These sweet pumpkin waffles with a hint of pumpkin spice, are a decadent treat when served with pecan syrup!
I’ve been wanting to create this recipe ever since Ward ordered pumpkin pancakes on season two of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Do you watch that show? It took me a while to really get into it, but now I’m a devoted fan. I even had my photo taken with Ming-Na Wen (Agent May) at this year’s Fan Expo in Toronto. She is hilarious in real life – not at all like her character on the show. Did you know she’s the voice of Mulan too? Clearly, she is awesome at playing strong female characters!
I’m a big fan of Chloe Bennet now too, which is funny because I didn’t really like her in the first half of season one. But her character is so much more interesting now – who knew that she’d be so integral to the story?? If you’re a fan of the show who isn’t caught up with the recent season, you’ll be upset with me if I say anything more than that. So, on to the recipe!
Pumpkin pancakes sounded good, but I thought pumpkin waffles would be even better! I think Ward would eat them… anyhow, you don’t need to be a fan of the TV show to appreciate these waffles.
It took weeks of testing to get them right, but I’m so happy with how the final recipe turned out. Although, I’m pretty sure that I gained 5 lbs from eating so many of them as we were testing the recipe…
So, technically, I could call these pumpkin “spice” waffles because there is pumpkin spice in it. But I really didn’t want to do that for two reasons.
The first is that people seem to be off pumpkin spice as a flavour, which is unfortunate because not all pumpkin spice recipes taste like eating a candle from Bath and Body Works.
The second reason is that the spice is pretty subtle in these waffles. I wanted them to have pumpkin flavour, but when I added too much pumpkin or pumpkin spice the waffles lost their sweetness.
So while these pumpkin waffles taste distinctly different from regular waffles, they aren’t strongly flavoured. I think most kids (and other picky eaters) would eat these without complaint.
On the other hand, the pecan syrup is quite strongly flavoured. The toasted pecans and maple syrup add deep, rich, toasty flavour to the waffles, and it’s very sweet. Like, candy sweet. This isn’t something that you would eat every day. But oh my gosh is it ever good!
Oh, I should add that I made these waffles on my George Foreman grill, not a proper waffle iron. My grill is super old, but it came with waffle iron plates so I’ve never bothered to buy a “real” waffle iron. So as a result, your waffles might look a bit different from mine. Just a heads up 🙂
Pumpkin Waffles with Pecan Syrup
Ingredients
For the Waffles:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree , (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter , melted
For the Pecan Syrup:
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
Instructions
To Make Waffles:
- Preheat waffle iron according to manufacturer's instructions. If your iron has multiple heat settings, pick the "high" setting.
- Place a sifter, or sieve, over a large bowl, and sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, spices and salt. You may need to use a spoon to push the sugar through the sieve if it's clumpy. Gently whisk the ingredients together, and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk milk, eggs and pumpkin puree. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, and whisk gently to combine (being careful not to overmix the batter). Gently whisk in the melted butter.
- Cook waffles according to the manufacturer's instructions for your waffle iron. Generally, this requires pouring about a 1/2 cup of batter into the middle of the iron, and spreading it out a bit before pulling down the lid. The waffles could take 2-5 minutes to cook, depending in your iron. They should be dark golden brown in colour, and slightly crisp. Serve warm.
- Store leftovers in the fridge, and reheat briefly in a toaster to restore the texture of the waffles.
To Make Pecan Syrup:
- Place a small non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add pecans and toast for about 8 minutes, or until they look golden brown and smell toasted.
- Add the butter and allow it to melt. It will bubble. Stir to coat the nuts, and allow the butter to brown. This will happen quickly, so be sure not to let it burn. Once the butter smells nutty and looks brown, add the maple syrup. It will also bubble. Stir to mix everything together, then pull it off the heat. Pour into a heatproof bowl and allow to cool a bit before serving (it will be very hot straight off the stove).
- Best if consumed on the day you make it, as it will crystallize in the fridge.
Tips & Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure:
This is not a sponsored post.
I think the only advantage pumpkin pancakes have is alliterative satisfaction. Waffles have so much more crispy-to-tender ratio goodness. I love pumpkin as an ingredient, but the pumpkin spice craze is driving me a little mad. The flavours are great, but faddishness can ruin a good thing. That said, your waffle isn’t faddish at all, it just sounds delicious. I think Ward would be distracted enough by them that May could get the drop on him.
Ahahaha, “alliterative satisfaction”! Nice one Teresa! Thanks for the nice comment – I think they’d be good Ward-bait too!