A simple, healthy, tasty, and crispy recipe for Oatmeal Waffles. The batter can be whipped up quickly and easily in your blender. Make fresh or keep a stash in the freezer for quick breakfasts throughout the week!
💌 SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email and I'll send the link straight to your inbox.
Watch out for more tasty treats coming your way too! Unsubscribe at any time.
FEATURED COMMENT
"Amazing waffles. Really crispy. Your tip about waiting for the steam to stop is a game-changer for making them crispy with no sticking. The whole family loved them. They will be a regular weekend treat now!" - Gary ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
It's just me and these deliciously crispy Oatmeal Waffles. And the good news is they are healthy enough to eat for breakfast, lunch or brinner.
We're talking naturally flour-free, oil-free, and gluten-free waffles (if you use certified gluten-free oats), made with really wholesome, healthy ingredients, and we're talking perfectly golden, crispy, fluffy in the middle, waffle perfection! A great alternative to my very popular vegan banana waffles.
Be sure to read all of my tips and tricks with this recipe. Waffles seem to be something people have a lot of trouble with. If you have a decent non-stick waffle iron, measure the ingredients correctly, and follow the tips included below, you should have no problems with your waffles sticking or tearing.
Mel x
Jump to:
Ingredients
Here is what you need to make delicious vegan oat waffles along with some important ingredient notes:
- Oats - No need to turn them into flour first because these are oatmeal blender waffles. Throw it all in, blend and you're done. Wondering what kind of oats to use? Rolled oats (sometimes called old-fashioned oats) or quick oats are the ones you want for this recipe. Be sure to use certified gluten-free oats for gluten-free waffles.
- Nut or seed butter - Peanut, almond butter, cashew, sunflower seed, or pumpkin seed butter are all fine. This adds amazing flavor and fat to the recipe. Fat is essential for a good texture.
- Applesauce or banana puree - Your choice which. Applesauce you can't taste in them, banana you can. If you use banana puree watch out in the instructions because you need a touch more plant milk.
- Baking powder, baking soda & apple cider vinegar - Essential for puff and fluff. Baking soda and vinegar in addition to the baking powder causes a chemical reaction that creates extra air in the batter. This replaces the leavening that eggs would otherwise provide in a non-vegan recipe.
- Dairy-free milk - Any plant milk such as cashew milk, soy milk, oat milk, or almond milk will work in this recipe.
Ideally, you will also need a blender to make gluten-free oat waffles. This is a throw-it-all-in, no mixing and be done in a minute or two, lazy blender waffle recipe. But if you don't have a blender you can still make them. Just use oat flour instead of oats.
And of course, you will need a waffle maker. I have this Cuisinart Waffle Maker and I'm very happy with it. I've never had a waffle stick yet and it's well over 10 years old.
Let's Make Oatmeal Waffles!
Here's how we make flourless oatmeal waffles step-by-step:
- Add everything to a blender
- Blend it all up
- Pour the waffle batter into your well-greased and heated waffle iron
- Let them cook then top with lots of delicious things!
Important Waffle Success Tips
These vegan oatmeal waffles are easy to make but following these success tips will give you the very best results:
- Do not lift the lid too early. See my No. 1 tip below for more info.
- Getting waffles right can take a bit of experimentation because every waffle iron cooks a little differently. Follow my instructions the first time then tweak settings and time as you go next time.
- Do not use a non-stick oil spray/cooking spray like Pam or Frylight on your waffle iron (or any other nonstick cooking surface). It might reduce calories, but the ingredients in it ( like silicone and lecithin) cause an invisible build-up that is impossible to remove with washing. It quite quickly makes your non-stick surface ineffective. I brush my oil on with a silicone brush. If you want to spray oil, invest in an oil mister and fill it with any pure liquid oil.
- Don't be tempted to omit the nut/seed butter. The natural oils in it are essential to the success of this recipe.
- Make sure the waffle iron is very hot and oiled thoroughly before you pour in the batter mixture. If it's not hot enough they will stick. When it says it's hot enough, leave it for an extra 5 minutes to be sure.
- Make sure you don't overfill your waffle irons. Pour into the center and stop well before it reaches the sides.
My Number 1 tip For Crispy Waffles That Don't Stick
My biggest tip for making perfectly crispy waffles that never stick is to not listen to your waffle maker. A lot of them have a signal for when the waffles are ready. Mine beeps. Some have a light that comes on. Your waffle maker cannot accurately know when your waffles are ready.
The way you can know for sure that they are properly cooked and crispy is to watch the steam escaping from the sides of the waffle maker. Do not even attempt to open it while there is steam coming out, even if your waffle maker is telling you otherwise. As soon as there is no steam present at all it is safe to open and you will have crispy waffles. Every. Single. Time. It takes much longer than you think so be patient.
Serving Suggestions
There are so many ways to serve waffles. Sweet and savory. Some ideas include:
- Vegan butter, a generous drizzle of maple syrup, and some fresh berries. Or try some vegan brown butter for an extra rich, nutty flavor
- Brush in vegan butter and dip in cinnamon sugar for a donut-type effect
- Vanilla Roasted Strawberries, Vegan Caramelized Bananas, or Blueberry Lavender Sauce
- Vegan Lemon Curd with fresh or frozen raspberries
- Date Caramel with sliced banana
- Dairy-free ice cream or vegan yogurt
- Chocolate syrup, sauce, or chocolate shavings/chips
- Frozen Berry Compote
- Vegan Scrambled Eggs
- Vegan Chick'n or sausages and maple syrup
Recipe FAQS
Did you read and follow all of the tips and tricks I've included above? if not then start there. Some common reasons you will have issues include:
- Not measuring the ingredients properly. The ratio of fat to other ingredients in waffles is important. I recommend weighing your flour so you don't accidentally use too much and throw the balance off.
- Did you grease the iron thoroughly with oil and not vegan butter? Vegan butter doesn't work well in waffle irons. Oil and plenty of it is essential.
- Have you been using cooking spray on your waffle iron? You know like Fry Light, Baker's Joy, or Pam? Did you know these sprays ruin non-stick surfaces? I don't recommend ever using them. They contain ingredients like silicone that form a coating on your iron that will not come off when you wash it. This coating renders the non-stick surface useless. If you want to be able to spray your oil buy an oil mister and fill it with real oil yourself.
-Did you wait until every single bit of steam stopped coming out of the waffle iron before opening it as per my instructions? This is really important and will take a while. Usually much longer than the ready signal on your waffle iron.
If you followed all of the above and they still stick then it might be time to look at buying a new waffle iron.
That's fine. It's safer to use the weight measurement in that case though so you know you get exactly the right amount.
Yes. Use oat flour instead of oats and mix the batter by hand. Be sure to weigh the oat flour so you get the correct amount. Start by whisking the nut butter into the milk until smooth, then add the rest of the ingredients.
Recipe
Oatmeal Waffles
Author:Ingredients
- 1½ cups (135 grams) rolled oats or quick oats , or the same weight of oat flour
- ¼ cup (4 tablespoons) nut or seed butter
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate of soda in the UK)
- 1½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar , or lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract , (omit if you are using savoury toppings)
- ½ cup (125 grams) unsweetened applesauce , or pureed banana/pumpkin
- 1 cup (240 mls) dairy-free milk , add an extra 2 tablespoons if using banana or pumpkin
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Thoroughly grease a waffle iron with plenty of oil (not vegan butter or cooking spray) and heat it to a medium setting. Once it reaches temperature keep heating for an extra 5 minutes to make sure it is really hot. If it's not heated thoroughly your waffles could stick.
- Put all of the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour into the hot waffle iron, adding enough batter to cover it thickly without it coming out the sides.
- Put the lid down and leave to cook until there is absolutely no steam escaping from the sides. Ignore your waffle iron if it tells you they are ready. Be patient and wait until all traces of steam stop. it takes a while. This is really important for crispy waffles that release easily.
- Carefully and very slowly open the lid to give the waffles time to release then remove them. Put the lid down and let the waffle iron heat up again, then grease again before adding the remaining batter. Cook as before.
NOTES
💌 SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email and I'll send the link straight to your inbox.
Watch out for more tasty treats coming your way too! Unsubscribe at any time.
Paul says
Recipe makes tasty waffles but they stick like glue to the waffle maker. i have an electric Cuisinart that, admittedly, is dreadful and I was excited to try the tip given in this recipe about cooking until there was no more steam - long after the waffle maker said that it was done. I found it very hard to separate the two halves of the maker and, of course, the waffle split in two with each half glued to the machine. Tried again on a lower setting and leaving long after there was no steam and it too stuck although it didn't burn as much this time. I have thrown out the waffle maker and might one day get a new one that can be used on the stove and thus could be immersed in water for clean up when it fails as my waffles always do. I will attest that when I scraped out the waffles from this recipe and had the crumbs with maple syrup they did taste very good. I think this is because of the nut butter (almond) but that might also contribute to the stickiness. Sigh. I love waffles too but I might have to have them at a restaurant in future.
Alysoun Mahoney says
I've tried several vegan waffle recipes, and this is my favorite. Delicious, nice texture, and easy to make. Thank you!
Anna Marie says
This is now our ultimate go-to waffle recipe!! I love how fast it is! No bowls to wash, and no wait time to let it rise. I have a high speed blender, so I start with the milk and an apple cut into quarters, blend until smooth, then add the rest of the ingredients.
Shaina says
I'm disappointed because my waffles tore in half when I opened the lid, even following all of the cooking instructions and greasing well. I did use tahini, though, which is quite thin and maybe that didn't help. Anybody else try with tahini?
Therese McMahan says
I just purchased a new "stuffed" waffle maker and used this recipe to make Cherry Pie Waffles. Even my omni daughter liked them. The waffles were fluffy and crisp. I was a little leary of the amount of vanilla but it was just the right flavor.
I will use oat flour in the future since I don't have a Blendtec or Vitamix. The batter was a little grainy but still cooked well and tasted great.
MJ says
The waffles were fluffy,crispy,and so easy to make.I doubled the recipe and only used half the amount of nut butter and it worked well…..THANKS!!!
Marie Altman says
I made these on Christmas Day~ they turned out perfectly. The ones I left in too long and thought we’re too crispy, softened up in a few minutes, so I definitely recommend letting them cook longer than you might think you should. They were great leftover too!
Shauna says
Very good recipe! I followed exact using mashed banana. It came out nice and crispy. Even my husband liked it! He’s not overly thrilled eating Vegan but he doesn’t cook so he eats what I make him!
JianaS. says
I love these waffles! I used bananas as I had some to use up, will try soon with applesauce. I had no issues with sticking to my waffle iron, but I use a canola oil spray. This recipe is easy and has a nice balance. I made it with almond butter. This is a keeper!
Colleen says
I saved this recipe some time ago but just got around to making them a day or so ago. Now I'm wondering what took me so long! These were so easy to throw together using ingredients I almost always have on hand. No muss, no fuss but absolutely delicious. And I really like that I can dress them up a bit to serve to guests if I want, or leave them more "plain" if I'm in a hurry. These will go into our regular rotation!
Karen Spiers says
So good and crispy! We all loved them. Thank you!
Karisa says
I've tried these twice and they stuck :( I even tried adding more fat and still no luck
A Virtual Vegan says
Using spray oil on the waffle iron is the number one reason that waffles start sticking. Spray oil like Pam etc, is not compatible with non-stick surfaces. Unless using pure oil, which most spray oils aren't, a residue is left that is impossible to remove when washing. This builds up over time and ruins the non-stick surface. If that is something you have used on your iron then that could be the reason.
Are you also greasing it really well and following the tip to not even attempt to open until all steam has stopped coming out the sides, even if your waffle irons beeps before? It takes a while and is really important for easy release.
There is plenty of oil/fat in the recipe (from the nut butter) so it shouldn't be necessary to add more.
If they are sticking despite those things then it's likely the non-stick surface isn't at its best anymore.
I hope that helps!
Jill Burry says
Sorry, I am not a fan of cinnamon so I left it out and they were still great!
Paul says
I agree with your view on cinnamon. Quite a few recipes ask for cinnamon and it ends up ruining the flavour by taking over. Unless it is a curry I leave out cinnamon and my life is no less worth living because of it.
Christie says
A hit, wow!! These were really flavorful, beautifully crispy and browned on the outside, tender inside. We did get problems with sticking even with a decent amount of olive oil on the waffle iron, but these are way better (in terms of flavor and nutritional/ingredients profile) than other vegan Waffles we have tried so I’m going to try again! There’s no oil in the batter so it may just be we need to really, really put a lot extra oil on the iron. I’m ok with that! Looking forward to making these again, thank you!!!
Gary Purdy says
Amazing waffles. Really crispy. Your tip about waiting for the steam to stop is a game changer for making them crispy with no sticking. The whole family loved them.They will be a regular weekend treat now.
Susan says
Even greasing my waffle iron, the batter stuck to it, so cooked in a pan on the stove. Still good, but disappointed that stuck.
Lauren says
Hi there! I don’t have a waffle iron... would this work for pancakes? Thanks!
A Virtual Vegan says
I have never tried them as pancakes but usually waffles and pancake recipes are pretty interchangeable. I'm 99% sure it would be fine!