These Sweet Potato Waffles Are the Perfect Cozy Family Breakfast
These crisp waffles are full of mashed sweet potatoes, sweet spices, and just a touch of brown sugar.
Serves4
Makes8 (7-inch) round waffles
Prep15 minutes
Cook15 minutes to 30 minutes
I’ve always preferred waffles to pancakes — mainly because I love how the little pockets capture maple syrup, and that you get crispy outsides and pillowy insides in each bite. While I love standard Belgian waffles, there are so many other ingredients that can be mixed into waffle batter to make it even more delicious.
Enter: sweet potato waffles, which are a great way to use up leftover sweet potato from dinner. Add a few warm spices and a touch of brown sugar, and these waffles will fill your kitchen with the scents of autumn and winter as they cook, luring everyone to the table.
How to Make Sweet Potato Waffles
- Cook the sweet potatoes. If you don’t have leftover mashed sweet potatoes, just cook one either in the microwave or the oven and mash. You can also use canned sweet potato purée, but the final waffle batter will be thinner, so err on filling the waffle iron with a little less batter.
- Mix the dry ingredients. The standard waffle base of all-purpose flour, leaveners, and salt also gets a dose of brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg (or just add in an equal amount of pumpkin pie spice).
- Mix the wet ingredients. Whisk together mashed sweet potato, melted butter, eggs, buttermilk, and milk. I like a combination of buttermilk and milk because the buttermilk adds great flavor, and the milk thins it out a bit to make sure the waffles cook up crisp.
- Waffle away! These waffles brown quickly, so it’s best to start on medium heat and adjust from there. You can make these in a thin or Belgian waffle iron; use the amount of batter recommended in the manufacturer’s instructions.
What Are the Best Toppings for Sweet Potato Waffles?
While the standard butter and maple syrup combo works just fine for sweet potato waffles, you can also have fun with more non-traditional options. Cinnamon honey butter would be lovely, or you could go full on sweet-savory with fried chicken. Or serve them as dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
Can I Freeze Sweet Potato Waffles?
Yes! A stash of sweet potato waffles in the freezer is the best answer to hectic weekday mornings where you want a quick breakfast that can be warmed up quickly. Freeze the waffles in a single layer, then transfer to a zip-top bag for longer-term storage. Thaw before reheating if you can, but you can also reheat them in the oven from frozen — they’ll just take a few minutes longer.
Sweet Potato Waffles Recipe
These crisp waffles are full of mashed sweet potatoes, sweet spices, and just a touch of brown sugar.
Prep time 15 minutes
Cook time 15 minutes to 30 minutes
Makes8 (7-inch) round waffles
Serves4
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups
all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup
packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons
baking powder
- 1 teaspoon
baking soda
- 1 teaspoon
kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon
ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon
ground nutmeg
- 6 tablespoons
unsalted butter
- 1 cup
cold or room-temperature mashed sweet potatoes
- 1 cup
regular or low-fat buttermilk
- 1/2 cup
whole or 2% milk
- 2
large eggs
Cooking spray
Butter and maple syrup, for serving
Instructions
Heat a waffle iron for medium heat (3 1/2 to 4 setting). Meanwhile, make the waffle batter.
Place 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.
Cut 6 tablespoons unsalted butter into a few pieces and place in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high in 30-second increments, stirring between each, until the butter is melted, about 1 1/2 minutes total. (Alternatively, melt on the stovetop and transfer to a large bowl.) Add 1 cup mashed sweet potatoes, 1 cup buttermilk, 1/2 cup whole or 2% milk, and 2 large eggs. Whisk until mostly smooth and combined.
Add the flour mixture to the sweet potato mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined with no streaks of flour.
When the waffle iron is ready, coat with cooking spray, then pour in the amount of batter recommended by the manufacturer, about 1/2 cup for a (7-inch) thin round waffle or 1 cup for a (7-inch) Belgian round waffle. Close the lid and cook until the waffle is dark golden-brown. When the waffle is ready, remove from the iron to a wire rack.
If not serving immediately as they are made, place directly on a rack in a 200ºF oven to keep warm. Repeat making waffles with the remaining batter. Serve with butter and maple syrup.
Recipe Notes
Cooking sweet potatoes: Here are two ways to cook whole sweet potatoes. Once cooked, scoop the flesh out and mash until mostly smooth. You’ll need a sweet potato that weighs at least 12 ounces to get 1 cup mashed.
1) Bake: Prick a 12-ounce or larger sweet potato 4 to 5 times with a fork. Place on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet and bake at 425ºF until cooked through and easily pierced with a knife or fork to the center, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes.
2) Microwave: Prick a 12-ounce or larger sweet potato 4 to 5 times with a fork. Place on a microwave-safe plate and microwave on 100% power for 5 minutes. (If your microwave doesn’t have a turntable, flip the potato after 3 minutes.) Check the potato: If it can’t be easily pierced with a knife or fork to the center, continue microwaving in 1-minute increments until cooked through.
Using canned sweet potatoes: 1 cup (about 8 1/2 ounces) canned sweet potato purée can be used in place of the mashed sweet potato, but the batter will be thinner. Use less batter for each waffle to prevent overflowing, and if the batter in the middle of the waffles is not set, bake the waffles at 300ºF for 5 minutes.
Storage: The waffles can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 2 months. Reheat directly on a rack in a 350ºF oven until heated through, 4 to 6 minutes if refrigerated, or 10 to 12 minutes if frozen.
This post was originally published on Kitchn. Read it there: Sweet Potato Waffles