Beignets are a traditional New Orleans pastry, which is fried choux paste. Choux paste is a dough where melted butter is combined with water, flour, and eggs. The resulting dough can be baked (ex – éclairs, cream puffs), boiled (for a different take on gnocchi), or fried, and seriously, how could you say no to frying?
To make the funnel cake, you need a piping bag (a Ziploc bag cut at the tip will work in a pinch), and it’s nice to have a heavy duty pan with a candy thermometer to help gauge the temperature of the oil (you want it at about 350 degrees). Also, when making the dough, two things to keep in mind. First, after adding the flour to the water/butter mixture, allow it to cool before adding the eggs, so you don’t scramble them. And also, after you add the eggs and start to mix it, it will look like the egg isn’t getting combined into the dough, just keep on mixing, and eventually a homogenous mixture will form.
Ingredients
Directions
1. Heat up 2-3 cups of oil in a heavy bottomed pot
2. Combine butter, water, and pinch of salt in pot, and melt butter over medium heat.
3. When fully melted, add all of the flour at once, and stir to combine, and cook for another minute or two to remove any floury taste. Set aside to cool (about 5-10 minutes should be fine)
4. Add egg and vanilla, and stir to combine. It will look like it doesn’t go, but keep on stirring and it will all come together.
5. When oil registers 350 it’s time for frying (if you don’t have a thermometer, you can a popcorn kernel, and when that pops, that’s pretty much the right temperature). Transfer your dough to a piping/Ziploc bag, and pipe the dough into the oil, making whatever shape you want, and cook for 2-3 minutes, flip, and finish off the other side.
6. When done, transfer to a cooling rack, and to go the extra mile, sprinkle either with confectionary sugar (which is what I did), or since you’re smarter than me (I just thought of this now, and wish I had thought of it then) sprinkle with the Bakto Vanilla Sugar.
This recipe was part of a series done using Bakto Flavors Products. To read full article and see other featured recipes using Bakto products click here.
