Whole Wheat Carrot Cake Waffles with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream
This healthy breakfast is loaded with hearty whole grain, carrots, pineapple, walnuts, Greek yogurt, and warm spice! Enjoy your carrot cake in waffle form, and take it to the next level with a fluffy cream cheese whipped cream!
When I think of spring, I think of Easter, and when I think of Easter, I think of bunnies, and when I think of bunnies, I think of carrots, and when I think of carrots, my mind goes straight to carrot cake with cream cheese icing.
That’s just how my mind works I guess. 😛
1. Bangkok Carrot Cake by Glazed and Confused
2. Grain Free, Sugar Free Carrot Cake Truffles by A Clean Bake
3. Carrot Cake Cookies by Chez Catey Lou
4. Fudgy Carrot Cake Cookies (Whole Grain, Dairy Free) by The Sweet Tooth Life
5. Carrot Cake by What Jessica Baked Next
6. Baked Mini Carrot Cake Donuts by Culinary Couture
7. Carrot Zucchini Bread by Joyful Healthy Eats
8. Carrot Oatmeal Cookies by Yummy Healthy Easy
9. Coconut Carrot Cake Oatmeal by Life Made Sweeter
10. Baby Carrot Truffles by Wine and Glue
11. Rustic Carrot Cake by Baking in Pyjamas
12. Healthier Carrot Cake Cookies by Cookie Monster Cooking
How could we not love carrot cake, and take every excuse not to eat it? I know my whole family loves the sweet carrots and fruit, crunchy nuts, warm spice, and tangy-creamy frosting combo. It’s so good! I could eat it at every meal, including breakfast!
If there’s ever a dessert than can be spun into a healthy breakfast it’s gotta be carrot cake. I mean, it’s got carrots in it! Right? Last time I checked, carrots are a vegetable. 😛
I’ve also bumped up the healthy factor by subbing in some whole wheat flour, and it gives these waffles a nuttiness that is so perfect with all the warm spice!
Pineapple adds a natural sweetness, and walnuts bring a tender crunch. So nice! Also, I would have loved to have added some golden raisins, but my husband is squarely opposed to raisins on general principle. (Those meatballs from last week? Oh ya, he left a pile of raisins on the side of his plate at the end of that meal. Yep, took the time to pick out every one of ’em.) If your family is not so vehemently anti-raisin, I would suggest tossing a handful or two into the dry ingredients. 😉
The fluffy cream cheese topping is, both figuratively and literally, the icing on the cake! Please don’t skip it- it makes the whole dish!
I hope you enjoy this recipe! We just loved it, and I thought it would be so perfect for an Easter or spring brunch. The waffles can be made ahead, kept warm in the oven, or frozen/refrigerated and reheated in the toaster.
*Here is a link to the kind of waffle baker I have. I love it! It’s easy and fun to use. It was gifted to me by KitchenAid, but this is not a sponsored post or a paid review, and all opinions expressed here are from my heart.*
*This post was featured on The Weekend Retreat link party on Mommy On Demand*
*This post was featured on the Super Saturday link party on What’s Cooking with Ruthie*
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Whole Wheat Carrot Cake Waffles with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream
Ingredients
For the Whole Wheat Carrot Cake Waffles:
- 1 cup (120 g) whole wheat flour
- 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (117 g) chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup (55 g) light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, (or a few scratches of whole nutmeg on a fine grater)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups (354.88 ml) milk, (I used 1%)
- 1 1/2 cups (192 g) finely grated carrot
- 3/4 cups (123.75 g) finely chopped fresh pineapple, (or canned crushed pineapple, drained)
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter, (1 stick), melted
- 1/2 cup (100 g) plain Greek yogurt, (I used nonfat)
- 2 eggs, (large)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Cream Cheese Whipped Cream:
- 4 ounces (113.4 g) cream cheese,, softened (the kind in a brick, not lowfat, not whipped, not the kind in a tub)
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (236.59 ml) heavy cream,, cold
Instructions
Make the Whole Wheat Carrot Cake Waffles:
- Preheat a waffle baker.
- In a large bowl, place the flours, nuts, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt, and stir to combine.
- In a large liquid measure, place the milk, carrot, pineapple, melted butter, Greek yogurt, eggs, and vanilla, and stir to combine.
- Add the liquid ingredients to the dry, and stir just until barely combined. (Do not overmix, or the waffles could come out tough. The batter should be lumpy.)
- Place about ½ cup of batter onto the hot waffle iron, and bake for about 3 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Keep warm in a low oven.
Make the Cream Cheese Whipped Cream:
- Place the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract in a small bowl and whip on medium speed for about 3 minutes with the whip attachment.
- Slowly drizzle in the cold heavy cream, while whipping on medium speed.
- Scrape the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl with a silicone spatula, increase the speed to medium high, and continue to whip until stiff peaks form.
Hi Allie!
Does the granulated sugar makes the frosting gritty? I found and tried a few frosting recipes which have granulated sugar in them and they turned out very gritty even though I whipped the batter on high speed at the end.
Also, if I were to reduce the sugar by 30-50%, would it still be pipe able? My Asian family members don’t have a sweet-tooth actually…lol!
Hey Michelle! Truthfully, I didn’t find the frosting to be gritty at all. Maybe because of all the cream? The sugar seems to dissolve really well, but if you want to be absolutely sure, you could probably sub out with superfine or even powdered sugar. I haven’t tried reducing the sugar, honestly I prefer my desserts a little less sweet too and I did not find this to be overly sugary. If you decide to cut the sugar I’d be curious to know how it works out for you!
I love this recipe, it looks like the perfect breakfast update. Pinned! Nichole @Or So She Says
Thanks so much Nichole! I hope you get a chance to make it. My family loved this breakfast! 😀
Oh wow Allie, those look amazing!! I need those in my life very soon. 😉
Thanks Lisa! They were a nice hearty breakfast. I’m so glad you enjoyed and thanks so much for the sweet comment!
These photos are making me drool! Thank you for this waffle recipe, gotta try this real soon!
My pleasure Ritchil, and thank you! I hope you enjoy 😀 😀 😀
These look fantastic! I’ve always loved carrot cake, and cream cheese makes everything better.
Oh I know, right? The cream cheese is totally the best part, lol! I’m so happy you liked, Heather, thanks so much for stopping by and for the sweet comment!
What a fabulous breakfast! Thanks for linking up with What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!
Thanks Karly! And my pleasure. Hope your week’s off to a good start 😀
Waffles are my favorite breakfast treat, hands down. I never plan far enough ahead to make them special – now I’ve got my recipe! The pineapple, the carrots, the whipped cream, it all sounds so good! Thanks for sharing my cookies, too. 🙂 Pinning!
My pleasure, Mary Frances! Your carrot cake cookies look amazing, I love that they are moist and fudgy, rather than cakey. And dairy free! It’s an awesome recipe. And thanks for the sweet compliments, and for pinning 😀
Thank you for this wonderful recipes, for the waffle iron referral, and for including my recipe in your round up! I love all things carrot cake and am so excited to have so many new recipes to try – starting with these waffles, of course. With raisins!!
Yay! A fellow raisin enthusiast! I LOVED those truffles, the photos were gorgeous and the flavors sound amazing! Thank YOU so much for sharing!