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Only on the internet do foods like baked salad and pizza french toast become a thing. Historically, social media users like to experiment with nontraditional cooking methods. That’s why I didn’t even bat an eye when a reader requested that I put cinnamon rolls in my waffle maker to make “cinnamon roll waffles.”
I figured this must be a TikTok hack.
And I was kind of right.
While the food trend has been exacerbated by the platform, it actually predates TikTok. Redditors discussed this mashup back in 2012 in what is perhaps one of the earliest references to it. And Kendall and Kylie Jenner apparently love to cook their cinnamon rolls (or waffles?) this way, sharing that they did so in 2014 and 2017, respectively. For reference, TikTok was launched in 2016.
Needless to say, cinnamon roll waffles have been around for a while. And my sweet tooth and I were so excited to give them a try.
How to make cinnamon roll waffles
I made half of the cinnamon rolls the old-fashioned way (in the oven) and half in the waffle maker so that I could compare the two cooking methods.
To cook them in the waffle maker, I first hit my machine with some cooking spray. And yes, I have a Texas waffle maker. I swear waffles being Texas-shaped makes them taste better. This isn’t just a me thing; there’s research to back up that shape does influence taste. That’s probably part of the reason why you may think those seasonal Reese’s Peanut Butter treats taste better or why dino nuggets are superior to regular chicken nuggets.
Due to Texas’ unfortunate shape, fitting several cinnamon rolls in my maker proved to be challenging, and I ended up having to make my cinnamon roll waffles one-by-one. (Some people can fit up to four rolls in their waffle maker at a time). I then let them cook for 1 minute each. Two minutes was far too long and resulted in burnt waffles.
All the while, I had the icing cup that comes in the Pillsbury container softening in some warm water. Once runny enough, I then treated the icing as a syrup and poured that on top of the waffles.
Ratings
Difficulty rating: 1/10. Popping store-bought cinnamon rolls into an oven is easy enough. But this method was not just easy; it was also extremely quick. They took under 5 minutes in the waffle maker, whereas the oven method takes 13 to 18 minutes. They are a tad messier than oven cinnamon rolls or even regular waffles, though. I was cleaning gooey cinnamon residue out of the crevices of my waffle maker when all was said and done.
Taste rating: 10/10. I surprised myself here. I went into this recipe thinking there’s no way this unconventional method would outperform such a tried-and-true one. But I actually prefer these to oven-baked cinnamon rolls. I was afraid these were going to be too crispy, but the texture was just right. They were still soft on the inside with a tiny bit of crisp on the outside. I also enjoyed the icing-to-bread ratio on these; the icing more evenly coats the waffle.
Would I make this again?: I don’t know if the inside of my oven will ever see a cinnamon bun ever again.
And if you’re more of a savory person, I’m pleased to let you know that mac and cheese waffles also exist.
Let us know if you plan to try cinnamon roll waffles and what you want to see us try next.
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