Strawberry Waffles
Homemade strawberry waffles are the best way to start your day! Fluffy waffles are studded with juicy fresh berries in every bite—just add your favorite toppings and dig in.
Strawberry season is upon us, which means it’s time to make strawberry pancakes, strawberry scones, and strawberry French toast. And these strawberry waffles too, of course! Don’t forget to add strawberry sauce!
Yes, you can buy strawberries at the grocery store year-round, but the locally grown berries you find at farmers markets in the spring and summer months are really something special. Instead of giant, crunchy berries the size of a small apple, those farmers market berries are small and delicate. They’re red all the way through, with so much more sweetness and flavor.
While you can make these strawberry waffles with any strawberries you can get your hands on—even frozen!—this is the perfect recipe to make after you’ve gone strawberry picking or bought a flat of local berries at the market and need some creative ways to use them up.
About this strawberry waffle recipe
These strawberry waffles deliver everything you want from a homemade waffle recipe.
Fluffy? Yes! Soft on the inside? Of course! Crispy on the edges? That’s the best part!
But then they go above and beyond, because they have all of those things and they’re loaded with strawberries in every bite.
The other thing we love about strawberry waffles is that you can make them healthy or you can make them decadent. A dollop of vanilla yogurt and fresh fruit makes these fluffy homemade strawberry waffles a well-rounded breakfast, but chocolate syrup and whipped cream take them squarely into dessert territory.
Maybe you should make a double batch! Have the healthy waffles for breakfast and the more decadent waffles for a treat!
What you need
- Wet ingredients – Milk, apple cider vinegar, vegetable oil, vanilla extract
- Dry ingredients – All-purpose flour, baking powder, brown sugar
- Fresh strawberries – You can use thawed frozen strawberries in a pinch, but drain them first.
- Toppings – Fresh strawberries, powdered sugar, maple syrup, butter, whipped cream
How to make them
Make the buttermilk substitute. Whisk the apple cider vinegar into the milk, then let the mixture sit for at least 5 minutes to thicken and curdle.
Make the batter. Combine the flour, baking powder, and sugar in a mixing bowl, then add the vegetable oil, vanilla, and buttermilk substitute.
Stir until there are no lumps, then fold in the strawberries.
Prepare. Let the batter rest while you preheat your waffle iron.
Cook the strawberry waffles. Add about ⅔ cup of batter to the waffle maker and cook for about 3 minutes, or until the waffle is cooked through, golden brown, and crisp on the edges. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Tip: These are the instructions for a 6-inch round waffle maker. If you have a different type, use the amount of batter and recommended cooking time in your instruction manual.
Serve. Plate the waffles and add your desired toppings.
Tip: To keep your strawberry waffles from getting soggy, you can place them on a wire rack after they’ve finished cooking. Let them cool a bit before plating.
FAQs
The method for dicing strawberries depends on the size of the berries. For an average size strawberry, hull the berry, then cut it into thick slices and cut the slices lengthwise. Cut the resulting strips into halves or thirds.
This can happen if you added too much sugar, added the milk to the apple cider vinegar (instead of adding apple cider vinegar to the milk), added too much milk, or from not drying the strawberries after washing them. To fix this you can let the batter sit longer or add more flour, 2 tablespoons at a time. If it still doesn’t thicken you can still make waffles; just use about 2 to 4 tablespoons less batter per waffle when cooking.
Yes, you can substitute the same amount of granulated white sugar for the brown sugar in this strawberry waffle recipe.
How to make these strawberry waffles your own
We love these homemade strawberry waffles exactly the way they are, but there are a lot of ways to switch things up! Here’s some inspiration.
- Use a different milk. Whole milk, 2% milk, soy milk, and other plant-based milks will all work in this recipe.
- Swap out the vanilla extract. Almond extract is delicious with strawberries, and especially in strawberry waffles!
- Make them lemony. Add lemon zest to the waffle batter and top your waffles with fresh strawberries, lemon curd, and a dollop of lemon whipped cream.
- Add chocolate. Fold chocolate chips or white chocolate chips into the waffle batter for richer strawberry waffles.
- Make mixed berry waffles. Instead of using all strawberries, try a combination of strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Don’t forget strawberry sauce or blueberry sauce for topping! Peach sauce would also be delicious!
Make Ahead Ideas
You can make strawberry waffle batter the night before and store it in the fridge so it’s ready to go in the morning.
Storage Suggestions
Store your strawberry waffles in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating Tips
Reheat strawberry waffles in the microwave, a toaster, toaster oven, or a 350ºF oven. If you’ve frozen the waffles, you can let them thaw in the refrigerator overnight, or reheat them from frozen—it’ll just take a few minutes more.
More waffle recipes
Get the Recipe: Strawberry Waffles
Ingredients
For the Waffles:
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 cup finely chopped fresh strawberries
Toppings:
- fresh strawberries
- powdered sugar
- maple syrup
- butter
- whipped cream
Instructions
- Make substitute ‘buttermilk’ by adding the apple cider vinegar to the milk. Stir and let sit while you assemble the rest of the waffles.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and sugar.
- To the same bowl, add the vegetable oil, vanilla, and the ‘buttermilk’ you made in step one. Stir until there are no clumps, but do not overmix.
- Fold in the chopped strawberries.
- Allow your batter to rest while you preheat your waffle maker.
- Once the waffle maker is preheated, add about ⅔ cup of batter to the waffle maker (for 6-inch round waffle makers) and cook for about 3 minutes, or until done.
- Repeat until you have used up all of the batter.
- Add desired toppings and enjoy!
Notes
- All waffle makers are different, it may take more or less time for your waffles to cook. If you have a different size or shape waffle maker, please use the amount of batter needed for yours. Serving size may vary based on the size of your waffle maker.
- Make Ahead Tip: You can make strawberry waffle batter the night before and store it in the fridge so it’s ready to go in the morning.
- Storage: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Reheat strawberry waffles in the microwave, a toaster, toaster oven, or a 350ºF oven. If you’ve frozen the waffles, you can let them thaw in the refrigerator overnight, or reheat them from frozen—it’ll just take a few minutes more.
These waffles are so delicious and fluffy!
Thanks so much Shawna!