Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Completely customizable based off your toppings, but the waffles themselves are definitely sweet. Texture: The best part. The bites of crunchy caramelized sugar pearls throughout are to die for when contrasted with the ultra fluffy yet slightly chewy texture. It’s difficult to describe but just trust me, if you’ve never had a Liege waffle you must try one. Ease: Not the quickest or the easiest, but that’s why I’ve created the video above and included all those tips & tricks. You can do it! Appearance: Who could pass up on a bite? No one! Pros: The best waffles ever, hands down. Cons: Definitely a special occasion recipe. I make this again? We’ve already dug into the leftovers!This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
If you’ve never had a Belgian Liege Waffle at a restaurant, while traveling, or at a food truck, then you MUST try one asap. Luckily for you I’m sharing my favorite recipe, a step-by-step video, and all my best tips to help you make these incredible waffles.
They’re made with dough instead of batter, and it makes ALL the difference. There’s also made with pearl sugar, which is like the best secret ingredient ever. My favorite part about these waffles, though, is that you can top them with whatever your heart desires for a truly delightful treat. Check out the video below to see how they’re made! Let me know if you have any questions in the comments.
Belgian Liege Waffle Recipe Tips
Although these waffles require a bit of time and patience, they are SO worth it. I’ve included all the recipe tips and advice I could think of for you just below. Comment with any other questions!
Dough?!
Yes, these waffles are made with a yeast raised dough, not a batter. This means they need a bit more love and attention than batter waffles but they are SO MUCH BETTER. Most dough recipes can be kneaded by hand if you don’t have a stand mixer, but I wouldn’t recommend it for this one. Watch the video above to see how cubes of butter are incorporated into this dough to make it ultra rich and flavorful. Doing this by hand would be challenging and messy.
The dough needs 2 hours for its first rise. Then, it needs to sit in the fridge overnight, or up to 24 hours. There’s no rushing this process if you want the best waffles. Plan ahead!
Instant yeast?
I always work with instant yeast because it’s so easy. It’s also called rapid-rise or quick-rise. If you don’t have it, you can always use regular active dry yeast. You’ll need to combine the active dry yeast with the warm milk and water for 5 minutes, or until frothy, before you can add proceed with the recipe.
Pearl Sugar
Part of what makes a Belgian Liege waffle so special is the addition of pearl sugar. It translates to little bites of slightly crunchy, slightly caramelized sugary heaven. Pearl sugar is pretty difficult to find in the U.S., so I just order it on Amazon. The stuff isn’t exactly cheap, but it’s well worth it for a special occasion. If you don’t want to deal with that, you can also break up sugar cubes into smaller pieces. Not quite the same but close enough!
Cooking
Of course, these wouldn’t be Belgian waffles without a Belgian Waffle Iron! It might seem strange to cook dough instead of batter in a waffle iron, but it works beautifully. The pearl sugar starts to caramelize and can make a bit of a mess inside the waffle iron, so it’s a good idea to take a little wad of paper towels to wipe it down every few waffles. Just be careful not to burn yourself. Use heat resistant tongs (wood or silicone coated to avoid scratching the nonstick waffle iron surface) to remove the waffles to a baking sheet once cooked.
UPDATE: To those asking if you can use a regular waffle iron for this recipe, reader Judit recently gave it a try and reported, “definitely not disappointed!!! These are absolutely AMAZING!!!!” Check out her picture:
Make Ahead
The waffles can be kept warm in a 200°F oven until ready to serve.
If you want to freeze waffles, shave a minute or so off the cooking time so they won’t overcook when you reheat. Place the waffles on a baking sheet and pop into the freezer until solid. Remove to airtight containers and keep in the freezer for up to 2 months. Reheat in a 250°F oven, or until completely warmed through.
Toppings
The options for toppings are truly limitless here. My favorites include:
-Nutella (duh!)
-Peanut butter
-Cookie butter (see my post for making DIY Cookie butter here)
-Salted caramel
-Dulce de Leche
-Fruit (strawberries, bananas, and raspberries are my go-to’s)
-Whipped cream (always homemade)
-Ice cream
-Cinnamon sugar
-Lemon curd
Belgian Liege Waffles
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup whole milk, lukewarm
- 1/3 cup water, lukewarm
- 3 teaspoons instant yeast
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature and beaten
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 3 2/3 cups (16.5 ounces) bread flour
- 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (8 ounces) pearl sugar (or sugar cubes, broken into pieces)
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the milk, water, yeast, eggs, honey, vanilla, sugar, and salt. Mix until well combined.
- On low speed, add in all but 1 cup of flour and mix until combined. On low speed, add the butter, one cube at a time, thoroughly kneading in each addition and scraping down the bowl as needed before adding in any more butter. Once all the butter has been incorporated, add the remaining flour and knead on low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
- Remove the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled, about 2 hours. Punch the dough down, cover again with plastic, and place in the fridge overnight or up to 24 hours.
- When ready to cook, heat up a Belgian waffle iron. Remove the dough from the fridge and knead in all of the pearl sugar. Divide the dough into 10 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
- Place first ball of waffle dough on grid and cook according to waffle maker’s instructions. Cook until deeply golden all over, about 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully transfer with tongs or a fork to baking sheet.
- Keep waffles warm in a 200°F oven if you plan to eat them right away. These waffles must be served warm or the pearl sugar will harden. Freeze any leftover waffles and reheat in a 200°F oven until warmed through.
Tessa, could you use hald-and-half, buttermilk or yogurt in place of the milk? Its quarantine and what do you know I am wanting to make these but out of milk. I have other three ingredients for a sub but would love your insight! Thank you.
This recipe was wonderful! I didn’t have my mixer so I did it by hand, took a bit of time but was doable! I also used a regular waffle iron because that’s all I had, but no issues! Loved the complexity of the flavors and the texture!
Quick Question
Can I also freeze the dough balls?
It’s wonderful !
These are definitely worth the trouble! We like them plain as is, they are sweet enough and do not need toppings. But, top if you must!
Hey Tessa, I have not made these yet. I am gluten intolerant so I can’t use the bread flour. When I bake I use a blended flour called cup 4 cup, but I’ve never used a recipe that calls for bread flour. I am wondering if you have ever made these gluten free? Thank you!
I followed this exact recipe, but I only added only 1 cup of pearl sugar and then rolled the dough out flat when I was done. I then buttered the flattened dough with 4oz butter, added about a quarter cup of sugar and copious amount of cinnamon, rolled it tight, cut into roughly 1/2” pieces, and pressed into the waffle iron to create Liege-style Waffle Cinnamon Rolls.
I then discovered that heaven is real. 🙂
F.a.b. recipe! I used my thermomix as I broke the kitchenmaid! and it was all fine. I also used ear buds to clean off the sticky toffee residue after using the machine! will quickly become a family favourite I am sure
For someone who promotes using science in their cuisine, this is a recipe ripped from the cradle of convention and the summit of superstition. Lukewarm milk? Just add more water, and another ounce of butter, and same diff. Milk does nothing, chemically, or otherwise, to condition the dough.
You can use Nutiva’s coconut/red palm shortening instead of butter, and you get a much lighter, happier and heart-healthier waffle, that’s also available for anyone to eat, including vegans..
To keep the sweet down and the fiber up, how about subbing that “light brown sugar” with coconut sugar? It makes for a delicate sweet, instead of mainlining white sucrose with a little molasses for color. Much healthier. The honey serves no purpose, unless you’re using a strong honey, like a chestnut, which imparts flavor. Otherwise, add just a little more nutty-wonderful coconut sugar.
You should be integrating the dry ingredients first, so they distribute evenly. Then go for the fats, to help them bind into the flour well and integrate them into the gluten in the bread flour more thoroughly. Then when you add your yeast, liquids, and eggs, you get a dough that goes elastic much more solidly. because the breakdown of gluten has already started, and the liquids then distribute the yeast very evenly across the dough.
You’re using a fast-rising yeast. Just keep it about 80-85°F / 26-29°c and then use the dough hook at low speed to fold in Swedish pearl sugar. It can rest 10-15 minutes while your waffle iron is heating up. The whole business about the refrigerator and the two hours is gramma’s habit, not need. The waffles turn out just great. If they’re a touch stickier, then just grab some nitrile gloves to separate the dough.
You don’t need to roll it into those retentive little balls either. Liege waffles are best when they’re a little rough and tumble. Some bigger, some smaller. They’re so dense that your bigger, and smaller, eaters will thank you for giving them what they want.
Prep to serve: 40 minutes. Healthier. Scientifically more true to the process of yeast and gluten breads, which this is.
Thank you, Tessa, for presenting a practical, delicious recipe. I followed your recipe for a friend’s birthday and the waffles were superb. I threw the dough together the night before the event and it was sooo easy to cook the waffles up for brunch. Also, thank you for using practical methods and simple ingredients. Please continue to leave fussy ingredients like ‘red palm shortening’ and ‘coconut sugar’ to the pedants.
Why wouldn’t you bother to read through the directions before starting to make it? XD
Why is this recipe labeled as American cuisine? It’s even got the damn Belgian town of origin in the name…
Hi Danielle – we recently switched recipe formatting tools and this was probably an oversight. I’ve fixed it now 🙂
Good recipe, but may need 4 cups of bread flour instead of 3 2/3 in order to get elasticity in the dough.