These vegan peanut butter waffles incorporate creamy peanut butter into the waffle batter for a subtle peanut flavor and a light, crispy texture. The waffles benefit from the healthful fats and protein that peanuts provide, and they make for a nourishing breakfast with your favorite toppings. Make a batch, freeze them, and enjoy them whenever you like!

When it comes to sweet breakfasts, I am a waffle person.

Yes, I enjoy pancakes, muffins, scones, and oatmeal. But I have a soft spot for waffles.

Maybe it’s the little wells of melted butter and syrup. Maybe it’s the fluffy texture and crisp exterior—all of those delightful ridges.

In any case, I’m always happy when I have a reason to pull out my waffle maker and whip up a fresh batch of waffles on a Saturday or Sunday morning.

These vegan peanut butter waffles are one of my go-to recipes.

Why peanut butter in waffles?

The first and most obvious answer to this question is: flavor!

If you love the way that peanut butter tastes, which I sure do, then you’ll love the hint of peanut buttery flavor that comes through in these peanut butter waffles.

With that said, I also think that peanut butter is an excellent fat source in this recipe. It contributes to the light, crispy texture of the finished waffles by providing fat, for tenderness and moisture, and protein, for structure.

Speaking of fat and protein, peanut butter happens to be a great nutrition source in addition to its creamy texture and distinctive flavor.

Peanut butter is a good source of Vitamins B3 and Vitamin B6. It also contains minerals; it’s a good source of both magnesium and copper.

Peanut butter, like all nut butters, is calorie dense, which means that it can help to provide energy and fuel for our daily biological processes and lifestyle activities. And the healthful fats in peanut butter help to keep us full and to steady our blood sugar.

A whole foods, plant-based waffle

While some of my waffle recipes call for avocado oil as a fat source, the peanut butter in this waffle recipe provides the waffles with enough fat.

This means that the waffles are oil-free. The sweetener is maple syrup, so they’re also free of refined sugars.

Though I don’t avoid either oils or refined sugars myself, I know that many readers who find this website do. This recipe is suitable for plant-based diets that prioritize whole foods!

How to make vegan peanut butter waffles

Any waffle can become peanut butter-themed if you top it with peanut butter. This recipe, however, incorporates peanut butter into the batter.

Here are the steps.

Step 1: Prepare your waffle iron

Before you make the waffles, you’ll want to fully preheat your waffle iron. The iron should be hot and ready to make waffles before your batter is mixed.

If you’re curious about the best appliance for this job, don’t worry: I share more details on waffle maker options below.

Step 2: Whisk the dry ingredients together

Dry ingredients for these waffles are flour, baking powder and soda, and salt. Simple. You’ll whisk them together in a large mixing bowl to start.

Step 3: Whisk or blend the wet ingredients

Wet ingredients for this recipe include, of course, peanut butter!

The other ingredients are vegan buttermilk and maple syrup.

A word about the buttermilk: it’s a simple mixture of non-dairy milk and either lemon juice or vinegar.

If you like, you can read all about homemade vegan buttermilk, including the science behind its usefulness in making quick breads, such as pancakes or muffins.

But the upshot is that you combine a cup of plant milk and a tablespoon of acid to create it. You can scale it up or down as needed in that 1 cup : 1 tablespoon ratio.

For this recipe, it’s 1 1/2 cups liquid and 1 1/2 tablespoons acid.

The buttermilk and maple syrup are mixed with peanut butter, which is the fat source in this recipe. I also add some ground flax. The flax helps to bind the waffles and contributes to their crispy exterior.

You can whisk these ingredients if you like, or you can blend them for speed.

Step 4: Add wet ingredients to dry and mix till you have a (mostly) smooth batter

I mix the batter for this recipe with a spatula. You’re aiming for a thick, yet scoopable and pourable batter.

A few little clumps in the batter will be fine—they’re a good thing, actually—but avoid big clumps or streaks of dry flour in the batter.

Step 5: Make waffles!

Add your waffle batter to your waffle maker in whatever amounts is appropriate for the machine you use. Allow the machine to let you know when each waffle is ready.

When they’re ready, the waffles will appear golden all over. The exterior will be nice and crispy, and the texture of the waffles will be light.

Step 6: Serve

You can serve up the vegan peanut butter waffles with whatever waffle toppings you love. I’ve got my favorites, and I’m sure that you do, too!

Here are some of the things that I like to sprinkle or drizzle on my warm, crispy waffles:

• Banana slices
• Vegan cocoa hazelnut spread
• Vegan butter
• Maple syrup
• Vegan salted date caramel sauce
• Tofu whipped cream
• Berries
• Apple slices
• Vegan yogurt
• Strawberry, raspberry, or grape jam

Or, my personal favorite: a drizzle each of peanut butter and maple syrup, and roughly chopped vegan dark chocolate.

This. Is. The. Best.

By the way, as lovely as these waffles are for breakfast, they also make a stellar snack! Try spreading one with a little extra peanut butter and topping it with some apple slices as an afternoon pick-me-up.

What type of peanut butter do I need for the waffles?

This is a great question.

When it comes to peanut butter for baking and sweets, smooth texture is often key for good results.

Smooth peanut butter is the only type that will work in my vegan peanut butter frosting, for example. It also creates the best results in my vegan peanut butter and jam cake.

This means that very natural-style peanut butters—ones that tend to separate and have a more gritty texture—aren’t ideal for this recipe or others.

For these peanut butter waffles, there are a few smooth peanut butters that have worked really well for me:

• PB & Co smooth operator
• Maranatha creamy no-stir
• Earth Balance creamy

If you feel strongly about using a peanut butter with minimal added ingredients, which is likely to be a bit more textured than the options above, that’s OK. The recipe will still work out; the texture of your waffles may be slightly less light and airy.

What if I have a peanut allergy?

If you or a person in your home has a peanut allergy, you can use any other smooth nut or seed butter in this recipe instead.

SunButter is an especially good choice, and Barney Butter is a nice, smooth nut butter to work with..

You’ll lose the peanut flavor in the waffles, but here’s the thing: that peanut taste in the waffles is actually pretty subtle. When I created the recipe, I didn’t want them to be overpoweringly peanutty.

What the peanut butter really does is to add structure, texture, and flavor to the waffles. Other nut and seed butters can ably step in and do the same thing.

Can the peanut butter waffles be made gluten-free?

Yes, these waffles can be modified for gluten-free diets. I recommend using a gluten-free, all-purpose flour blend, such as the Measure for Measure flour from King Arthur Baking.

The right waffle iron for the job

You may be wondering what type of waffle iron is best for the recipe.

I actually have two waffle irons. One is a round Belgian waffle iron, which is what I use nearly all the time. The other is a Dash mini maker, which is great for small batches and for saving space in small kitchens.

I know that getting a waffle maker can feel like a potentially unnecessary purchase. When I got mine, I was worried about buyer’s remorse. But now I them both very often.

As a result of having the waffle irons, warm, crispy homemade waffles have become one of the most regular weekend breakfasts in my home.

Meal prep and storage

If you’ve read my post about vegan meal prep breakfasts, then you know that waffles are one of my favorite types of breakfast recipes to prepare ahead of time.

Batch cooked waffles are easy to freeze. And, once frozen, they can sit for a while and come to the rescue any time you’d like a cozy, sweet, homemade breakfast.

There are two ways that you can reheat your frozen, homemade vegan peanut butter waffles. The first is to pop them in a standing toaster or toaster oven. Toast them on a medium high setting until they’re hot and crisp on the outside.

I also sometimes use my air fryer to reheat waffles. Five or six minutes at 400°F / 200°C usually does the trick.

These peanut butter waffles will keep in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 8 weeks.

If you’re wondering whether you can store freshly prepared waffles in your fridge, the answer is yes, you can. But I only recommend doing so overnight. Any waffles that you haven’t eaten by then should be frozen in order to preserve their freshness.

More favorite vegan waffle recipes

If you love these peanut butter waffles, then you might enjoy one of the follow plant-based waffle recipes as well:

• The best fluffy vegan pumpkin waffles
• Vegan apple cinnamon waffles
• Crispy vegan cornmeal waffles
• Gluten-free strawberry pumpkin waffles

In the meantime, here’s a nutty, wholesome waffle to add to your vegan breakfast repertoire.

If you give these a try, I hope you’ll get a kick out of their irresistable texture and that faint, tasty peanut butter flavor. Plus, I hope you have fun dressing them up with all sorts of toppings!

I can’t wait to hear how you like them.

xo