Apple Cider Pecan Vegan Waffles Recipe
This vegan waffle recipe is especially great for the fall or early winter, and for desserts near holidays including Halloween and Thanksgiving. A good friend grew up near a farm that makes delicious apple cider donuts, and sometimes laments that no vegan version of them is available locally. These waffles, however, revived some of her childhood memories. Perhaps they'll do the same for you.
Ingredients
- 1/3 C raw pecans finely chopped
- 1 C whole wheat flour
- 1 C all-purpose wheat flour
- 2 t baking powder
- 1 t baking soda
- 1 t salt
- 1/2 t cinnamon
- 1/2 t xanthan gum powder
- 1/4 t nutmeg
- 1/2 C + 2 T soymilk
- 1 1/2 C apple cider
- 3/4 C sugar
- 1/2 C canola oil
- 1 t vanilla
Instructions
- Chop the pecans and set them aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, xanthan gum, and nutmeg.
- In a small bowl, mix the soymilk, apple cider, sugar, canola oil, and vanilla.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix just until the dry ingredients are saturated. Fold in the chopped pecans.
- Preheat the waffle iron for 3 to 5 minutes, according to the manufacturer's directions.
- Spray both grids of the waffle iron generously with oil. This is important even with “no stick” irons.
- Pour or ladle the batter into the center of the iron, covering no more than two-thirds of the iron’s surface for the first waffle. Adjust the amount as needed for subsequent waffles.
- Bake each waffle for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it reaches the desired level of brownness and can be easily removed.
- Drizzle with hot maple syrup or sprinkle with additional cinnamon and sugar.
I had a craving for cider donuts, so I searched and found this recipe. These waffles are delicious! I’m not a vegan, so I made a few changes: used buttermilk instead of soymilk and added an egg. Also used walnuts instead of pecans. You do have to grease the waffle iron very well. I would definitely recommend them!
Claudia,
Glad to hear you enjoyed it, and tried a little variation with the walnuts. Apples and walnuts are certainly a tried and true combination. Liquid substitutions are pretty flexible in waffle recipes, a main difference here being that the buttermilk will give it more fat and cholesterol; and as odd as it may seem, the recipes here do work without egg (unless, again, someone really wants the cholesterol). Happy waffling!
These might not be vegan if the sugar isn’t vegan. If you’re using cane sugar (in the US anyways), I’d recommend organic, since most organic cane sugar hasn’t been filtered with bone char.
Adam,
Thanks for pointing this out – very good point that many people aren’t aware of. We generally use raw sugar from the bulk section of our local Co-op, which is another option.
Dave
What purpose does the xanthan gum provide? It is not an ingredient I keep and don’t know what its function is in cooking. These do sound tasty and wonder how I can replace the gum. Thank you.
Chris,
Xanthan gum provides a bit of additional binding where necessary. It’s used a great deal in gluten-free baking. While wheat-based waffles are normally fine on their own, I find that those that include certain liquids–among them, cider–and add-ins need an added binder to help hold them together. Another binder is ground flaxseed whisked with water. The seed can be bought already ground, ground in a coffee grinder, or blended with the water in a blender until the seeds are ground and the mixture is viscous. This *sometimes* works in lieu of xanthan gum; I say sometimes because each waffle’s properties vary slightly. I haven’t had a chance to try it with this particular recipe, but if you’re willing to experiment, start by replacing the xanthan gum with a mixture of 2 tablespoons flaxseed and 2 tablespoons of water. If it seems too thick or doesn’t bake properly, try adding another 2 tablespoons of water. The safest route, of course, is to find some xanthan gum–not the cheapest ingredient, but a small package goes a very long way. Also a good thickener for homemade vegan ice cream.
This recipe was terrific! I cut the recipe in half, and it was the perfect amount for a breakfast for two. We had just run out of soy milk, so i used water, ground flax, and a T soy butter instead. It worked great! I also added cardimom and all spice. Thanks for the post! Love.
Erin,
Glad to hear, and those apple pie-like spices sound like some tasty additions as well.
Dave