Wondering if a waffle maker is the right purchase for you? Here’s why I love mine.
Ok, I confess, a waffle maker is a unitasker. Sure, you can bake cookies in it or make hash browns. I’ve never tried either, but I’ve heard it from good sources. But, honestly, I’m okay with the fact that my waffle iron only makes waffles.
My kids love waffles for breakfast, but I think they’d gladly accept them any time of day. When I lived in France, I bought waffles from a cart, answering an emphatic OUI! when the vendor asked if I’d like whipped cream, chocolate, powdered sugar. As a matter of fact, my kids would love that kind of dessert, so I’ll have to keep that in mind.
Use of a Waffle Maker
Waffles come together pretty easily at our house. I have several go-to recipes, several of them are in my cookbook. One of the tricks to enjoying waffles whenever we want is to do one of two things:
- Prepare several bags of waffle mix. Just place the dry ingredients in a ziptop bag and store it in the freezer. Be sure to mark it with the directions for adding the wet ingredients.
- Bake up a lot of waffles. Cool, wrap, and freeze to serve at a later date. (There are rarely leftovers when we make waffles, but when there are, there is at least one or two lucky, happy children who pop those into the toaster for quick breakfasts or snacks.
Using a waffle maker is pretty straightforward. Just heat the machine, mix your batter (don’t overmix!), pour some batter in, close it up, and go.
Some of my favorite recipes include:
Care and storage
I’ve owned several machines over time. I’ve found that the best method for care and storage is to wipe it with a damp cloth after use and then store it with a few paper towels sandwiched inside it. The paper towels seem to absorb any moisture or grease that you have missed.
Purchasing a machine
I think we’ve gone through three or four waffle makers in the last 19 years of marriage. The first was a stellar Cuisinart purchase from Costco (similar to this). I think it made one Belgian-style waffle. We were newlyweds. It seemed the perfect purchase for lazy weekend breakfasts.
And it was. Waffles with whipped cream and berries fresh from the Farmers market? Stellar.
That waffler fizzled after about ten years of service. It stopped baking on one side, producing half-baked, frizzled waffles.
The next two purchases were cheapos from Target. One went the way of the dump after I left it outside in the rain. True story. I had burned the last waffle – as I am apt to do – and took it (and the stink) outside. I forgot about it until after about a week of rain. I figured it had done its time.
The second cheapo wasn’t worth the $7 I spent. I think I got ripped off. I was so confident it would work just fine, I threw the box away before I tried it out. I ended up throwing it away because it couldn’t cook worth a darn. I mean, really couldn’t cook worth a darn.
I waited a couple years before buying a replacement. I was running the unitasker argument through my mind. Images of waffles with whipped cream and berries fresh from the Farmers market won that debate.
I browsed the selection of waffle makers on Amazon and settled on another Cuisinart. I love this machine. LOVE. I bought it on Amazon. LOVE this machine. Not only does it make four huge waffles at a time, but it also has a really good light/dark timer to let you know when your waffle is the doneness you prefer. I like #2, the kid who eats burnt toast likes #4, so adjust accordingly.
What’s your experience with a waffle maker?
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Thanks for a timely article! Just today, I was mulling over whether I should buy one. I remember a few years ago, my Mom found a letter that had been written by my Grandmother when she was engaged (in 1928). She was hoping she would get a new electric waffle maker for a wedding gift! I figure they must have been the hot new thing then : )
@Anna@stuffedveggies, isn’t that fun? Love that story.
We have a really old waffle maker and love it! It was my MIL’s when my husband was a kid. It gets them really crisp. I never liked homemade waffles before this. I don’t know what we’ll do when it gives out. I guess I’ll look into the cuisineart one.
@Rachel, are the waffles thin with small squares? I would love to get one like that. Mine makes big chunky waffles.
I don’t have a waffle maker, and I doubt I would use it enough to justify that kind of price. I rarely make pancakes or french toast, never mind something I need another appliance to make. 🙂 My mom, on the other hand, uses the daylights out of hers. It’s just mom and dad at home right now, and she definitely makes big batches and then later toasts them up just like your kids. Apparently she has a fancy schmancy kind that I bought for her, but I have zilch memory of doing so. I’m glad she likes it, though! LOL.
PS. Sur La Table appears to have ‘your’ machine in stock at the manufacturer’s price. It doesn’t list the model number, but it does look the same.
I got a very similar Cuisinart Wafflemaker on an Amazon Warehouse deal. Someone had returned it because of some imaginary dings.
I’m relying on you to test/perfect some sort of grain free waffley goodness.
@brandy, ha! I’m really hoping that I don’t have to. lol. reentry is next week. We’ll see. Have you googled paleo waffles? I bet that pumpkin/banana/egg combination would work.
@Jessica,
yes, but I want YOU to give your stamp of approval instead of me fiddling around with it 🙂
@brandy, heehee. Well, this diet has required NOT to make those kinds of things even if the ingredients were “legal”. They said it prompts cravings for the real thing. So, I don’t have any experience to share. We’ll see.
@Jessica, ok, i’ll get around to it! i am 100% with you on reducing the amount of sugar my kids eat. i am looking forward to learning to see what permanent changes you implement after you land back in the real world 🙂
@brandy, I think taking out the sugar was really good for me. Makes me kinda sad, though. I’ve been craving sweet. I’ll have to be more measured going forward.
I LOVE my waffle maker. Bought it at Sam’s Club a few months ago — it’s a Waring Pro double Belgian (2 waffles cook at a time).
I only wish my toaster were large enough to accommodate re-heating (after freezing). I have to break the waffles into 4 triangles, so only one Belgian reheats at a time, in 4 pieces. Clear as mud?!?
A tip for making Belgian waffles in bulk and freezing……Find a large popcorn tin (think Christmas-time popcorn) and use it for freezing. It’s just the right size. Oh, but remember to flash freeze them on a cookie sheet first! 🙂
@Pamela, great idea!
Waffle makers are great for making waffles and memories. This June will be my 20th high school reunion. Gasp! I still have friends who talk about my dad making us all waffles in the morning when we’d have a slumber party. We called them “Erin’s last name” wonderful walnut waffles. There aren’t a lot of meals that I still think about 20 years later, so I guess it’s worth it to buy a machine that can only do one thing if it does such a good job.
@Erin, it’s amazing what fun memories everyone is sharing. You need to find a way to get together with your friends in June and make waffles.
We inherited my husband’s grandmother’s waffle maker and it still works just fine. We don’t make them terribly often (although we should) but it’s a family tradition on Christmas morning. Our adult kids and spouse/girlfriend join us for waffles and mimosas then we open gifts.
@Deanna West Piercy, what a great tradition!
We have your waffle maker, and I agree – it is wonderful! The light to crispy setting is nice. It’s easy to clean. And, it makes so many at once that maybe it’s not technically a unitasker. 🙂 It’s doing four at once. It folds up and can stand straight up, so really doesn’t take up that much space. I would eat waffles every day if that would have no correlation to my pants size. Look forward to trying one (or more) of your recipes!
@Judith, thanks for pointing out its storage points. I’d forgotten that.
I have an inexpensive I picked up at a garage sale for a few dollars, and it’s the best one I’ve ever used. It only makes two waffles at a time, but they always turn out perfectly and they never stick. We’re a family of three, so there are almost always leftovers when I make waffles. Like you, I like to freeze them to have at a later time.
Sorry — I meant for that to say an inexpensive Toastmaster waffle maker.
I love our waffle maker too! I have gotten most of ours from yard sales. I too have had a few models over the years. I am considering purchasing another this yard sale season so I could have two machines going at the same time and thus get a big batch made is less time. We like using ours for what we call tortilla sandwiches. We place sandwich meat and cheese inside a tortilla fold it in half and place it in the waffle iron until the cheese melts. Very yummy!
@Victoria,
I have heard of making grilled cheese in it (the crispy, and the melty bits are perfect), but never thought of using a tortilla. Thank you for a GREAT idea!
I don’t have a waffle maker. When my husband and I got married 9 years ago we got a cheapo one that didn’t work at all. So from that experience I guess I have based my opinion of waffle makers. I do however get a craving for a waffle every now and then and have no way of making one. I’m sure my kids would love it if we had one!
@Kathy, those cheapos totally aren’t worth it. 🙁
I love French toast, and thus rarely use my waffle maker, however, my 4 year old was just introduced to waffles and is in love. May have to pull it out again.
I got my waffle maker from my MIL, I believe. But it’s just like the one I grew up with. Is it a Sunbeam? ha!ha! are they still made any more? I don’t know. I use it infrequently because it’s tucked in a cupboard – no room to have it on the counter or anywhere close by .
I have to laugh because my mom and I joke all the time about how many meals I do NOT remember while growing up. I honestly have no “fond memories” – I keep telling her the meals must have been so bad I’ve blocked them from my memory (it is a joke because she really is a very good cook. One who can have nothing to eat in the house and still manage to make a delicious meal. how?!).
However, there is ONE meal I totally remember. Sunday nights were waffles and ice cream nights. Back when the ice cream cartons were square. We always got Neopolitan ice cream and opened the carton in order to cut slices then laid the slices on hot waffles and topped the ice cream w/ another waffle. Heaven!!
I introduced my children to them and they always suggest having waffles and ice cream. They don’t get it nearly as often as I did when growing up – or as often as they would prefer! lol
Okay, thanks for THAT memory – I can’t seem to stop smiling suddenly 🙂 !!
@Carolyn, today everyone seems to have a good memory of waffles. Love it!
I asked for the new George Foreman that comes with 5 different removable plates for Christmas. One of them is a waffle plate. It makes square crisp waffles that we all love! We make several extra’s that we freeze for later consumption. They are delish! Our 12 yo asks for breakfast at suppertime at least once a week. We usually have waffles and turkey bacon. Cheap and filling!
I grew up with a 4-square Sunbeam one and today have one of those and a newer Black & Decker one which, since it’s the same as the Sunbeam, I’m guessing bought out the Sunbeam name. We have waffles 48 out of 52 Sunday afternoons a year, so our wafflers get a work out. If there are more than about 5 of us we use two at a time.
Sometimes they are just with butter and maple syrup. Sometimes we bake walnuts or pecans into the waffles or sprinkle them on top of the syrup. Other times we use Karo syrup, Hershey’s chocolate sauce, and chocolate chips. Or all that plus miniature marshmallows for a S’mores waffle. Or all that plus chopped nuts for a Rocky Road. Or . . . .
@Katie, I am counting the days until I can have a waffle again…. yum.
I love, love, love waffles, but hate, hate, hate Belgian waffles. I like them thinner and softer. We had a Sunbeam 4-square replaced by a Black and Decker 4-square growing up, both with adjustable dials. Now, I have a cheapy-Toastmaster which works, but doesn’t adjust temperature, and they’re just a little crisp for my tastes. I’ve been looking for a replacement, but it seems like all that are in the stores these days are the Belgian wafflemakers–ick. I found a B&D one on ebay I’m considering putting on my wishlist for my birthday or Christmas this year…
Our waffle iron was a wedding present 20 years ago and is still going strong. I don’t make waffles often, primarily because there are 7 of us and it quickly becomes an all morning event. But the fun of our waffle iron is that it produces a larger round waffle that is divided into heart shapes. The family knows when Momma makes waffles that it is out of love and are reminded with a “love note” in their meal. They each eat their waffles as differently as they are – one with just butter; a couple covered in peanut butter and maple syrup; a couple will pour a small glass of syrup and dip, one heart at a time, until all is gone; another goes for the peanut butter and jelly, and then the special time is the fruit, chocolate and whipped cream. It is a MUST that we have waffles on Valentine’s Day – what says “I love you” more than a heart shaped waffle for breakfast?
Fun tradition!
When my now 13 yo was 4, he loved scooby doo. I was wandering the isles at goodwill one year picking up a costume for pioneer days, when I came across a scooby doo waffle maker. It made waffles in the shape of scooby doo! It was a big hit for the family. A cousin even asked for it when our kids outgrew. Unfortunately, it stopped working when this boy was about 11. He would still eat waffles from it today if he could. I have not been able to find a replacement and they go for way too much on ebay.
What I liked about it was that it made a very thin crispy waffles. The boys would always wanted chocolate chips (I put in sparsely) and they never wanted syrup.
I’ve got the same model you do.. . but I have to be honest.. I rarely use it.. I never was a waffle maker kinda person.. M’honey had a Mickey Waffle Iron he gave to one of his daughters that he used to make waffles with all the time.. I really should pull it out more often. Got mine when they had a super deal at Macy’s and one of our friends was working for another % off. I got some amazing deals that day!
I have the waffle iron my mom used when I was a kid. I found out a few years ago it actually was my Grandma’s. I “stole” it when I moved into a house in college and still have it 18yrs later. My dad fixed it twice this year. I dread the day I have to retire it completely. It makes 4 thin waffles with small squares, which I think it nearly impossible to find now. My kids LOVE waffles. We primarily eat them for dinner. 🙂 Occasionally for breakfast. And we always make a double batch and freeze the extra; which are becoming numbered as kids #3, 4 and 5 grow older. We recently had more milk than we could drink before the expiration, so we had waffles and made 4 extra batches.
My son wanted to replicate his grandmother’s waffles and we bought the same $7 Target waffle iron. He was so disappointed. Thank you for the recommendation on the Cuisinart. We just made our first batch and he thinks they rival Nana’s!
Yay!
I bought a rival and this last time burnt but found it has two lights on front one red and other green and one has to watch green light time as it stays on so therefore they burnt takes about 5 min. Tried toaster to warm and still cold or burn’t would like to change as there is only 1 yr, guarantee will check Best wafflemakers in hopes that it is yours.