Beignets
These really are delicious you will need to make more than you think. You serve dusted with vanilla sugar or icing sugar. A little unorthodox I like a mix of cinnamon and caster sugar for dipping and some chocolate sauce if you are feeling really indulgent.
Servings: 24 Beignets
Ingredients
- 500 gram Strong Bread Flour
- 350 ml cups lukewarm low-fat Milk
- 50 gram Vanilla Caster Sugar
- 1 large free-range Egg t room temperature, well beaten
- 2 tablespoons unslated Butter melted
- 1 Tablespoon dried Milk Powder
- 3 level teaspoons instant Active Dry Yeast
- ½ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
Making the Dough
- Using a stand alone counter top mixer with a dough hook, place milk, sugar, salt, egg, butter, milk powder, flour, and yeast in the bowl. Beat until smooth for around five minutes.
- Place the dough in a lightly-greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, then leave in warm place to prove for an hour. If you do not intend to make the beignets straight away, refrigerate the dough until well chilled and store in the fridge for up to twenty-four hours.
- ( Alternatively, transfer the freshly made dough into a lightly-greased clean glass bowl and put into the fridge immediately and leave overnight to slow prove ). You can also use a food processor pulsing the ingredients until smooth or by following the manufacturer’s instructions prepare in a bread machine using the dough only setting.
Making the Beignets
- Preheat a deep fryer or large pot of vegetable oil to 360 F / 180 C. A small cube of white bread will quickly turn golden brown in the oil at this heat.
- Remove the prepared dough from the refrigerator and roll out on a lightly-floured board to 1 1/2 cm thickness. Using a sharp knife, cut dough into approximately 5 cm squares.
- Carefully slide the dough pieces slowly into the hot oil, to avoid splattering. Fry two to three beignets for a couple of minutes or until they are puffed and golden brown on both sides. Use a spider or tongues to turn them in the oil to get them evenly brown.
- The beignets will rise to the surface of the oil as soon as they begin to puff. Remove from oil and drain on absorbent kitchen toweling.While the beignets are still warm, sprinkle heavily with the vanilla sugar.
