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The holiday season is the perfect time for big, bold, unapologetic breakfasts. Our family tradition has always been Cinnamon Rolls for Christmas morning breakfast and what a mega treat that was. Dessert for breakfast?! That’s almost as good as all the presents underneath the tree. It was in that sprit that I thought up the idea for this Gingerbread Doughnut Waffles with Maple Glaze recipe.
Actually, this recipe was very much inspired by my classic Doughnut Waffles. I just added a gingerbread twist in the form of dark brown sugar, extra molasses, and aromatic holiday spices. They’re perfect for breakfast, dessert, or a special snack.

I also particularly like this recipe for a special morning breakfast because the Gingerbread Doughnut Waffles taste good both warm or at room temperature, so you don’t have to worry about keeping everything perfectly warm. Plus they just look absolutely adorable in any breakfast spread!
Gingerbread Doughnut Waffles with Maple Glaze Recipe Tips
-I made these in my Chef’s Choice Square Waffle Iron but the recipe should work with any waffle iron (even Belgian), just adjust the cooking time and amount of batter according to the size of the waffle cavity.
-The way we get that adorable shape and size is by only adding 1 tablespoon of batter to the cavity. No more and no less!
-The maple glaze is made with real maple syrup (no initiation stuff!) but if you want a stronger maple flavor, go ahead and add a dash of maple extract.
-The glaze is THICK, which is how I like it. Feel free to reduce the amount of powdered sugar for a thinner consistency.


For the doughnut waffles:
-
1/3
cup
dark brown sugar sugar
-
2
teaspoons
baking powder
-
3/4
teaspoon
fine salt
-
1
teaspoon
ground cinnamon
-
1
teaspoon
ground ginger
-
1/4
teapsoon ground nutmeg
-
1
large egg plus 1 egg yolk
-
2
tablespoons
unsalted butter, melted
-
1/2
cup
milk
-
1/4
cup
molasses
-
1 1/2
cups
(6.8 ounces) all-purpose flour
For the maple glaze:
-
4
tablespoons
(2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
-
3/4
cup
plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
-
8
tablespoons
pure maple syrup
To make the waffles:
-
In a large bowl, whisk the sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg together. Add the egg and yolk, melted butter, milk, and molasses until just combined. The batter will be thick.
-
Preheat your waffle iron. Place a tablespoon of batter in each waffle cavity and cook for about 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack and repeat for the remaining batter.
To glaze:
-
In a small bowl whisk together all the glaze ingredients until smooth. Drizzle or dunk the slightly cool doughnut into the glaze. Let sit until set. Doughnut waffles are best served the day they are made.
I wish I saw this earlier for Christmas! Gingerbread doughnut and waffle sound super amazing! And that maple glaze!