Coffee Waffles

One more idea for something to make for Mom on Mother’s Day. Yes, you read that right. Coffee waffles. Waffles with coffee already inside them. They are quite wonderful actually. Great for breakfast, which is obvious, I suppose. These waffles also make a fun base for desserts. I am serving them with honey ice cream as a dessert.

I wanted to add coffee flavor to waffles, but I knew even strong coffee would water down the batter too much. The only solution was to use either instant coffee or espresso powder. I knew I could get enough coffee flavor into them, without affecting the batter in a negative way.

It worked!! Plenty of coffee flavor and a nice, crispy waffle. I was thinking it might be fun to add cinnamon to the next batch. I got 10 rectangular waffles out of the recipe. Froze most of them for later.

You can serve them topped with butter, syrup, whipped cream or powdered sugar.

So here is the recipe. Hope you give them a try.

Coffee Waffles

1¾ c. flour

¼ c. brown sugar

1½ t. baking powder

½ t. salt

1½ c. half and half or milk

1 egg, beaten

1/3 c. oil

1 T. instant coffee or espresso powder   

1 T. vanilla

Non-stick spray or oil for coating the waffle iron

In medium mixing bowl, mix dry ingredients together and set aside. In a separate bowl, combine the half and half with the remaining ingredients. The dry coffee granules will not dissolve right away. You can let the wet ingredients sit a few minutes and whisk again, if you like. While they are just sitting there, you can heat up the waffle iron. Coat the waffle iron with a non-stick cooking spray or brush with a little oil. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until mixed together. Don’t get crazy over mixing. That will give you tough waffles, and nobody wants that. Just stir until you don’t see any dry bits in the mix. I like to use a rubber scraper to get to the bottom of the bowl. Ladle some batter into the waffle iron and cook until golden brown. When the steam stops coming out of the waffle iron, or lessens a lot, it is usually good indicator that your waffles are done. Yield depends on the size of your waffle iron. I got 10 waffles, about 4×5 inches.  

Note: The instant coffee breaks down more when mixed with the dry ingredients. Espresso powder will dissolve quickly, but if you use instant coffee like I did, expect a few “flecks” of coffee in the batter. I kind of liked the way it looked.