More Fried Desserts
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If you wait all year long to enjoy delicious (read: fried) carnival food, then this homemade funnel cake recipe is for you. Skip the lines and make this easy dessert right at home, with only a handful of ingredients you most likely have on hand. Trust us—we were shocked at just how easily these came together. One bite, and you’ll be transported straight to your favorite fair vendor or boardwalk.
If you’re new to frying, don’t stress—these funnel cakes are simple to make, and a great way to start out on your homemade fried food journey. Read on for everything you need to know to perfect them:
Start off by whisking the dry ingredients—flour, baking powder, and salt—together in a medium bowl. Then, in a large bowl, add milk, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla and whisk briskly to combine. We are looking for a smooth, homogeneous liquid here. When the wet ingredients have come together, slowly add in the dry ingredients, whisking gently as you do, until there is no visible flour. Be careful here not to over-whisk, as this could actually take air out of the dough, resulting in a too-dense tangle of fried dough. Then set the bowl aside and allow the batter to sit for 10 minutes before transferring it into a piping or ziplock bag.
After preparing the batter, pour 1" of vegetable oil into a large cast iron pan and heat on medium heat until a candy thermometer set in the oil reads 375°. If you don’t have a candy thermometer you can test the oil with the flour test I mentioned earlier, or by simply squeezing in a small dollop of batter and allowing it to fry. When you are happy with the temperature of your oil, cut a ½" hole in your piping or ziplock bag and squeeze about ¼ cup of batter into the hot oil in a spiraling circular pattern. Fry the dough until golden on both sides, flipping halfway through, 3 to 4 minutes in total. When both sides are golden and cooked through, remove the cake from the oil and place it on a paper towel lined plate to drain and cool slightly.
While still warm, dust the top of the funnel cake with powdered sugar. Dusting while warm and still glistening with residual oil allows for the powdered sugar to stick to the fried dough. An easy way to get that fine dusting we are looking for is to pour the powdered sugar into a fine mesh sieve, sometimes also called a tea strainer, and tap the edge of the sieve to release a controlled dusting of powdered sugar evening across the top of the cake.
Full list of ingredients and directions can be found in the recipe below.
I like to serve funnel cakes with the classic dusting of powdered sugar to replicate the staple state fair treat, but I also love covering these with a dollop of our easy raspberry jam or drizzling them with hot fudge sauce. Looking to get creative? Try our Flamin’ Hot Cheetos funnel cake!
(240 g.) all-purpose flour
baking powder
Pinch kosher salt
(340 g.) whole milk
(40 g.) packed light brown sugar
large eggs
pure vanilla extract
Vegetable oil, for frying
Powdered sugar, for garnish
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