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Belgian Waffles

February 15, 2024

Buttery, rich and perfectly golden-crisp, these restaurant-perfect Belgian waffles are what lazy brunch dreams are made of!

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a stack of homemade Belgian waffles on a plate topped with butter and having warm syrup poured over them
Photography by Gayle McLeod

Nothin’ But A Big, Buttery, Classic Belgian Waffle Recipe

All your waffle-iest dreams—and those of your family—are about to come true! This easy Belgian waffle batter comes together quickly and a stack of big, golden-brown, richly flavored waffles will be towering in front of you in no time. Stock up on your favorite toppings and get the coffee maker going. Put someone on egg duty—we’ll take ours soft-scrambled—and have someone else squeeze oranges for fresh juice. This Belgian waffle recipe is so good that these waffles deserve to star in a full-on brunch party, perhaps with their friend French toast!

flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, eggs, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla in bowls for making Belgian waffles

What Is The Difference Between A Belgian Waffle and A Regular Waffle?

Despite the fact that your go-to favorite brunch restaurant has been calling your go-to favorite brunch item a Belgian waffle for as long as you can remember, there’s nothing particularly unique or specific that makes a waffle a “Belgian” waffle. Belgian waffles are just, well, waffles! They’re just waffles that are bigger than frozen waffles, and usually topped with butter or syrup or other sweet things. So why do we call some waffles Belgian waffles? Thankfully, to clear thighs up, Kimberly Lord-Stewart touches on the evolution of the term in the “Waffles” entry in the The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America. She writes:

“At the 1964 New York World's Fair in Flushing, Queens, Maurice Vermersch sold “Brussels” waffles, using his wife's recipe of thick yeast waffles topped with strawberries and whipped cream. The name changed to Belgian waffles when Vermersch realized that Americans didn't know where Brussels was located.”

So there you have it! Call ‘em Belgian waffles, or just call them awesome waffles or call them awesome Belgian waffles—whatever you call them, you can feel confident that they’re delicious.

flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt being whisked together in a glass bowl for Belgian waffle mix
egg whites being whisked in a glass bowl with electric beaters until white peaks are formed
milk and oil in a boil next to small bowls of egg yolks and vanilla with a whisk sitting beside them on the counter
egg yolk and milk mixture being poured into a bowl of flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt

Everything You’ll Need to Make Our Easy Belgian Waffle Recipe

Nothing too fancy here! Our Belgian waffle recipe is classic and simple—the ingredients are all going to be super familiar. Rather than tricky ingredients, little fluffiness trick—whipping the egg whites and then gently folding them into the batter—is the key to making the very best Belgian waffle you’ve ever tasted. Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this waffle recipe:

  • Flour

  • Sugar

  • Baking powder

  • Sea salt

  • Eggs

  • Whole milk

  • Vegetable oil

  • Vanilla extract

  • Cornstarch! This one is totally optional—it makes the waffles extra crisp. But if you don’t have it, skip it!

whipped egg whites being stirred into waffle batter to make homemade Belgian waffles
waffle batter being ladled into a hot waffle iron

What’s The Best Belgian Waffle Maker?

The best waffle maker is whatever you’ve got on hand! Truly, you don’t need to go out and spend extra cash—whatever waffle iron you have will probably work. That said, if you don’t already have one (but want one!) all the big, trusty kitchen brands make waffle irons. Here are four waffle irons at a few various price points that would be terrific additions to your kitchen:

an open waffle iron with a cooked waffle inside
homemade golden brown belgian waffles being piled on a baking sheet to keep warm

How to Make Belgian Waffles

The best Belgian waffles—yes, better than your favorite restaurant serves!—are just minutes away. A little elbow grease, a good waffle iron, and plenty of syrup and butter on hand—let’s get cooking! Here’s how to make these easy Belgian waffles:

  1. Combine the dry ingredients—flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

  2. Whip the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.

  3. Whisk the wet ingredients—the egg yolks, milk, oil, and vanilla.

  4. Make the batter by combining the wet ingredients and the dry.

  5. Gently—gently!!—fold the whipped egg whites into the batter. This is the key to truly great waffles! The air in the egg whites will help the waffles be fluffy and light and just-so.

  6. Make the waffles! Pour the batter into your warmed waffle iron, and let that glorious kitchen gadget do the rest.

4 homemade Belgian waffles on a plate with a pad of butter and syrup on each next to a knife and fork

Tools You’ll Need

More Classic Brunch Recipes to Try!

4 homemade Belgian waffles on a plate with a pad of butter and syrup on each next to a knife and fork
A homemade Belgian waffle on a plate with a pad of butter and syrup on top with one bite cut off with a fork

Pass the Syrup!

Or butter. Or strawberries and powdered sugar! Whatever you love to pile on top of a homemade Belgian waffle, we hope you adore this basic waffle recipe—may it be the foundation of many happy lazy mornings! When you try it, we’d love to hear about it! Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!

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Belgian Waffles

  • Serves:  6
  • Prep Time:  5 min
  • Cook Time:  10 min
  • Calories:  308

Ingredients

  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup cornstarch (optional, see note)
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 large eggs, separated
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Method

  1. Preheat the waffle iron and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.

  3. In a medium bowl, use a whisk or an electric mixer to whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form.

  4. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, milk, oil, and vanilla until smooth.

  5. Add the yolk mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until fully combined. Use a rubber spatula to carefully fold the egg whites into the batter until just combined.

  6. Pour ½ to1 cup of the batter into the waffle iron and cook until the waffle is golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes. As the waffles are finished, you may hold them on a baking sheet in a 300°F oven until ready to serve.

Note: Adding cornstarch to the waffle batter ensures that the edges of your waffle get nice and crispy, but even if you leave it out, you’ll still have delicious (if slightly-less crispy-edged) waffles!

Nutrition Info

  • Per Serving
  • Amount
  • Calories 308
  • Protein 11 g
  • Carbohydrates 49 g
  • Total Fat 6 g
  • Dietary Fiber 1 g
  • Cholesterol 70 mg
  • sodium 580 mg
  • Total Sugars 19 g

Belgian Waffles

Questions & Reviews

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  • Carolyn

    How far in advance can you make the waffle recipe ?

    it will stay good up to 2 days in the refrigerator. Hope you enjoy!

  • Karly

    Can you store the batter for a few days? Or is it better to make them all and freeze the waffles already cooked?

    It should be good or 2 days, probably wouldn't be good longer than that. Hope you enjoy Karly!

  • Christina

    These are delish...crispy as promised and just wonderful. We are mostly dairy- free in our house and this recipe made it easy to swap for almond milk in place of regular milk with no compromise to flavor in my opinion. Thumbs up from 3 kiddos and a hubby. Thank you

    Thanks Christina, we are so glad you loved it and that you could make it work with almond work!

  • Jenn

    These are the best waffles! Don't skip the cornstarch, the crispy edge it added was amazing! My new go-to waffle recipe! Sorry box mixes.

    Thanks! So glad you love them Jenn!