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Waffles are one of the best ways to use up your excess starter and add a little love into breakfast or brunch. I actually prefer this sourdough waffle recipe to our Amish Friendship Bread sourdough pancake recipe, but I know not everyone has a waffle iron.
Because of the sugar content in the starter, these waffles crisp up beautifully. Okay, the butter helps, but still. They’re a cross between breakfast and dessert, and work well with sweet or savory options.
Don’t have a waffle maker? Borrow one from a friend — everyone knows at least one person with a waffle maker that’s getting dusty in a kitchen cupboard! Another solution that’s become popular in the Friendship Bread Kitchen has been the single mini waffle makers. They don’t take up much space, cost less than $10, and they’re low maintenance in a way that most kitchen appliances are not. Bite the bullet and get one, so you can keep a batch of waffle batter in the fridge and make them throughout the weekend without much fuss.
I have to say I’m becoming quite a fan of pancake and waffle breakfast sandwiches. Save leftover waffles and toast them up the next day with scrambled eggs and a few slices of bacon in between.
You could also come up with a dessert version: whipped cream and fresh fruit or compote, all topped with a sprinkling of confectioners’ sugar.
I’ve frozen leftover waffles and waited for a lazy Sunday morning where I didn’t want to do anything other than relax, grab a cup of coffee, and load up on a stack of waffles drizzled with maple syrup and fresh fruit.
Some quick waffle tips:
- This is best used with discard, or excess starter that is healthy but flat (not active or bubbly).
- Do not overmix the batter — a few lumps are okay.
- If you like your waffles crispy, reduce flour to ¾ cup and add ¼ cup cornstarch.
- Spray your waffle iron with cooking oil to avoid sticking.
- If you plan to serve the waffles all at one time, heat the oven to to 200 °F (or 93 °C) and place the finished waffles directly on the oven rack until ready to serve.
- 1 cup flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup oil
- 2 cups Amish Friendship Bread starter
- ½ cup milk plus ¼ cup if needed
- 1 egg
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Preheat waffle iron.
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Combine flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a large mixing bowl.
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In a smaller bowl, combine oil, Amish Friendship Bread starter, milk, and egg.
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Add ingredients of smaller bowl to the ingredients of larger bowl and mix on medium speed.
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Spray waffle iron with non-stick cooking spray and pour batter onto hot waffle iron. Cook until golden brown.
This recipe is courtesy Suzy at Kitchen Bouquet.
Make the waffle batter up to one day in advance and whisk well before using. Top hot waffles with 1 cup fresh or thawed blueberries, strawberries, or bananas for an extra treat.
From Paula Altenbach: “To avoid an overly sweet waffle, I used Amish Friendship batter that had been fed a day earlier and allowed to consume some of the sugars. These came out of the Belgium waffle iron steamy and tender without being overly sweet. We dropped them in a toaster to keep the crowd fed at their own pace.”
>> Have you tried this? Share your best pic with us or leave a comment below and let us know how it worked for you!
I do the same thing except I will add crumbled bacon and pecans in the batter. At times I will even make the batter a bit looser and make pancakes with it. Scrumptious!
Sounds wonderful, Penny!
I made these and added a t. and a half of vanilla flavoring and than blueberries. It tasted very yummy!!
Had these for lunch today!
Wonderful, my family loved them.
I used 1/4 c. oil and 1 tsp vanilla.
Definitly will make these again and again.
i’m loving these recipes so glad i found this site! 🙂
We made these this morning & they were fantastic! You can taste the sugar, so I didn’t use syrup.They would make a great dessert or my daughter said to somehow make crepes with the batter?? We also did the powdered sugar, fresh strawberries, I reduced the oil & used vanilla. My only complaint was that they were limp. Would definitely make them again!
Made these today! Fast, easy, yum!
I made these recently, and although they were delish and sweet, they stuck badly to my waffle iron and were quite limp (the ones that did not stick), so finally I made the rest into pancakes instead.
Ditto for me. I tried this after a “big feed” and though they were wonderfully light and fluffy, not only was it a bit sweet for my taste, but by the 3rd or 4th waffle, they were sticking to my “non-stick” waffle iron–which has NEVER given me a problem with other things I’ve tried in it.
I’m thinking maybe this isn’t a recipe for freshly-fed starters.
Hi Wendy! You’re right — this is a recipe for excess, or discard, starter (starter that’s healthy but not super bubbly or active, and not recently fed). This was a submitted recipe that’s had great success, but I’m going to make a note to tweak the recipe in 2020 and reduce the starter to 1 cup. That will cut back on the amount of sugar which will help with the sticking. Thanks for the feedback!
I’m making these tonight! I’m adding maple extract, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Hoping to freeze them and stop buying waffles at the store!
Great recipe! I used an oat flour/whole wheat flour mixture and added a couple tsp of ground roasted flax seed and blueberries. I will definitely be making these again. 🙂
I made these (a double batch) and refrigerated them to use during the week. I reheated them in the toaster and they are MUCH better than store-bought waffles. I definitely recommend making extra 🙂
These were soggy waffles!, I had to make them into pancakes. Bummer!
Saw Bobby Flay making coconut waffles so I’m thinking of using the waffle recipe & replacing the milk with coconut milk & adding 1/3 cup shredded coconut. I’ll let you know how it all turns out.
Wow, these were incredibly sweet! Two of my kids refused to eat them because they were just too sweet. Any idea how to remedy that?
You could reduce the amount of sugar in your starter, Stacey. Up to half should work fine. Good luck!
My family loved these!!
That’s great, Margaret! Thanks for sharing!
I love yeast waffles and these look so tasty. I almost can’t wait to try them(but I have to).
I want to try this recipe
Does mixing the batter and leaving it overnight in the refrigerator help the batter to not stick to the waffle iron as much?
Don’t try to even check them for doneness until there is no steam coming from the waffles…or they will stick, tear in half, etc.
These waffles are a favorite in my house. I always make a double batch and freeze the extras for quick breakfast…just pop them in the toaster ?
I replace ¼ cup of flour with the cornstarch and add about ½ teaspoon vanilla.
Hi Sally! That’s such a fun idea. If you snap a photo of your Amish Friendship Bread Waffles next time you make them, we’d love to see it! You can submit your photo here.
My family is in love with these waffles. I do a “sponge” the day before, where I take the 2 cups of starter, 1 cup of flour, and ¾ cup of milk in a bowl, mix the ingredients, and let it set until the next day. The results is a beautifully fluffy waffle. It really makes a difference vs just mixing it up the same day.
Hi Lori! Those sound amazing. If you ever snap a picture of your Amish Friendship Bread creations, we’d love to see them. You can upload them here! Happy baking!
Made these today and they were fabulous!!