13 Upgrades For The Best Frozen Waffles Of Your Life

The biggest problem with frozen waffles is that they don't always taste as good as homemade ones. But, the flavor can be enhanced with a few simple hacks. First, ditch the toaster. There are far better ways to crisp up a frozen waffle.

The first is this stovetop waffle hack from rapper Tyler, The Creator. Preheat a pan, and then butter each side of your frozen waffle. We recommend using Earth Balance if you need a dairy-free substitute. Briefly cook each side of your waffle for about 45 seconds.

Too easy? We agree! Upgrade this hack by adding sweet seasonings to your butter first. Some ideas include adding cinnamon and vanilla extract to sweetened butter or brown sugar and almond extract to unsweetened. In the fall, add your favorite pumpkin spice seasoning. You can also try popcorn seasonings, like caramel popcorn seasoning with salted butter, for a fun take on your grilled waffle!

You can also use frozen waffles as a substitute for sandwich bread, even in savory sandwiches. Leave your sweet tooth behind and try different waffle recipes, like a BLT.

Serve scrambled eggs, breakfast sausage, and melted cheese between two waffles. If you add smoked bacon, you've created a quick imitation of the old McDonald's McGriddle sandwich. Want another simple sandwich hack? Try a waffle Monte Christo! Start by making a French toast waffle. Then, add ham, turkey, and Gruyere cheese to your waffles for an elegant take on this sandwich.

If you've got mini frozen waffles, you can also make sliders. These mini sandwiches work well with saucy meats such as pulled pork, which pairs with the sweetness. Top your meat with fresh and tangy coleslaw and close up your slider with another waffle.

Waffle paninis? Yes, please! These work best with a combination of ham, turkey, bacon, or chicken pressed with soft cheese. A Thanksgiving dinner panini fits the bill well: turkey, cheddar cheese, and mayo mixed with cranberry. Chicken, goat cheese, apple, and honey mustard form another mouth-watering, waffle-panini combo!

Chicken and waffles are the ultimate comfort food in the South, but its history is complicated. The concept of waffles with meat may have come to America from Germany, the Pilgrims, or the Pennsylvania Dutch. And, fried chicken was likely brought here by Scottish slave owners and perfected by enslaved African in the South. As a dish, chicken and waffles did not exist until 1915 in Harlem, NY. The area's jazz musicians would play well past dinner service, except for at one club where they were offered breakfast and dinner at once. Over time, the dish was born!

Most people eat this recipe when they dine out due to its difficulty of making at home, but now you can easily make chicken and waffles at home in as little as 15 minutes. How? Just use frozen chicken tenders, frozen waffles, and honey or syrup. Cook the tenders as directed, grill the waffles on the stovetop, then assemble the dinner. Top it off with hot honey sauce for extra flavor, and voilà! You've just made a freezer meal into a delicious, restaurant-style dish. Try swapping out a spicy, hot honey for a flavor with a little Southern kick.

If this title made your mouth water, you're not alone. Frozen waffles are the perfect base for easy churros because they go so well with cinnamon sugar. Almost every culture boasts its own fried dough recipe, so the exact origins of churros are not easy to track. But most of us think of churros as a fun, Spanish dessert ... and that's right, too!

This simple dish is even easier if you make your churros with frozen waffles. Use a plain brand or try cinnamon waffles to amplify the flavor. You can also try flavors, like blueberry waffles. First, slice defrosted waffles into sticks the width of the churros. 

Normally, churros are deep-fried, but for those of us wanting a sweet treat without all of the oil, use your air fryer instead. Set it to 355 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the waffles stick on a tray or parchment and coat with a few drops of healthy oil, such as coconut or avocado, and add a little cinnamon. Of course, if you're using cinnamon waffles, you won't need to add more! Air fry for two or three minutes on each side. 

Mix cinnamon and sugar at a ratio of 1:2. You can also use a sugar replacement, like Stevia or erythritol, but be sure to adjust the measurement. Once the waffle churros cool, toss them in the sugar mixture until they are well coated. We recommend a nice chocolate sauce or fruit compote for dipping.

Rather than sitting under your food, waffles can be a topper, like when it's the main ingredient in a crumble. Pulse your toasted waffles just a little bit less in the food processor than when making breadcrumbs for a thicker consistency. Again, you can use regular or cinnamon waffles, depending if you are going for a sweet or savory flavor. Add waffles crumbs, and any sweetener such as brown sugar, and mix with melted butter to keep them together. Blend in additions like granola or raisins for a healthy twist to top off a bowl of vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt.

Waffle croutons are another option for broken waffles. Toast and then slice them into cubes. Then, cook them with butter on your stovetop to ensure they stay crunchy in your salad. These go very well with vinegar-based salad dressings, giving a nice sweet flavor to your savory greens!

Finally, you can make your own sweet and salty snack mix by adding mini-pretzels, nuts, popcorn, and whatever else you like to cooked waffle croutons.

Can you eat waffles cold? Yes, but you should cook them first because you can get sick from eating frozen waffles that have been defrosted but are not cooked. Opening a box of waffles exposes it to air, which can cause bacteria contamination. Even after returning them to the freezer, you're not safe. Bacteria can live at freezing temperatures, according to Day Mark Safety Systems.

To avoid this issue when making a frozen dessert, cook waffles with your preferred method and then refreeze them. Once frozen, you can take them out and add ice cream or frozen dessert to create a traditional ice cream sandwich. Remember that the longer you toast, fry, or bake them, the more firm they become, which is better to keep your sandwich intact.

Another great option is ice cream cake. Most of these are made with a pie crust base. But, it's even simpler to create an icebox cake with your pre-cooked frozen waffles. You can layer your mini-cake with multiple layers of ice cream and top each with a waffle. Once complete, decorate the outside with whipped cream or frosting. Top off with berries, nuts, and chocolate or caramel syrup. This is a perfect solution when you want a cake that only serves one or two people, but you can also line up square waffles in a baking dish to make a larger cake.

We can't think of a better comfort food combination than waffles and casseroles. Most recipes are a take on chicken and waffles. We like spicier version with honey and hot sauce for a nice bit of sweetness and heat. First, cook and cube your chicken. Next, toast your waffles to get them nice and crispy before cutting them into cubes. This bake includes eggs, milk, hot sauce, cheese, and honey and can be garnished with green onions, cilantro, and jalapeños for additional heat. You can do this entire recipe, from stovetop to baking, in a cast iron skillet for a real down-home taste!

But, we think the best combination is a decadent breakfast casserole, like maple sausage, eggs, and waffles. This is the kind of dish you'll get up early to eat! You'll use cubed frozen waffles, cooked maple sausage, and shredded cheddar, dispersing them over two alternating layers in your casserole. Then, whip up your eggs to add to this dish. Refrigerate for at least an hour before baking. You can also prep this ahead of time to bake in the morning. Some awesome variations of this include using maple bacon or Canadian ham in place of sausage, too. Finish it with a drizzle of hollandaise sauce!