These Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles are like having carrot cake for breakfast! These simple, nutritious waffles are made with oats, freshly grated carrots, and warm spices and whip up in a blender. Serve them as is with a drizzle of maple syrup or whip up some Maple Cream Cheese Frosting for a decadent breakfast that’s sure to satisfy.
If you are like me, a slice of carrot cake slathered with cream cheese frosting is impossible to resist. These Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles satisfy that craving for delicious cake but in the form a healthy breakfast. This way, you really can eat cake for breakfast. Sort of.
Loaded with oats, grated carrots, and warm spices like cinnamon, ginger, and allspice, these carrot cake waffles taste like dessert, but without all the butter and sugar. Instead, a little coconut oil and maple syrup make these lightly sweetened waffles something you can feel good about starting your day with.
I love serving these up with a dollop of maple cream cheese frosting, which really makes you feel like your eating carrot cake for breakfast, but you could opt for a drizzle of maple syrup instead.
Why we love this recipe
- It’s delicious! These waffles have the flavors of a carrot cake thanks to lots of grated carrot and warm spices like cinnamon, ginger, and allspice.
- This recipe is healthier since its comprised of oats, carrots, and just a little maple syrup and coconut oil.
- You can whip them up in a blender!
- Topping these with a maple cream cheese frosting makes them taste decadent.
- This batter can be used to make pancakes as well.
- They are kid-approved. My daughter loves these!
Ingredients in Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles
- Oats: If required for a gluten-free diet, ensure they are certified gluten-free. You can use rolled oats or quick cooking oats.
- Milk: of choice. Dairy milks like whole milk, 2% milk, or even a skim milk can be used. You can also use a non-dairy milk to make this recipe dairy-free. Almond milk, oat milk, coconut milk, or similar plant-based milks work well.
- Coconut oil or butter. Melted coconut oil or butter can be use. For a dairy-free option, coconut oil is great, but butter does add more flavor.
- Eggs
- Maple syrup: Just a bit is added to the batter for a touch of sweetness.
- Vanilla extract: for flavor.
- Leavener: baking powder.
- Warm spices: ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground all spice.
- Salt: just a little to enhance flavor.
- Carrots: grated. This is carrot cake waffles, after all.
- Optional mix-ins: chopped walnuts or pecans, raisins.
- Optional Maple Cream Cheese Topping: Cream cheese, maple syrup, and vanilla extract.
**Note: Ingredient quantities and full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.**
How to Make Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles
- Blend the batter. Add all of the waffle ingredients to a blender except for the carrots and optional mix-ins, and blend until a smooth batter forms.
- Stir in the carrot. Stir in the grated carrots and any optional mix-ins, if using. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes.
- Cook the waffles. Heat a griddle or pan at medium heat and add a bit of butter to prevent sticking. Pour about 1/3 cup-1/2 cup of batter for each pancake. Cook for a couple of minutes on one side until bubbles begin to form and then flip the pancakes and cook for another couple of minutes.
- Make the optional cream cheese frosting, if desired. Place the cream cheese in a bowl and use a hand mixer to beat the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Add the vanilla and the maple syrup, a tablespoon at a time and continue beating the frosting until incorporated. If you wish to thin out the frosting, add milk a little at a time until you reach your desired consistency. Scoop a dollop of frosting on top of waffles while they are still warm and serve.
Variations and Substitutions
- Dairy-free waffles. The recipe is already written to account for a dairy-free waffle by simply opting for a nondairy milk and using the coconut oil option listed in the recipe card.
- Gluten-free waffles. Since this recipe is made with oats and does not include any flours, they are already pretty easy to make gluten-free. The only thing to be mindful of is to ensure that the oats you use are certified gluten-free as well as the baking powder you use.
- Adding pineapple. If you love pineapple in your carrot cake, you can certainly bring on the same flavor into these waffles. To do this, I recommend using about 1/4 cup of crushed pineapple. To account for this added moisture, I would reduce the milk in the recipe by the same amount.
- Add nuts. I’ve listed pecans and walnuts as optional mix-ins because I love the added crunch of them but know that many may opt to keep these nut-free. If you love nuts, these are two great options but you can also use other nuts likes slivered almonds. Nuts can also be served as an optional topping if you wish to give people the option to include them or not.
Storing leftover waffles
Once cooled, leftovers can be placed in an airtight container and stored in the fridge for a couple of days.
You can reheat the waffles in a toaster, a toaster oven, in a pan, or even pop them in the oven to heat through.
Freezing
When I make waffles and pancakes, I often double my recipe just to have leftovers to freeze. They’re great to have on hand for busy mornings.
To freeze, place the cooled waffles in a freezer bag, using a piece of parchment to separate layers. This will prevent them from sticking so you can easily take out one at a time, as needed. Alternatively, you can individually wrap each waffle in plastic wrap. Waffles can be frozen for a few months.
Can you make this recipe as pancakes instead?
Yes, you can easily make this waffle batter into pancakes instead. This is perfect for those that don’t have a waffle iron.
We love topping these delicious carrot cake waffles with a pat of butter (Cinnamon Butter is especially good on these) and maple syrup or going all out with the maple cream cheese frosting included in the recipe card. They are so easy to whip up for weekend breakfasts or even a special brunch like Easter brunch. I hope you enjoy these as much as we do!
You may also like these pancake and waffle recipes:
Healthy Oat Waffles (Gluten-Free)
Healthy Sweet Potato Waffles
Pumpkin Spice Waffles
Healthy Dark Chocolate Waffles
Healthy Banana Nut Waffles
Savory Zucchini Waffles
Healthy Pumpkin Pancakes
Chocolate Orange Pancakes
Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes Recipe
Sheet Pan Pancakes
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Strawberry Syrup
Chocolate Chip Ricotta Pancakes
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Healthy Carrot Cake Waffles
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups oats gluten-free, if required
- 1 cup milk of choice
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil or melted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
- 3/4 cup finely grated carrots
Optional Mix-ins
- 1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- 1/3 cup raisins
Optional Maple Cream Cheese Topping
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Add all of the waffle ingredients to a blender except for the carrots and optional mix-ins, and blend until a smooth batter forms.
- Stir in the grated carrots and any optional mix-ins, if using. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes.
- Heat waffle iron on medium heat and pour batter into the center of the iron (as much batter as your waffle iron requires). [Note: Read your waffle maker manual to see the recommendations for batter quantity and cook times.] Close lid and cook for approximately 5 minutes or as long as your waffle maker requires.
Optional Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
- Place the cream cheese in a bowl and use a hand mixer to beat the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla and the maple syrup, a tablespoon at a time and continue beating the frosting until incorporated. If you wish to thin out the frosting, add milk a little at a time until you reach your desired consistency.
- Scoop a dollop of frosting on top of waffles while they are still warm and serve.
Notes
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
