Preheat a round waffle maker. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Place a baking sheet fitted with a rack in the oven.
Make the batter according to the waffle mix package instructions. Separate the batter evenly among 6 bowls. Dye one bowl of batter with the red gel food coloring until you reach the desired shade. Repeat with each bowl of batter with the orange, yellow, green, blue and purple gel food coloring until you reach the desired shade and you have a separate bowl of each color.
To make rainbow pancakes: Transfer each color of batter to a separate piping bag or ziptop bag. When the waffle maker is hot, spray it with nonstick spray. Pipe a circle of each color batter, working from the outside to the center, starting with the red, followed by the orange, yellow, green, blue and finishing with the purple in the center (like a bullseye). Cook to desired crispness, about 3 minutes. Transfer the waffles to the baking sheet in the oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining batter.
To plate, cut each waffle in half to make half circles and transfer each half to a plate. Add whipped cream to the flat bottom of the waffle halves to look like clouds. Add your favorite rainbow sprinkles or rainbow rice cereal for more color. Drizzle with maple syrup, if using. Serve immediately with butter, if desired.
To make tie-dye waffles: Separate the batter evenly among 4 to 6 bowls, one bowl for each desired color. Dye each bowl of batter one color by adding 3 to 4 drops of food coloring until you reach the desired shade.
Transfer each color of batter to a liquid measuring cup for easy pouring. Make tie-dye designs by adding the batter to the waffle maker in a random pattern of your choosing. Cook to desired crispness, about 3 minutes. Transfer the waffles to the baking sheet in the oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Plate each waffle and serve with maple syrup and butter if desired. Serve immediately.
Cook’s Note
You can also use neon food coloring for the tie-dyed waffles. Any extra waffles can be cooled and then stored in a ziptop bag or resealable container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Frozen waffles can be reheated in a toaster oven.
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