Thursday, March 11, 2010
Beautiful Beignets! :)
While originating in France, and being the official doughnut of Louisiana, this powdered deep fried fritter has thankfully made its next stop in the East Bay.
Powderface of Oakland has perfected the Beignet and offers this sweet treat daily. With Plenty of powdered sugar your craving is sure to be satistfied. All Beignets are made to order, and are best cosumed with a large coffee.
Making your own beignets is not as daunting of a task as one would think. Foodchannel.com offers this recipie that will make home feel just like Cafe du Monde. The Blueberry sauce adds a fantastic kick!
Whether you try at home, or sample Powderface, Beignets are a perfect delicacy.
Ingredients
FOR THE BLUEBERRY SAUCE: 4 pints fresh blueberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups water
FOR THE BEIGNETS: 1 cup warm milk (about 105 to 115 degrees F)
1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
2 medium eggs
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups (or more) all-purpose flour
Solid vegetable shortening (for deep-frying)
Powdered sugar
Preparation
1FOR THE BLUEBERRY SAUCE: Puree all ingredients in food processor until smooth. Strain through fine sieve into heavy medium saucepan. Season sauce to taste with more sugar, if necessary. Simmer sauce over medium-low heat until syrupy, about 20 minutes.
2DO-AHEAD TIP: Sauce can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.
3FOR THE BEIGNETS: Combine milk and yeast in large bowl; let stand until yeast dissolves, about 5 minutes. Whisk in eggs and melted butter. Add 3 cups flour and stir to form moist sticky dough.
4Knead dough on floured work surface, incorporating flour as necessary, until dough is smooth and elastic, and no longer sticky, about 10 minutes. Form into ball. Lightly oil same large bowl; place dough in bowl. Cover with kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let dough rise until doubled in bulk, about 40 minutes.
5Heat shortening in deep fryer to 325ºF.
6Transfer dough to floured work surface. Punch dough down; cover with kitchen towel and let stand for about 15 minutes. Sprinkle dough with flour. Using rolling pin, roll out dough into 12-inch square. Using pizza cutter, trim edges slightly to form perfect square. Cut dough crosswise into 4 equal strips. Cut each strip into 6 pieces, forming 24 rectangles total.
7Working in batches, fry dough rectangles in hot oil until golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Using slotted metal spoon, transfer beignets to paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain.
8Arrange 3 beignets on each of 8 plates. Ladle blueberry sauce over and around beignets. Generously sprinkle powdered sugar over beignets. Alternatively, place beignets on platter. Generously sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve blueberry sauce alongside.
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