Soft and fluffy homemade carrot cake waffles filled with shredded carrots, warm spices, and crunchy nuts. A non-traditional way to get your waffle fix with a lighter take on the ingredient list.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a medium size bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt, eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and gently fold until just combined. Add the shredded carrots and nuts and fold again until everything is incorporated.
Lightly spray waffle iron with non-stick spray3, then pour ½ to ¾ cup of batter4 evenly into the waffle iron. Cook waffle according to waffle iron instructions.
Remove waffle from waffle iron using two forks or a large flat spatula, add desired toppings5 (I suggest homemade whipped cream or cream cheese frosting) and serve warm. Store leftovers in the refrigerator, up to 3 days. Warm in the microwave or toast in a toaster oven. Waffles freeze well, up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator overnight then warm as desired.
Notes
Full fat dairy: it is imperative you use full fat yogurt here since there is not much fat in the batter. If you are using dairy alternatives for these waffles, be forewarned lower fat will bring less moisture to the waffles.
Shredded carrot: I like to use a food processor to shred my carrots, then replace the shredder with the blade and pulse a few times to turn some of the shreds into finely processed carrots. This brings the moisture and soft texture to the waffles.
Non-stick spray: though most waffle irons are already non-stick, I find this recipe works better with a little bit of spray since it yields a moist waffle and there is not much fat in the batter.
Batter: this measurement is based on the 7 inch waffle iron I used. Check your specific waffle iron's instruction manual for suggested amount of batter.
Cooked waffles: if you want to crunch up the waffles, I suggest popping them in a toaster oven or under the broiler in the oven for a few minutes.
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.