Keto Waffles with the Keto Pancake Mix
These keto waffles are made with our Keto Pancake Mix, eggs, whole milk and melted butter, with the egg whites whisked and folded in so they cook up crisp outside and light inside. Each waffle has 3.9g net carbs. It makes 8 waffles and takes 15 minutes to prepare and about 25 minutes to cook.
Keto waffles should be golden and crisp on the outside, light and tender inside, with deep pockets for cream and berries. These are made with our Keto Pancake Mix, so there's no weighing of flours: you add eggs, milk and melted butter, whisk the egg whites and fold them in. Each waffle has 3.9g net carbs. The method is based on BBC Good Food's Belgian waffles by Sophie Godwin, which adds melted butter to the batter and folds in a stiffly whisked egg white to keep the waffles light and fluffy.
Keto bakers have been working on the crisp part for years. In a popular r/ketorecipes thread, one baker shared "the best keto waffles I have ever made", an almond and coconut flour batter with butter and eggs, and suggested toasting the cooked waffles to dry out the coconut flour and crisp the edges. In another thread, a baker asked how to crisp up keto waffles without mozzarella, and replies suggested leaving out the cream cheese, adding a little xanthan gum, or crisping the cooked waffles in a toaster or air fryer. Our twist: we use the pancake mix with less milk than the pancakes on the pack, add melted butter for a crisp shell and whisk the whites separately, Belgian-style.
Our Keto Pancake Mix is made with almond flour and coconut flour. The pack and product page give the method for pancakes only, so this waffle batter is our adaptation: less milk than the pancakes, plus melted butter and whisked egg whites. The 8-waffle yield and the 4 to 5 minute cook time are our estimates, not kitchen-tested. Cook until the waffle is deep golden and the steam has almost stopped.
Keto Pancake Mix
View productHow keto waffles compare with classic waffles
Classic waffles are made with plain flour and usually a spoonful of caster sugar. BBC Good Food's Belgian waffles use 220g plain flour and 1 tbsp caster sugar, and its nutrition panel gives 51g carbs a serving. These keto waffles use the Keto Pancake Mix, which is based on almond and coconut flour and sweetened with erythritol and stevia. Erythritol counts as carbohydrate on a UK label, but it's all polyols, so each waffle has 7.8g carbohydrate and 3.9g net carbs.
| Food | Carbs | Net carbs |
|---|---|---|
| Our keto waffle, 1 waffle | 7.8g | 3.9g |
| Belgian waffles, 1 of 4 servings (BBC Good Food) | 51g | 51g |
| Waffles, homemade, 100g | 43.0g | 43.0g |
The BBC Good Food figure is from the recipe's nutrition information, for a quarter of its batter. The homemade waffle figure is UK CoFID 2021 data for "Waffles, homemade" (11-1130), per 100g. Our figure is for 1 waffle (1/8 of the batter). Only ours contains polyols, so for the others net carbs are the same as carbohydrate.
They won't be identical to a wheat flour waffle. The crumb is a little denser and more moist, because almond and coconut flour don't build a stretchy structure the way wheat flour does, and the whisked whites do most of the lifting. The outside still crisps up well in a hot waffle maker. If you'd rather make a cheese-based waffle, our keto fudge chocolate chaffle recipe is a different dish, made with egg and cheese rather than a mix.
Tips for the best keto waffles
- Heat the waffle maker fully. Let it heat until the light says it's ready before the first waffle goes in. A cool plate gives a pale, soft waffle that sticks.
- Grease the plates every time. One reviewer on our product page found the batter stuck a little in a mini waffle maker. A light brush of butter or oil before each waffle helps it release cleanly.
- Let the batter stand. Coconut flour soaks up liquid, so the batter thickens over the first few minutes. Give it 5 minutes before you fold in the whites, then add a splash more milk only if it's too stiff to spoon.
- Fold, don't stir. The whisked whites are what make the inside light, as in BBC Good Food's Belgian waffles. Fold them in gently with a metal spoon and cook the batter straight away.
- Wait for the steam to stop. Steam means there's still water in the waffle. When it has almost stopped, the outside has dried and set, and the waffle will lift out crisp.
- Don't stack hot waffles. Stacked waffles trap steam and go soft. Keep them in a single layer on a wire rack in a low oven until they're all cooked.
The heat tips come from the replies in an r/ketorecipes thread on cheese waffles that weren't crisp, where bakers recommended the highest setting and a longer cook.
Keto Waffles with the Keto Pancake Mix
- Prep time15 min
- Cook time25 min
- Total time40 min
- Makes8 waffles
- Net carbs3.9g a waffle
Ingredients
- 240g Keto Pancake Mix (1 bag)
- 3 medium eggs, separated
- 250ml whole milk
- 50g unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- A little extra butter or oil, for greasing
You will also need a waffle maker, a large bowl, a jug, a whisk or electric hand mixer, a pastry brush and a wire rack. The cook time is for a two-waffle machine; a single-waffle machine will take longer.
Allergens: contains eggs, milk (milk, butter and whey protein in the mix) and nuts (almonds). See the allergen notes under Nutrition.
Method
- Get ready. Heat your waffle maker on a medium-high setting. Heat the oven to 100°C (80°C fan), gas ¼, and put a wire rack on a baking tray inside to keep the cooked waffles warm.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a jug, whisk the 3 egg yolks with the 250ml milk, the 50g melted butter and the vanilla, if you're using it.
- Make the batter. Tip the 240g Keto Pancake Mix into a large bowl. Gradually pour in the milk mixture, stirring well, until you have a smooth, thick batter. If it's too thick to spoon, stir in a splash more milk. Leave it to stand for 5 minutes.
- Fold in the egg whites. In a clean, grease-free bowl, whisk the 3 egg whites to stiff peaks. Fold them into the batter in two goes with a large metal spoon, keeping in as much air as you can.
- Cook the waffles. Brush the hot plates with a little butter or oil. Spoon in about an eighth of the batter (roughly 85g) for each waffle and spread it towards the edges. Close the lid and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until deep golden and the steam has almost stopped. Don't open the lid early.
- Keep them warm. Lift each waffle onto the rack in the oven, in a single layer. Don't stack them, or the steam will soften them. Grease the plates again and repeat until you have 8 waffles.
- Serve. Serve the waffles warm with your favourite toppings, such as whipped cream and fresh berries.
Ways to serve keto waffles
- Berries and cream: top with whipped double cream and a handful of raspberries and blueberries.
- Lemon: spread with a spoonful of our keto lemon curd and add a little thick Greek yoghurt.
- As a pudding: serve a warm waffle with a spoonful of our keto chocolate mousse or a scoop of keto ice cream.
- Savoury brunch: leave out the vanilla and serve with crisp streaky bacon and a fried egg.
Adding toppings or extras will change the nutrition figures, so the table below is for the waffles as written.
Ways to vary keto waffles
- Cinnamon: whisk 1 tsp ground cinnamon into the milk mixture with the vanilla.
- Cheese and chive: leave out the vanilla and fold 40g grated Cheddar and 1 tbsp chopped chives into the batter, an idea from BBC Good Food's cheese and herb waffles.
- Pancakes instead: follow the pack, with the whole bag, 3 eggs and 300ml milk for 15 pancakes, each about 4 inches across. Our guide to crêpes and pancakes explains how the styles differ.
Storage and freezing
- Keeping: let any leftover waffles cool on a wire rack, then cover them and put them in the fridge within 1 to 2 hours. We suggest eating them within 2 days, following the Food Standards Agency's leftover advice. Reheat them in a toaster until steaming hot all the way through, which also crisps them up again. Reheat leftovers only once.
- Freezing: freeze cooled waffles in a freezer bag with baking paper between each one. We suggest using them within 1 month for the best texture. Reheat them from frozen in a toaster, or in the oven at 180°C (160°C fan), gas 4, for 8 to 10 minutes, until steaming hot all the way through. Reheat leftovers only once.
- Batter: cook it straight away. The whisked whites lose their air if the batter stands for long.
The fridge times follow the Food Standards Agency's guidance on how to chill, freeze and defrost food safely.
Nutrition
Per waffle (1/8 of the batter):
| Nutrient | Per waffle |
|---|---|
| Energy | 234 kcal |
| Fat | 18.8g |
| of which saturates | 5.8g |
| Carbohydrate | 7.8g |
| of which sugars | 3.0g |
| of which polyols | 3.9g |
| Net carbs | 3.9g |
| Fibre | 2.5g |
| Protein | 11.0g |
| Salt | 0.62g |
Net carbs are carbohydrate minus polyols. On UK labels, fibre is already listed separately from carbohydrate, so it isn't subtracted again. Our guide to polyols explains why erythritol counts as carbohydrate. Figures are calculated from the Keto Pancake Mix pack (per 100g dry mix: 459 kcal, 36g fat, 21g carbohydrate, of which 4.9g sugars and 13g polyols, 8.3g fibre, 25g protein, 1.7g salt) and UK (McCance and Widdowson's CoFID) data for eggs (12-937, 50g each without shell), whole milk (12-596) and unsalted butter (17-661). They are for the whole batch divided into 8, and don't include the optional vanilla or the butter used for greasing. Energy is calculated from fat, protein, carbohydrate and fibre, with erythritol at 0 kcal/g. Each waffle contains 3.9g polyols from erythritol. Excessive consumption may cause a laxative effect.
Allergens: the waffles contain eggs, milk and nuts (almonds). The Keto Pancake Mix pack says it contains nuts (almonds), milk and sweeteners, and that it is made in a facility where there may be traces of other nuts, cereals, milk and eggs. Always check the current label before cooking for anyone with an allergy.
FAQ
What's the difference between a waffle and a pancake?
Both are made from a similar batter. A pancake is cooked in a flat pan, one side at a time, so it's soft all the way through. A waffle is cooked between two hot, patterned plates, usually from a thicker batter with more butter in it, so it has a crisp outside and deep pockets that hold toppings.
Can you make waffles without a waffle iron?
Not true waffles, as the crisp shell and grid come from the hot plates. BBC Good Food suggests an oiled griddle pan instead, turning the batter when the underside is golden and crisp. With this batter, spread about 85g into a hot, oiled griddle pan and cook it over a medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes a side.
Can you freeze waffles?
Yes. Cool them completely on a wire rack, then freeze them in a freezer bag with baking paper between each one. We suggest using them within 1 month for the best texture. Reheat them from frozen in a toaster, or in the oven at 180°C (160°C fan), gas 4, for 8 to 10 minutes, until steaming hot all the way through. Reheat leftovers only once.
How many carbs are in a keto waffle?
Each waffle (1/8 of the batter) has 7.8g carbohydrate, of which 3.9g is polyols from the erythritol in the mix, which leaves 3.9g net carbs. For comparison, BBC Good Food's Belgian waffles have 51g carbs a serving, according to its nutrition panel, and each of its servings is a quarter of the batter.
Why are my waffles soft instead of crisp?
Usually they've come out too soon or been stacked. Cook each waffle until the steam has almost stopped, then cool it on a rack in a single layer. On Reddit's r/ketorecipes, bakers suggest the highest heat setting and a longer cook, and toasting soft waffles briefly to dry out the coconut flour and crisp the edges.
