Whole Grain Pumpkin Spice Waffles
Spiced pumpkin waffles that are crispy on the outside & fluffy on the inside. This easy, gluten-free pumpkin waffle recipe's secret ingredient is oat flour!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
It sure looks like fall outside. The trees are lit up in yellow, orange and red and leaves are swirling around in the streets.
This year, like every year, I’m feeling conflicted about the falling leaves—simultaneously sad to see them go, but awe-struck by their blazing glory on the way down. Sweaters, scarves and holiday cheer will be here before we know it.
These gluten-free, oat flour-based pumpkin waffles are a fun breakfast for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas or any weekend from now until then.
These waffles freeze beautifully, too, so you might want to make a big batch and treat yourself to pumpkin waffles are busy weekday mornings. Just pop them in the toaster and you’re good to go!
These whole grain pumpkin waffles are a riff on my basic oat flour waffles recipe. “Basic” doesn’t begin to do them justice—these waffles are crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, light but hearty, and hold me over until lunch time.
In other words, they are basically perfect. I know a few commenters who can back me up on that! It took me a few tries to get the ratio of liquid/fat/pumpkin just right for these waffles, but I finally nailed it with the version below.
Don’t worry if you don’t have oat flour in your pantry. You can easily make your own oat flour in a blender or food processor, like I did for these waffles. See my oat flour tutorial for details.
More Pumpkin Treats to Enjoy
- Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups
- Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pancakes
- Healthy Pumpkin Bread or Healthy Pumpkin Muffins (both offer oat flour options, see gluten-free recipe note)
- Perfect Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
- Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes
View more pumpkin recipes here.
Healthy Pumpkin Spice Waffles
These delicious, gluten-free pumpkin waffles are crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. This pumpkin waffle recipe’s secret ingredient is oat flour! You can easily make your own oat flour at home (check the recipe notes for details). This recipe yields 4 round, 7-inch Belgian waffles. Note: when I say “scant,” I mean just a couple teaspoons shy of the measurement listed.
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups (200 grams) oat flour*
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon allspice or cloves
- 3 large eggs
- Scant ⅔ cup milk of choice (I used plain, unsweetened almond milk)
- Scant ½ cup melted coconut oil or 7 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ½ cup (122 grams) packed pumpkin puree
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Suggested toppings: more maple syrup, nut butter and/or toasted nuts, coconut whipped cream…
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the oat flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and all spice or cloves. Whisk to combine.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the eggs. Then add the milk, coconut oil or butter, pumpkin purée, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Whisk until the mixture is thoroughly blended.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the oat flour mixture. Stir with a big spoon until just combined (the batter will still be a little lumpy). Let the batter rest for 10 minutes so the oat flour has time to soak up some of the moisture. Plug in your waffle iron to preheat now.
- Once 10 minutes is up, give the batter one more, gentle swirl with your spoon. The batter will be pretty thick, but don’t worry! Your waffles will turn out great. Pour batter onto the heated waffle iron, enough to cover the center and most of the central surface area, and close the lid.
- Once the waffle is deeply golden and crisp, transfer it to a cooling rack or baking sheet. Don’t stack your waffles on top of each other or they’ll lose crispness. If desired, keep your waffles warm by placing them in a 200 degree oven until you’re ready to serve. Repeat with remaining batter and serve with desired toppings on the side.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my gluten-free oat waffles recipe.
*Make your own oat flour: Simply blend old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats in a food processor or blender until they are ground into a fine flour. You’ll need to blend about 2 ¼ cups oats to make 2 ¼ cups flour.
*A note on gluten free oats: Be sure to buy certified gluten-free oats or certified gluten-free oat flour to ensure your waffles are gluten free.
Freeze it: These waffles freeze beautifully. Just store in freezer-safe plastic bags and pop individual waffles into the toaster until warmed through.
Recommended equipment: This fancy-pants non-stick waffle maker. I love that it has a large cooking surface, which means I can cook an entire batch of waffles with just two presses.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
At least you have the changing leaves! These pumpkin spice waffles would be the perfect morning treat to look out the window with. Great recipe!
These sound so amazing!
Cole xx
My poor waffle iron broke a few months back, but I think I need a new one just to make these perfect waffles!
Yes, I think so! :)
I’ve been so obsessed with Brussels sprouts this season that I have totally neglected the dear pumpkin. These waffles are calling to me and inspiring me to get with the pumpkin program!
Love that these are made with oat flour! I’ve never owned a waffle iron but right now I’m kind of feeling like I need one. :)
Thanks, Brittany! Maybe ask Santa for a waffle iron this year? ;)
These sound so perfect, Kate! I’ve been meaning to try out your oat-based waffles, and I may have to start with these ones. And your photos are gorgeous, as usual. They always look so clean and happy. :-)
Thanks, Sara! I hope you’ll give these a shot. I’m totally obsessed with oat waffles!
Luckily I have all of these ingredients in my fridge right now. Making immediately!
Perfect! Enjoy!
Kate, I don’t have a waffle iron, do you think these would be freezable as pancakes as well? I’d love to start having something I can just pop in the toaster that isn’t full of junk! Thanks for sharing
Hey Sam! I already have a pancake version of these waffles, and yes, I think they would freeze great! https://sooka.info/2013/pumpkin-oat-pancakes/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
I’ve been searching for a good pumpkin waffle recipe. Can’t wait to try these!
I love that I can make these with ingredients I already have on hand. Might be time to break out the waffle iron that my parents received as a wedding gift 30 years ago that was re-gifted to me!
I love to keep waffles in the freezer to toast on a lazy morning. I’m making these next! Perfect!
Yes. yes. yes. These look to die for! I need them!
Yay,[pumpkin in waffle form! I bet the oat flour makes these super tender and moist.
Absolutely love these!
These look fantastic! Pumpkin waffles are the one pumpkin-themed meal I have not made this season. I think I may need to try out this recipe Saturday morning!
Why why WHY do I not own a waffle maker? I’m about to hop onto Amazon and have it same day delivered so I can make these! They look incredible.
these waffles look to die for! my boyfriend’s mom is GF so I’m definitely going to have to show off a little and make them on her next visit!
Currently craving warmly spiced everything. Yum yum yum!
http://www.youtube.com/sparklesandsuch26
Flipping amazing photos, fried! I want these waffles so bad RIGHT NOW! Also, have fun on your trip this week! Hope it’s awesome :D
Pumpkin in a waffle sounds a-ma-zing! This will be my Sunday morning breakfast.
Kate you always make me want to eat breakfast three times a day! I can’t wait to make these Amy-friendly breakfast treats, and freezing the rest for a quick midweek breakfast is the best idea :)
Oohhhhh, these look so fantastic!! Need to make.
Mmmm, I love pumpkin waffles, they are such a nice change from regular waffles! We love freezing our leftover waffles for quick weekday hot breakfasts too! I always make extras for that reason! These look perfect!
I feel like today we finally hit the “fall weather” cycle. These will be perfect for our saturday morning. :)
These look wonderful for a cozy Fall morning. I’m working on developing recipes for a large gluten-free company’s social marketing and for my blog, so it’s great to see GF versions of classic recipes. Yum and pinned for later.
Those are beautiful! I haven’t broken down and bought a waffle iron yet — I can’t imagine making them often because my other half doesn’t like sweet breakfasts. But they look so good in your recipes!
I’m one of those commenters who can back you up on the oat waffles being the best! My family regularly talks about them. Can’t wait to try these.
Sure doesn’t feel like fall, but these might make my house smell like it!!
This looks perfect! I’ll need a waffle iron now… ;)
I just made pumpkin buckwheat pancakes recently and they were delish. So I have plenty of pumpkin puree still!
I want all of my mornings to start like this, not just the holidays!!
Oh wow this looks absolutely yummy!!
I don’t have a waffle maker yet, but am definitely considering buying one in the not-so-distant future, so this recipe is getting saved!
I can’t think of a better way to start an autumn morning! Simply divine, thank you for sharing
I’ve listed this recipe as one of my top 5 Pumpkin Spiced Latte alternatives
http://teayogame.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/no-thanks-pumpkin-spiced-latte.html
Although I’m back in sunny Australia, I am definitely going to make these fragrant fall waffles. The combination of pumpkin and oat flour sounds absolutely divine… particularly with the spices and glossy maple syrup. Gorgeous pictures Kate (as always!). I can’t wait to see your other wholegrain recipes, I’m needing a nutritional boost after my time away (so lovely but such terrible food in the UK when you don’t have a kitchen!) so I will definitely try some of the recipes very soon xxx
Yesssssss , This is great i can’t wait to try this! I love your foods so much! x
I have tried so many gluten free baking recipies in the last 12 weeks, sometimes they are ok, but many are Not Good. This one is Great- made for my family this morning, Halloween day, perfectly delicious! Thank you! I look forward to finding more gems on your site!
These look SO good!
It looks like not a single one of the commenters prior to 11/2/2014 actually made the waffles before commenting. I just made them. I found that there is not sufficient liquid in the recipe to make waffle batter. You end up with waffle dough.
When I compared this recipe to my other waffle recipes the proportion of liquid was way off–even taking the addition of the wet pumpkin into account. I adjusted the almond milk and, after the first batch, bumped up the baking powder. These waffles were beautiful. I found they took about 25% longer to bake than my “go to” plain ones.
For my taste, I’d like more cinnamon and cloves. Also, next time I make these, and I will make them again since they were a hit with my gang, I will tweak it to include more pumpkin and some orange zest.
Hi! I’m sorry you had trouble with the waffles. I went to great care to make the proportions of liquid just right. Oat flour is different from other flours in that it absorbs a lot of liquid. My batter was thick but it made some awesome waffles. I’m glad you got yours right.
The batter was thick, but mine cooked beautifully with the thick batter. My kids LOVED these. This will be a repeat and they were very filling!
P.S. I also don’t get why so many people would comment without having made them. Maybe they are personal friends?? It was hard getting to the real reviews.
Hi Kate! I regularly make your pancake version of these waffles and love them. I love them so much I wanted to share them and have featured them on my blog: http://www.mylittlelarder.com/5-ways-to-use-up-pumpkin/
Can’t wait to try out the waffles, what a great idea!
What a lovely recipe, I really like waffles :)
Best wishes,
Alice
Kate these look absolutely heavenly! Our challenge here at home is that my 17 year old, 6’4″ wonderful, bottomless-pit of a son is allergic to eggs. Do you have any suggestions as to how this recipe may be modified without eggs if possible?
Thank you! :)
Hi Sue! That’s a really good question and I wish I had a solid answer for you. I think flax eggs might work here. Please let me know if you try the waffles!
I made these with flax eggs because my daughters are allergic to eggs and it worked beautifully!
1 egg = 1tbsp ground flax and 2.5 tbsp water. Let stand 5 min.
Fell in love with your recipe and I shared it on my blog :) You can check it out here: http://goudaforyou.com/2014/11/21/fall-recipes-favorite-food-blogs/
Oh, I want to make all of those recipes now! Thank you for including mine. :)
Oh my goodness! I just made these waffles for dinner and they were incredible! So light and tender and delicious. Your blog is becoming my go-to for breakfast recipes. :-)
These waffles are amazing! The first time I made them, I used all purpose flour. The second time I decided to try the oat flour and I haven’t looked back! They are a favorite in our house…even with my seven and three year old kids!
Thanks, Harmony! I’m so glad you’re all enjoying the waffles! Oat flour waffles are my favorite, for sure.
This seems very good. I test the next week. Thx
Just made these today and they were perfect! I usually am not a fan of very spiced Pumpkin waffles but these were spot on ! Ever since I discovered the Easy oat waffles my breakfasts are something I look forward to! Thank you for all the delicious,simple gluten free options!
Hooray! Thank you, Monisha! So glad you’re enjoying my oat waffles.
Hi there, love the look of this recipe, but I did the calculations per waffle, and came up with a whopping 545 calories per waffle! Did I do the calculations right? I know coconut oil carries a fair amount of calories…. I just worry that one waffle won’t fill me up….
Hey Carly! Waffle recipes need more fat in them than, say, pancakes, in order to achieve those crispy outsides. The calories per waffle will depend on the size of your waffle maker. They are very hearty and filling, though, I’d say!
I was wondering if you have tried substituting the butter with applesause? I in think the apple pumpkin combo sounds good together, but wasn’t sure how it would transfer to waffles.
I haven’t! I like the idea of pumpkin with apple, but waffles need a good amount of fat in them to get nice and crispy, so I’m not sure apple sauce would yield good results. That would probably work well in a pancake recipe, though.
Tried these this morning for breakfast and the whole family loved them!
Our oldest son got celiac disease and we still needed a good waffle recipe. This one is just perfect. Thanky you so much!
Thank you, Bee! Glad you all enjoyed the waffles! I bet you would enjoy my basic oat flour waffle recipe, too.
I made these for my family this morning and we couldn’t have been more pleased. They were absolutely delicious! The batter was thick (as you had warned) but the waffles turned out glorious, crispy on the outside and the flavour was just perfect. They were also very filling, one was enough for me. Thank you!
Hooray! Thanks, Anne!
LOVE these! The whole family did, actually:). Thanks!
Hooray! Thanks, Kiran!