Gingerbread Waffles

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Albertsons. All opinions are 100% mine.

Homemade Gingerbread Waffles are a holiday favorite! All the baking flavors you love in a crispy, fluffy bite perfect for Christmas morning!

The holidays are upon us and I am SO ready for a nice Christmas with the family. While our celebrations may be a little different this year, that’s no reason we can’t make the most of our time together and share the love.

These gingerbread waffles are a breeze to make. They are loaded with seasonal spices and rich flavors perfect for the holidays. Whip up a batch at home or gift some mix to your friends and neighbors for a breakfast you won’t soon forget!

My favorite way to start our Christmas is with a delicious breakfast. Once the boys open their presents, I lay out our breakfast buffet, and we sit together and talk and eat. It makes my heart happy to be all cozy and have my three favorite guys sitting with me.

While we usually have Christmas over a couple of days to see all our family, it’s nice to have a quiet morning together with comforting food. Since waffles are my family’s favorite, I’m giving them a holiday makeover and making gingerbread waffles this year.

With the holidays in mind, I have to tell you I totally lucked out the other day. I got to spend a virtual girl’s day with Debi Lilly learning how to arrange flowers and get some great holiday tips. Big thanks to Albertsons for setting up our girl time! Debi talked about all kinds of awesome homemade holiday ideas…

• Cinnamon syrup – Gift in a jar along with red wine (or apple cider), whole spices, lemons, and apples for a mulled wine/cider gift basket.
• Homemade granola – Because really, who doesn’t love granola?! Gift a jar or surprise the fam!
• Over the Top dessert bar – grab your favorite ice cream flavors from Safeway and put them out with a smorgasbord of topping options. She went crazy with slices of cheesecake, brownies, ice cream cones, and mini junior mints on her sundae! If you can name it, it was on the dessert table. It’s an indulgent and fun tradition to start with the family, just don’t be afraid to go big!

I also put together the super pretty bouquet your seeing in some of these pictures. The arrangement and vase are from the debi lilly™ line (available exclusively at the Albertsons family of companies) and OMG the options to make everything pretty are endless! My local Safeway had shelves and shelves of vases, glassware, gift baskets, pebbles, ribbon, and flowers to make gifting SO easy.

I know it’s going to sound silly, but total bonus… all the tags pull right off. There’s no sticky residue or partial paper holding on that you need to try and scrape off before walking up to someone’s door with their present. #holidayhotmess

Nope, the tags come right off and the tape doesn’t leave and stickies behind. LOVE THIS!! All the candles come in cute little boxes so you can just grab one and gift it as is or add a quick bow with a spring of pine from the bouquet. I’m learning all the holiday trick people.

I think my favorite thing about the flowers is that you can arrange them however you like.

Want to take a few greens out? Do it.

Not feeling the roses (said no one ever)? Don’t use them.

I buy flowers for our house pretty often they make me happy and bring a little joy to our kitchen. Debi’s tips for arranging totally upped my flower game.

My son even liked the arrangement I put together with the debi lilly design™ Alpine Frost bouquet so much he asked for his own. Good thing there are enough flowers to make a couple of smaller bouquets really easily. So now I have one on our breakfast bar and he has one on his desk. Flowers for everyone!

I got everything I needed for the holidays at my local Safeway, but you can also find debi lilly design and Signature SELECT® products at the Albertsons Companies family of stores, including Albertsons, ACME Markets, Jewel-Osco, Randalls, Shaw’s Supermarket, Star Market, Tom Thumb, and Vons. And if you’re in a hurry (or don’t want to run into the store like me), Safeway also offers Grocery Delivery and DriveUp & Go™ for convenient ways to shop!

Gingerbread Waffle Recipe Ingredients

SPICES: These waffles are ALL about the spices. They have ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, and ground nutmeg for those amazing comforting flavors we all love this time of year! I used the Signature SELECT brand – I love Safeway’s exclusive store brands. They’re just as good and help me save money!

MOLASSES: The must-have gingerbread ingredient. The flavor isn’t overpowering as it can be in some cookie recipes. These waffles are really well balanced. If you don’t like molasses things you can do a little swap out like I did in this gingerbread cake recipe.

LEMON JUICE: I know you’re thinking this is weird, but it has a purpose. The acid from the lemon juice activates the baking soda while the batter rests. This makes the batter have gas bubbles and the waffles get even fluffier inside! Science. If you don’t have lemon juice on hand, white vinegar will work too. It’s like making sour milk for pancakes.

One of my absolute favorite things about this waffle recipe is that it’s easy to gift it as a waffle mix! All that needs to be added is milk, butter, eggs (pretty much everyone has those 3 things on hand), molasses, and lemon juice.

When I’m gifting this homemade waffle mix, I mix up all the dry ingredients and put them into a 1-quart mason jar. I like to add a piece of scrap fabric under the jar rim for decoration. Debi was saying a piece of parchment paper is nice too and give those simple French countryside vibes.

Then I add 1/4 cup of molasses to a 4-ounce mason jar (decorate the lid) and grab a lemon. This way I’m giving everything my giftee may not have at home already for the recipe. If you want to include a gift tag with the wet ingredient and cooking instructions CLICK HERE.

Is waffle mix the same as pancake mix?

Waffles and pancakes are similar at a recipe level, but waffles usually have a bit more sugar and a little more fat than pancakes.

The sugar caramelizes while the waffle cooks for a richer flavor and outside crispiness. The fat helps the waffle get nice and crispy along the edges. Because you’re basically frying the waffle batter on hot, oil-coated metal plates.

You can see the difference right here in my homemade pancakes and Belgian waffle recipes.

How to Make Gingerbread Waffles

1. Start by mixing all the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices together in a large bowl. Set said.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, butter, molasses, eggs, and lemon juice until combined. It’s okay if things look broken and streaky.
3. Pout the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until smooth and combined. You don’t want any lumps.
4. Let the batter rest while you turn on the waffle iron and let it get hot. It should take about 5 minutes or so.
5. Once the iron is hot, give the inside a quick coat of non-stick cooking spray. Spoon 3/4 cup of batter onto the irons and close the lid.
6. Cook until the indicator light turns on, about 5 minutes. If you want your waffle crispier (like my husband) close the lid for another 2-3 minutes.
7. Then remove the waffle to a plate and immediately spread with butter. Repeat with the remaining batter.
8. To finish, sprinkle little powdered sugar on top if you like and drizzle with maple syrup.

If you want to get crazy, top your gingerbread waffles with cinnamon butter instead of regular butter. It’s amazing!

Pro Tip: I like to coat the iron with a little non-stick cooking spray to make sure the waffles release easily and help the edges get extra crispy. You could brush on some vegetable oil or coconut oil with a pastry as well.

How long does it take to cook a waffle in a waffle maker

Cooking time varies between models, but generally, it will take about 5 minutes.

If you like your waffles extract crispy on the edges, like my husband, cook for a couple of extra minutes.

Why don’t my waffles get crispy

If your waffles aren’t crispy, there’s usually too much moisture. You want some moisture so your waffles are fluffy, but not too much that the edges don’t crisp up. It’s a tricky game.

Here are a couple of tips to get crispy waffles:

• Hot Waffle Iron – make sure you preheat your waffle iron on high so it’s nice and hot once your batter is ready.
• Cook Longer – sounds like a no brainer, but that indicator light on the waffle iron is preset. Sometimes the waffles need an extra minute or 3 to get them just how we like ’em.
• Bake in the Oven – I usually keep our waffles warm in the oven while I cook all the batter, but you can bake them too to help crisp them up once all the waffles are done.

This holiday season, be sure to shop Safeway’s exclusive brands from debi lilly design, Signature SELECT, and Lucerne for your holiday décor, gifting, and meals. It’s a one-stop option that makes the holidays a little easier!

You can find beautiful, high-quality seasonal gifting and home decor products as well as holiday baking and cooking essentials exclusively at your local Safeway store. Their exclusive brands offer everything you need to create your favorite holiday recipes, all at a value. For gifting and creating special moments with family and friends this year, you can find great products you are proud to enjoy and share with your family and friends in-store or online at Safeway.

Want more fantastic holiday breakfast recipes?

• Baked French Toast Casserole
• Cheesy Sausage Crescent Roll Breakfast Casserole
• Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
• Southern Sausage Gravy & Buttermilk Biscuits
• My Dad’s Coffee Cake Recipe
• More breakfast recipes