Christmas Waffles

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• Why You'll Love These Waffles
• Ingredients
• Variations and Substitutions
• Step-by-Step Instructions
• Expert Tips
• Serving Suggestions
• Storing and Reheating
• FAQs
• More Waffle Recipes
• 📖 Recipe

Why You'll Love These Waffles

Perfect for Christmas - The waffles are made with my homemade Christmas Spice Mix which has spices like cinnamon, cloves, allspice, star anise, and fennel. It's similar to my Gingerbread Spice Mix but it has more spices and no ginger. It's the ultimate flavor of Christmas for me which makes these the perfect festive breakfast for the holidays! My Gingerbread Pancakes are definitely a close second!

Easy and great for a crowd - The batter comes together in just a few minutes and cooking the waffles is a breeze. I find making waffles much easier and quicker than pancakes when cooking for a large group of people. You can easily double or even triple this recipe for a big brunch!

Great for meal prep - These waffles are freezer-friendly so if you make a big batch and have leftovers, you can freeze them to reheat later on busy mornings during the week. I always like to have a stash of waffles in the freezer, they always come in clutch! These also last in the fridge for 4-5 days so they're great for meal prep. They reheat really well so you can cook them the night before and no one will be able to tell!

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour - I like baking with gluten-free flour only and I always use the Bob's Red Mill 1:1 flour but regular all-purpose flour works as well!
• Eggs - Eggs are an important ingredient in the batter, they help everything bind together. I haven't tried any vegan substitutes so I can't guarantee results.
• Buttermilk - Using buttermilk instead of regular milk creates extra fluffy and light waffles. I also find they rise more with buttermilk. See the next paragraph and the recipe card to learn how to make vegan buttermilk.
• Butter - You can use cooking oil or melted unsalted butter in the batter. I like using butter for more flavor but both create similar results. I recommend using cooking spray for greasing the waffle maker because butter burns more easily. I like using avocado oil in a spray. If you don't have a spray, brush the oil onto your waffle iron with a silicone brush.
• Honey - The waffles are sweetened with honey because it goes really well with all the warming spices and tastes like Christmas. Maple syrup also works great or you can do half honey, and half molasses if you want a more gingerbread flavor.
• Cacao powder - Cacao adds a little bit of a chocolatey flavor and color to the waffles. You can use either roasted cocoa powder or raw cacao powder based on your preference.
• Spices - I used my Christmas Spice Blend for this recipe to give it a true Christmasy flavor. It's a mix of spices like cinnamon, allspice, cardamom, cloves, star anise, fennel, and nutmeg. If you've never tried it, I highly recommend it! It's similar to Gingerbread Spice but it has more spices and no ginger.
• Dark rum - This one is totally optional but I wanted to mimic the flavor of these Czech Gingerbread Cookies which are made with my Christmas spice, honey, and special spiced Czech rum. The alcohol cooks off as the waffles cook but you can skip it if you prefer. Both dark rum and spiced rum work. I haven't been able to find the original Czech rum anywhere in the US or Canada.
• Vanilla extract - Vanilla balances all the flavors out and adds that little something. You can also use vanilla paste or vanilla powder. The paste is the same as the extract, you can use it in a 1:1 ratio but the powder is much stronger so you'll need less of it.

Variations and Substitutions

• Vegan buttermilk - Measure 2 cups almond milk and remove 2 tbsp. Add 2 tablespoons lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and stir gently. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes. It’s ready when it slightly thickens and curdles.
• Molasses - I don't use molasses very often so I skipped it in these waffles but if you like it, you can replace half or all of the honey in the batter with molasses.
• Chocolate chips - Everything is better with chocolate! The batter already has a little bit of cacao but if you want to add a little melty pockets of chocolate as well, add in ½ cup of your favorite chocolate chips to the batter. Mini chocolate chips work the best.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, Christmas spice, cacao powder, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, honey, melted butter, vanilla extract, sea salt, and dark rum if using.
3. Add buttermilk and whisk again.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until just mixed. You can do this in two batches. Do not overmix, the batter can have a few lumps.

5. Heat up your waffle maker (I set mine to medium heat), spray with a little bit of cooking oil or brush some on and spoon in the batter to make waffles. I do about ¼ cup of batter per waffle. This will depend on the size of your waffle iron. Always leave a little bit of space so the waffles have room to expand.
6. Cook the waffles for 3-5 minutes until golden or according to manufacturer’s instructions.
7. Repeat with the rest of the batter adding more oil as needed.
8. Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

There are so many fun and delicious toppings you can add to these waffles aside from just your classic maple syrup. Below are a few ideas to get you started!

• Yogurt - Greek yogurt or a good vegan yogurt is delicious with these waffles.
• Nut or seed butter - Homemade Almond Butter or Chocolate Hazelnut Butter are my favorite toppings for anything and everything sweet. Peanut butter is also a classic. If you can't eat nuts, try sunflower seed butter, tahini, or pumpkin seed butter!
• Berries - My favorite topping of all time for pancakes, waffles, and oatmeal are berries. Top these waffles with some fresh strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, or blackberries. If you can't get fresh berries, use frozen berries and warm them up with a little bit of maple syrup on the stove to make sauce!
• Homemade syrup - Maple syrup is a classic but you can use other flavored syrups if you're feeling extra fancy. I use the same syrups I make for coffee on pancakes and waffles are they're amazing! Try this Chocolate Syrup, this Chestnut Praline Syrup, or this Gingerbread Syrup, you'll love them!

Storing and Reheating

These waffles are great for meal prep because they store and reheat really well! I like to make a double batch and store them in the freezer for busy mornings.

Fridge: Store any leftover waffles in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Freezer: Freeze the waffles in a freezer bag or in a freezer-safe container for 3-5 months (this will depend on how low your freezer temperature goes and how well it maintains the temperature. If it goes up and down a lot, it won't keep for that long. My freezer is set to -22 degrees Celsius.

Reheating: You can reheat the waffles in the oven or in a toaster. My favorite way to reheat them is in the oven, especially from frozen. You can defrost your waffles in the fridge overnight first but I don't find it necessary. Just preheat your oven to 300F and warm up your refrigerated waffles for 5-10 minutes or for 15-20 minutes if they're frozen. You can also use the defrost option on your oven if you have it first and then raise the temperature.

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