Maple oat waffles are a hearty and healthy breakfast treat. Crisp on the outside and flavored with maple, they’re a little more substantial than your run-of-the-mill waffles but they’re also far more satisfying and filling.
Oats and maple syrup are a natural breakfast combination. Here the syrup is stirred into the batter and used in place of sugar, and two grades of oats—bran and flour—are used. The oat bran is soaked in warm milk to soften before being stirred into the batter. After the batter is stirred together, egg whites are whipped separately and then folded into the thick batter to lend the resulting waffles loft and tenderness. One thing that’s crucial to the success here, even more so than in other waffle recipes—is to butter the waffle iron generously, as a crisp crust really makes the difference with these waffles.–Kim Boyce
CAN I REHEAT FROZEN WAFFLES?
While these aren’t your average light and airy toaster waffles, they do have the benefit of being healthier and more filling. Seriously, these are going to help you get through a morning at work or school, whereas those delicate little waffles? Not so much. If you can imagine yourself eating a better breakfast on busy days, make a double batch of waffles on the weekend, plate some for breakfast, and tuck the cooled leftover waffles into sandwich-size resealable bags, slide them into a larger resealable plastic bag, and toss in the freezer. And there you go. Your very own toaster waffles.
☞ Contents
Maple Oat Waffles
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons (2 oz) butter melted, for the waffle iron
- 1/2 cup oat bran
- 1 cup oat flour
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups cold whole milk
- 4 large eggs separated
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Directions
- Turn the waffle iron to its highest setting, even if you don’t usually heat it this high. (Trust us. These waffles come out best when cooked at high heat.)
- Pour the oat bran into a small bowl. Bring 1 cup of the milk to just shy of a boil. Add the hot milk to the oat bran and stir, then set aside to soften while you gather the rest of the ingredients.
- Sift the flours, baking powder and salt into a large bowl, pouring back into the bowl any bits of grain or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter.
- Put the egg whites in the clean bowl of a standing mixer and the yolks into a medium bowl. Add the maple syrup and vanilla to the egg yolks and whisk until thoroughly combined.
- Add the remaining 1 cup of milk to the oat bran—the cold milk will cool the lingering heat of the bran. Pour the oat mixture into the maple syrup mixture and stir to combine.
- Using a spatula, add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently combine. The batter will still have fine lumps throughout; resist the urge to mix them in.
- Attach the mixing bowl and the whip to the mixer and turn the mixer to high speed. As the egg whites whip, they will become frothy and begin to increase in volume. Add the 1 tablespoon sugar to the frothy whites, which will turn thick but very soft. Continue whipping until they are fluffy and glossy and hold their peaks, like clouds or cotton candy, 2 to 3 minutes total. (You’ll know the whites are overwhipped if they crack and look mealy. If that happens, throw them out and start over. There’s no salvaging them.)
- Scrape half of the egg whites into the batter, gently folding them into the batter so as not to deflate the air in the whites. Add the remaining egg whites and fold gently to combine. The egg whites should be entirely incorporated into the batter and the batter should be quite fluffy.
- As soon as you finish mixing the batter, go ahead and make the waffles as unlike some batters that can be kept in the fridge overnight, this one will deflate if left to sit, chilled or otherwise.
- Brush the waffle iron generously with butter. Using a ladle or measuring cup, scoop 1/2 cup of batter onto the iron. Promptly close the lid and listen for the iron to sigh as the batter begins to cook. The smell wafting from the iron will start out like a freshly kneaded loaf of bread, then become toasty. Remove the waffle when the indicator light shows that it's done or when a quick peek shows that it has turned a dark golden-brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove the hot waffle with a fork. Repeat with the remaining batter.
- These waffles are best eaten hot, right off the iron, with a thin slab of butter melting on top and maybe a dab of jam.
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This is a nice, hearty waffle that keeps you going for the whole morning. It’s only lightly sweet, so I enjoyed it with some butter and a little extra maple syrup. It’d be great with berries or peaches, too. I had some extra waffles and really enjoyed them heated up in the toaster the next day.
These waffles are a lot of work, but well worth it in the end. They taste wonderful and look great. In the future, I think I’d use a hand mixer to whip the egg whites rather than break out the stand mixer. I spread my waffle with a little strawberry cream cheese on one half and some Nutella on the other half.
HUNGRY FOR MORE?
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Jackie B.-P.
I like the idea of using oat bran and oat flour to add extra wholesomeness to these waffles. This recipe worked really well. As the waffles were cooking, my kids said, “Oooh, it smells like cookies!” and it really did. The waffles tasted just as good as they smelled.
I tried one topped with maple yogurt and another with some raspberry jam. The kids and the spouse opted for butter and maple syrup. The maple syrup in the batter gave the waffles great flavor. The recipe made a LOT of waffles but that’s okay because they freeze well and make a great weekday breakfast when you just pop them in the toaster.