Sunday, April 1, 2012

French Quarter Beignets - Recipe

I remember these from years ago, sitting in an outdoor cafe in New Ordeans where powdered sugar covered the floor of the cafe an inch thick. People eat these for breakfast, lunch or after dinner with strong coffee. It's basically a bread dough, not too sweet. I've put a twist on these and added Kaffir lime leaves, so that when you first bite into one, the escaping steam reminds me of the tropics. - Chef Robin

 This recipe base is taken from Paula Dean

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 envelope active dry yeast
  • 2 eggs, slightly beaten
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 1 cup evaporated milk
  • 7 cups bread flour
  • 3 Kaffir lime leaves, ground into small bits
  • 1/4 cup shortening
  • Oil, for deep-frying - I used peanut oil and vegetable shortening, equal proportions
  • 3 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions

Mix water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.
In another bowl, beat the eggs, salt and evaporated milk together. Mix egg mixture to the yeast mixture. In a separate bowl, measure out the bread flour. Add 3 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and stir to combine. Add the shortening and continue to stir while adding the remaining flour. Remove dough from the bowl, place onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Coat a large bowl with a light film of oil. Put dough into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a towel. Let rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours.
Preheat oil in a deep-fryer to 375 degrees F.
Add the confectioners' sugar to a paper or plastic bag and set aside.
Roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness and cut into 1-inch squares. Deep-fry, approx 5-7min, 3 min a side, until they become a golden color. After beignets are fried, drain them for a few seconds on paper towels, and then toss them into the bag of confectioners' sugar. Hold bag closed and shake to coat evenly.

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