unsure what might work best. Let us know if you do any experimenting.
Substituted the butter for coconut oil (because it was convenient). Turned out great, highly recommended
Best waffles I have made in 40 years!! I am new to baking with whole wheat and was amazed at how fluffy and tasty they were. I made in a Belgian waffle iron and the done indicator would turn on, however they were not done, so I timed them and 5 minutes was perfect.
Made this with some adjustments to make it vegan and more kid-friendly, worked perfectly.
Added an extra 1/4 cup soy milk + 1/4 tsp xanthan gum to replace the egg. For the buttermilk I used soy milk + 1tsp apple cider vinegar.
I also replaced half the whole wheat flour with white, because my kids don’t like the texture of 100% WW waffles.
Will make again, super easy
Definitely will be my go to for waffles at home. Enjoyed the ingredients being all things I always have on hand. My waffles were filling and fluffy. Kiddos also liked them. I used milk + vinegar bc I didn’t have buttermilk. And white sugar bc I didn’t have brown.
This was a far more difficult recipe than I thought and it wasn’t very good.
I’d like to know what was difficult for you, if you’re willing to share. It’s basically mix dry ingredients, mix wet ingredients, pour wet into dry, and cook. What was difficult for you?
I love this recipe and make them every weekend! I add a little pb2 for a protein boost and another 1/4 c buttermilk to adjust for high altitude.
These were FANTASTIC. I subbed brown sugar for honey. We topped them with homemade whipped cream. Best breakfast ever!