Oat Flour Waffles
- 10 min prep
- 60 min
- Cook
- Serves 4
- 425 kcal
- 11 g protein
Crisp-edged waffles made entirely with oat flour and a flax egg. Rest the batter, heat the iron properly, and they come out golden and light inside.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (200 g) oat flour (or 2¼ cups rolled oats, ground fine)
- 2 tbsp (14 g) ground flaxseed
- 6 tbsp (90 ml) water, for the flax
- 2 tsp (8 g) baking powder
- ½ tsp cinnamon powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1½ cups (360 ml) milk
- ¼ cup (55 g) melted coconut oil or butter, cooled slightly
- 2 tbsp (40 g) maple syrup or honey
- 1 tsp (4 g) vanilla extract
- 1 tsp oil, for greasing the iron
Method
- 1Stir the ground flaxseed and water together in a large bowl and leave for 5 minutes, until thick and stringy.
- 2Whisk in the milk, melted coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla. If the coconut oil clumps on contact with cold milk, warm the bowl briefly over the stove.
- 3In a second bowl, whisk the oat flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add to the wet mixture and stir just until combined; a few small lumps are fine.
- 4Rest the batter for 10 minutes while the waffle iron heats fully. It will thicken noticeably as the oat flour hydrates.
- 5Brush the hot iron with oil. Pour in enough batter to cover about three-quarters of the plate (roughly ⅓ cup for a 10 cm square), close and cook for 5 to 6 minutes.
- 6The waffle is done when steam has nearly stopped escaping and the outside is deep golden. Lift it out with a fork and set it on a wire rack, not a plate, so it stays crisp. Repeat to make 8 to 10.
Notes from the Department
- Do not open the iron early. Oat flour waffles are fragile until the crust sets and will split if pulled apart too soon.
- Hold finished waffles on a rack in a 100°C oven if you are serving everyone at once.
- If the batter gets too thick partway through, stir in a splash of milk.
Nutrition per serving
- Energy
- 425 kcal
- Protein
- 11 g
- Carbohydrate
- 46 g
- Fat
- 23 g
- Fibre
- 4.3 g
- Sugars
- 11 g
Why this works
Oat flour has no gluten, which is useful in a waffle: there is nothing to overmix, so the inside stays tender. What it lacks is structure. A flax egg and the full 10-minute rest fix that. The flax binds, and as the oat flour soaks up milk the batter thickens enough to hold its shape in the iron.
Fat matters for crispness. Coconut oil or butter fries the outside of the waffle against the hot plates, which is where the golden crust comes from.
No waffle iron?
Cook the same batter as pancakes on a medium-low tawa, about ¼ cup at a time. They will be soft rather than crisp, but just as good with fruit.
Swaps
Use oat milk or almond milk and coconut oil for vegan waffles. Swap the maple syrup for jaggery powder dissolved in the milk. Add 2 tbsp cocoa for chocolate waffles, or fold in ½ cup blueberries just before cooking. For gluten-free waffles, buy certified gluten-free oat flour or grind certified oats yourself.
Storage
Cool completely on a rack, then freeze in a zip bag for up to 2 months. Reheat straight from frozen in a toaster or a hot oven until crisp. They keep 3 days in the fridge but soften there, so always re-crisp before serving. The Department of Waffles insists on this.
Questions people ask
- Can I make waffles with only oat flour?
- Yes. This recipe uses no wheat flour at all. Resting the batter for 10 minutes and using a flax egg gives enough structure for the waffles to lift out of the iron cleanly.
- Why are my oat waffles soggy?
- Either the iron was not fully hot, they came out too early, or they were stacked on a plate. Cook until steam slows right down and cool them on a rack.
- Can I make oat flour at home?
- Yes. Blend rolled or quick oats in a dry mixer jar for 30 to 60 seconds until fine. About 2¼ cups of oats gives 2 cups of flour, since grinding adds air.
Inspired by Savor The Spoonful. Method, notes and photograph by the Ministry of Oats.
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