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Liege Waffles (Belgian Sugar Waffles)

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liege waffles
Have you ever had a Liege Waffle? Also known as a Belgian Sugar Waffle, it’s a special, caramelized sugar waffle that is perfection all on it’s own. Crispy, rich with just a hint of cinnamon. 
Now the liege isn’t going to be the easiest waffle you’ve ever made for a few reasons. First you need to order up one persnickety, mission critical ingredient: Belgian Peal Sugar. Not the Swedish. The Belgian. The Swedish version has pieces that are a little smaller and don’t work as well for this recipe. I usually order two bags and tuck one away. 
liege waffles
The second thing you need to do is not burn yourself. Do not burn yourself. Say it with me, “melted sugar is ridiculously hot and I will not burn myself.” I’ll admit, my first go at these I definitely burned myself more than once. And it hurt. Second go around, I had my tongs, an oven mitt, and a backup fork for maneuvering the shiny hot waffles out of the iron. 
Oh wait. There’s a third thing. These waffles are yeasted. So there’s some rise time you need to factor in. If you get organized, you can make these start-to-finish in about an hour. It does help to have a thermometer for the yeast. I like the ThermoPro, it’s inexpensive, accurate and easy to use. So treat yourself an extra cup of coffee while you let your dough rise. Or better yet, take the dog on a quick spin around the neighborhood. 
liege waffles
I don’t think these waffles require much in the way of toppings, but if you’re looking to add a little something extra, try these:
  • powdered sugar
  • strawberries
  • blueberries
  • blackberries
  • raspberries
  • whipped coconut cream
  • bananas
  • flake coconut
  • drizzle with melted peanut butter

So order up some special waffle sugar and let’s make brunch! 

 

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Belgian sugar waffles

The Liege or Belgian Sugar Waffle

★★★★★ 5 from 5 reviews
  • Author: Well Vegan
  • Prep Time: 60 mins
  • Cook Time: 15 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Yield: 8-12 1x
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Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp. sugar
  • 3/4 cup almond milk (unsweetened)
  • 1 packet active dry yeast
  • 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 8 oz. (2 sticks) vegan butter, softened
  • 4 tbsp. water
  • 2 tsp. vegetable oil
  • 4 tsp. baking powder
  • 8 oz. Belgian pearl sugar

Instructions

  1. Combine sugar and almond milk in a small bowl. Microwave until the mixture is between 95-115 F. Stir the mixture to dissolve the sugar, then add the yeast. Set aside the mixture for the yeast to develop.
  2. In a large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine the flour, salt, cinnamon, and butter.
  3. In a separate bowl, combine the water, vegetable oil and baking powder. This is your egg replacer mix. Add the egg replacer mix and the developed yeast mix to the mixer bowl. Mix the dough on medium speed for 3-4 minutes or until dough come together smoothly. It should be thick, like pizza dough. If it’s too dry, add another tablespoon or two of almond milk.
  4. Leave the dough in the mixer bowl to rise. Cover it with a towel and put it in a warm spot for 30-60 minutes to rise. The dough should double in size.
  5. Once the dough has risen, mix in the Belgian sugar. Form the dough into 8-12 evenly shaped balls, a little smaller than a baseball.
  6. Warm your waffle iron and bake until crispy brown. Be very careful removing waffles from the iron. The melted caramelized sugar is extremely hot.
  7. Let waffles cool for a few minutes before serving.
  8. If the leftover waffles get too cool, the sugar hardens considerably. Just reheat in the toaster and they’ll spring back to life.
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Katie and Kate are two vegans maintaining a cross-country friendship swapping recipes and writing cookbooks. Check out our Meal Plans and Vegan Starter Guide.

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Comments

  1. Hello — after the dough rises, can I refrigerate it overnight to let the dough ferment a little bit? Then take it out and let it warm up for 90 minutes before proceeding with the rest of the recipe?

    ★★★★★

  2. Hey Eric! I WISH I knew more about the temperament of yeast, but I haven’t ever attempted the chilling and warming of a yeasted dough. In theory, it sounds as though it would work. If you give a try, report back and let us know how it goes!

  3. Hello Katie — you have 1 tsp of vanilla listed. But on the directions it doesn’t say when to incorporate. I just put it into the dough mixture before i started kneading it in the mixer. Just fyi. I’ll let you know how it all goes, especially with the overnight refrigeration. Should work out great.

    ★★★★★

  4. You’re absolutely right! In with the dough 🙂 I’ll fix up those instructions. TY!!

  5. Perfect! I took a risk and held a waffle night and used this recipe for the first time. No regrets, they were stunning waffles! Worth the extra fuss over a batter version (though I made both).

    ★★★★★

  9. Hello! Odd question.. Can the cinnamon be left out? There is a little one that is sensitive to cinnamon that id be making these for 🙂 if its left out does it make a huge difference?

    ★★★★★

  13. hey! so im vegetarian.. (don’t use egg) but i do use milk.. would i be able to make these waffles with normal milk and butter? using same quantities and method?

  15. Hey Ruchi, Regular milk and butter will work just fine, but the sugar needs to be the special Belgian pearl sugar or it won’t carmelize quite right. Hope that helps!

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