Amazing Whole Wheat Sourdough Waffles Recipe
Light and fluffy sourdough waffles are easy to make and blow away regular waffles with their flavor. It’s a great way to use up your starter, too.
One of my favorite things to make with the sourdough starter I keep alive by storing in the refrigerator is sourdough waffles. When I first started out growing and using sourdough starter, I had a pretty rough start to making artisan bread, which got a little better here and then achieved sourdough artisan bread perfection here (it’s such a good recipe!).
What that taught me was that sourdough starter takes time to grow strong enough to raise a loaf of bread. Okay, so I learned to wait – but what to do with all the starter that’s growing in the meantime? The best thing I’ve found is to use it in foods that don’t need a lot of rise – things like crackers and english muffins (both so yummy) – not just throw it out. I also tried a blackberry muffin recipe that was…ummm…let’s just say “hearty.”
And then I made Belgian sourdough waffles with the starter.
Oh my goodness, how I LOVE them! I cannot tell you how much. And guess what? They are 100% whole wheat, yet light and airy with crispy edges.
Um…yeah, can you tell I’m still a little smitten?
What’s weird about that is I’m not a big waffle/pancake fan normally. But these sourdough waffles were crisper than any others I’ve tried (and I always make yeast Belgian waffles when I do make them), and had a wonderful flavor that is hard to describe. Yes, a little sourdough, but not too much. In fact, I was the only one of our family that said I could taste the sourdough.
Sourdough Waffles Recipe
Can I just tell you what a thrill it is seeing all this action in sourdough starter I grew myself? It’s beyond cool and I just do a little happy dance when I see all those bubbles working after sitting out overnight.
It’s sorta the same feeling I get when I see the first seeds sprouting or when I serve a meal made only with our garden produce. There’s the feeling of accomplishment and amazement, for sure, but also that I used something in nature (in this case, wild yeast) to create food and feed my family.
Little miracles, right?
While I show the waffles with strawberries and whipped cream (love), they are equally good with traditional maple syrup. Our family likes to smear peanut butter on first and then drizzle it with real maple syrup – it’s a great flavor combo that ups the protein count, too.
How do you like your waffles?
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Amazing Sourdough Waffles Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup sourdough starter
- 2 cups warm water just tap-water warm
- 3 cups whole wheat flour
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup melted butter you can use oil, but butter or ghee tastes better
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon water
- For serving: fruit whipped cream, maple syrup, etc.
Instructions
- The night before you want to make the waffles, combine first three ingredients in a large bowl and beat until smooth. Cover and let stand overnight at room temperature.
- In the morning add the eggs, oil, honey, and salt. Stir the baking soda in the tablespoon of warm water, stir quickly and then pour right into the batter.
- Mix together gently and let stand about 15 minutes while the waffle iron heats up. Cook until done, lightly greasing the iron after each waffle.
Notes
Nutrition
Other Sourdough Recipes You May Like:
Sourdough Whole Wheat Crackers
Easy Homemade Whole Wheat Sourdough English Muffins
Just make the waffles! So good. My picky 5 year old declared them the best waffles ever! And he normally will not touch whole wheat waffles. My question is that I have a very large family and these do not go far. Does the recipe double or even triple well?
Yay – that’s great, Ella! I’ve doubled them with success before, but not tripled – you’re on your own there. 😉
Do you have any insights as to why the baking soda in every sourdough recipe for waffles, but not a quick-acting yeast recipe? thanks!
I don’t know – I always thought it was to help the rise and texture and they are a quick bread, so to speak. But I do use a yeast-based recipe for regular waffles (non-sourdough), so now you’ve got me thinking…
Well, I’m about to experiment. This a.m.s batch was a whole wheat starter, but King Arthur unbleached white, organic. Today I mixed a new batch with 1 part whole wheat, 2 parts KA white. (I’m halving your recipe… it’s just me.) The whole wheat (Bob’s Red Mill) is because it tends to trigger the yeast better. Tomorrow morning, I’m making a batch without any baking soda at all. I’ll update here. BTW, I’m in PNW as well. So happy the rains have started!
Oh, thank you – I will be curious to know the outcome! And yes – it was nice that the rain was able to put out much of the major fires. I think this weekend’s forecasted rain may put out the smolders that are left!
I did experiment today. My recipe from another site is very similar. Obviously, we need a “fed” starter that has been allowed to fluff up overnight. But I did omit the baking soda completely.When I folded in the “morning” ingredients, I was careful to not deflate the risen starter. The waffles were as fluffy as they were with the soda. That was what I was hoping for!
Now on to sourdough bread!!! Thanks for the insights and encouragement.
This is great to know, Meryl – thank you!
These waffles are very good; I’ve made them numerous times. They aren’t, however, 100% whole wheat. The starter would have to be whole wheat in order for them to be 100% whole wheat. I recommend that you try them – they are truly delicious.
I’m so glad you like these, Sandie – they are so good and a great way to use up starter. My starter has always been made with whole wheat, so these are 100% whole wheat when I make them.
Thanks for responding. I use regular sourdough starter so mine aren’t 100%, but am working on a whole wheat starter. These are sooooo good!