Chocolate Greek Yogurt Waffles (Fluffy, High-Protein + Freezer-Friendly)

The Story Behind This Recipe

My kids have watched me make the Greek yogurt waffles on this site enough times that they wanted to create their own version. My son wanted chocolate. My daughter agreed immediately. They stood at the counter with my husband and tested the cocoa powder amount, tasted the batter, debated toppings.

The result is a chocolate waffle that tastes like something you’d order at a brunch spot — rich, slightly fudgy inside, crispy on the outside, and actually filling because of the Greek yogurt and einkorn flour. We eat them with whipped cream and strawberries on the weekend and pull them from the freezer on school mornings.

What Makes These Worth Making

The Greek yogurt does the same thing in this recipe that it does in the original waffle recipe on this site. It reacts with the baking soda and baking powder to give the batter a lift that produces a thick, fluffy waffle with a slightly crispy exterior. It also adds protein that makes these filling in a way that most store bought waffles don’t.

The cocoa powder is the only change from the base recipe and it changes the whole character of the waffle. Half a cup of cocoa gives you a deep chocolate flavor throughout without making the waffles overly sweet — the 2 tablespoons of maple syrup in the batter keeps the sweetness subtle so they work with any topping from plain butter to full whipped cream and berries.

They freeze just as well as the strawberry version and come out of the toaster tasting freshly made.

Key Ingredient Notes

All-purpose einkorn flour. 2 cups — Jovial Foods all-purpose einkorn. It produces a tender, slightly nutty waffle that works well with the cocoa. Spoon lightly into the cup and level off rather than scooping from the bag.

Cocoa powder. ½ cup. Use a good quality unsweetened cocoa — the cocoa is the whole flavor here so it’s worth using one you’d be happy with. Dutch process cocoa produces a deeper, smoother chocolate flavor. Natural cocoa is slightly more acidic and brighter. Both work.

Baking powder and baking soda. 1 tablespoon baking powder plus ½ teaspoon baking soda. Both leaveners working with the acidity of the Greek yogurt produce the rise that makes these waffles thick and fluffy.

Greek yogurt. 1 cup, full-fat plain. The ingredient that makes these filling and fluffy rather than flat and forgettable.

Organic whole milk. 1½ cups. Combined with the Greek yogurt it creates a batter with the right consistency to spread on the waffle maker without being too thin or too thick.

Melted organic butter. ⅓ cup. Adds richness and gives the exterior that slightly crispy, golden finish. Coconut oil works as a dairy-free substitute.

Three large eggs. Structure, richness, and lift.

Vanilla extract. 2 teaspoons. It deepens the chocolate flavor and rounds out the cocoa.

Organic maple syrup. 2 tablespoons in the batter. Just enough background sweetness so the waffles taste complete without syrup. The kids eat them plain as a snack and they’re sweet enough on their own.

Variations and Substitutions

Add chocolate chips. Fold in ¼ cup of clean chocolate chips right before scooping for extra chocolate in every bite. Nestlé Simply or Enjoy Life both have clean ingredient lists.

Add peanut butter. Stir 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter into the wet ingredients. Chocolate and peanut butter waffles are as good as they sound.

Strawberry topping. Fresh sliced strawberries with a little honey over the top is what my kids use most often. The strawberry and chocolate combination is excellent.

Dairy-free. Swap the Greek yogurt for coconut yogurt, the whole milk for oat milk, and the butter for melted coconut oil.

Regular flour. Use 1¾ cups of regular all-purpose flour. Slightly less than the einkorn amount since regular flour is denser.

How to Make Chocolate Greek Yogurt Waffles

1. Whisk the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the 2 cups all-purpose einkorn flour, ½ cup cocoa powder, 1 tbsp baking powder, and ½ tsp baking soda until combined and no cocoa clumps remain.

2. Add the wet ingredients. Add the 1½ cups whole milk, 1 cup Greek yogurt, ⅓ cup melted butter, 2 tsp vanilla, 3 large eggs, and 2 tbsp maple syrup directly to the bowl. Mix together well. A few clumps are fine.

3. Heat the waffle maker. Preheat and grease lightly with butter or avocado oil spray if it’s not non-stick.

4. Cook the waffles. Pour a heaping ¼ cup of batter onto each waffle slot. Close the lid and cook for about 6 minutes until steam has mostly stopped coming from the sides. The right amount of batter will vary slightly depending on your waffle maker size.

5. Cool on a wire rack. Transfer each waffle to a wire rack rather than stacking. Stacking traps steam and makes the exterior soft.

6. Serve immediately with butter, maple syrup, whipped cream, strawberries, or whatever your family loves.

How to Freeze and Reheat

To freeze: Let the waffles cool completely on a wire rack. Lay flat in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for 2 hours until firm. Transfer to a freezer-safe Ziploc bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 2 months.

To reheat crispy: Place frozen waffle in the toaster and toast 45 seconds to 1 minute. The exterior comes back crispy and it tastes close to fresh.

To reheat soft: Wrap in a paper towel and microwave 30 to 45 seconds. Faster and good for a quick school morning snack.

Anna’s Tips

Don’t overmix. Mix until just combined and stop. A few clumps are fine. Overmixing toughens the waffle.

Let the batter rest 2 to 3 minutes before the first waffle goes in. The leaveners start working immediately and a short rest helps.

Spoon the einkorn flour into the measuring cup and level off. Scooping from the bag packs in too much and makes dense waffles.

Cool on a wire rack, not a plate. Air circulates underneath and keeps the exterior crispy while you finish the batch.

Grease the waffle maker between batches even if it’s non-stick. Chocolate batter sticks more than plain batter.

Double the batch. The time difference between one batch and two is about 10 minutes of extra cooking. Worth it for two weeks of freezer breakfasts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my waffle batter seem thick? Einkorn flour and Greek yogurt together produce a thicker batter than conventional flour waffles. This is correct and produces a fluffier waffle. If it seems too thick to spread on the plates, add 2 tablespoons of milk and stir gently.

Can I use regular all-purpose flour? Yes. Use 1¾ cups of regular all-purpose flour instead of 2 cups of einkorn. The waffles will work well but won’t have the einkorn nuttiness.

Can I use Dutch process or natural cocoa? Both work. Dutch process produces a deeper, smoother chocolate flavor. Natural cocoa is slightly more acidic and brighter. Either is fine here.

How do I know when the waffle is done? Watch for the steam from the sides of the waffle maker to slow significantly. At that point the waffle is set. Six minutes is the starting point but different waffle makers run at different temperatures.

Is einkorn flour gluten-free? No. Einkorn contains gluten and is not safe for celiac disease.

Can I make the batter the night before? The batter is best used right after mixing. If you want to prep ahead, measure and whisk the dry ingredients the night before and combine with the wet ingredients in the morning.