There is a great debate in our partnership when it comes to Beignets. To douse in a pound of confectioners sugar or to not. If this is your first time joining us here at The Pandemic Passport, first off, welcome! Secondly, my better half, Randy, doesn’t just have a sweet tooth. He has a sweet jaw. As I stated in my last New Orleans entry, I have not been fortunate enough to venture to New Orleans. Neither has Randy. But we have both made peace with the fact that when we do, this man of mine will most likely eat his weight in Beignets. And I’m perfectly ok with it. But what I love about Beignets is the light and airiness that comes along with the dough. What Randy loves about Beignets is the light and airiness that is then tossed in loads of confectioners sugar and topped with even more.
But the National Doughnut of Louisiana didn’t originate completely in that beloved state. Back in Ancient times in Rome, Dough was fried in Animal Fat and called Scriblita. The dough was moist and quite popular with the Europeans. However, the French created two different kinds of pastry dough including a Choux Pastry. A Choux pastry, as in a Pate Au Choux, is leavened with steam and not the aide of yeast for it’s rise. This Choux pastry is how a traditional Beignet was made. As also mentioned in my Louisiana Gumbo, the French migrated to Canada. Then from Canada, they headed down to Louisiana with many of their recipes. These became what we now know as Cajuns.
Beignets were one of those recipes that made the Great Migration down to the Bayou. Now, they are renown for being found in the French Quarter, especially at Cafe du Monde. This little restaurant has been serving up these little fried pillows of dough since 1862 in the original building that it stands in now on Decatur Street in the French Quarter. Alongside of 11 other locations in Louisiana, the Cafe Du Monde family also owns a few candy shops as well as gift shops. No trip to the French Quarter these days is complete without stopping for several Beignets and a cup of their equally famous Chicory coffee.
Nowadays, you can even find the boxed mix of the Cafe Du Monde Beignet mix in the baking aisle of the grocery store and the coffee in the Coffee aisle.
Ok so for those who can’t travel to New Orleans right now, including myself, and wants to do a little more then making a box mix, here we are. A recipe that you can make yourself to experience a little bit of the Bayou right in your own kitchen.
This recipe is pretty straight forward but does require the use of yeast and some time to let the dough rest. If it’s possible to do this the day before, I recommend it.
First off, let your yeast, sugar and warm water hang out for a bit. Roughly 10 minutes. The yeast is going to feed off the sugar and start to duplicate. This is what is going to give the beignets their fluffy texture.
Next, using a paddle attachment on your stand mixture, whip up your eggs. Once that is good, add in your vanilla, cinnamon and evaporated milk. Continue to mix until smooth.
Beat in 3 and 1/2 cups of bread flour. This is really important. It HAS to be bread flour. The gluten structure will hold up better for beignets and they will be lighter and more airy then if you use All Purpose Flour. AP Flour will leave you with a denser, heavier beignet. If you don’t think it makes a difference, trust me, it does.
Once the mixture is smooth, carefully and slowly, with your mixer on low, pour in the yeast mixture. After that has all combined, you can now add in your butter. Once that is incorporated, blend in the rest of your flour and mix to combine.
Now, cover your bowl tightly with plastic wrap and send the dough into the fridge. Let it rest for at least two hours or up to 24. This is really going to help the gluten structure develop and allow for chewy texture to appear.
In a dutch oven or thick bottomed pot, heat vegetable or peanut oil up to 350 degrees. As that is happening, roll out your dough to 1/4 inch thick rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Cut them into 3 inch squares.
Next to your frying pot, set up a wire rack and paper towels. Carefully lower a square of your dough into the fryer oil until it is submerged. Fry no more then 2 beignets at a time as they will adhere if crowded and not cook properly. Cook until golden brown on one side and then flip to do the other.
Now, if you don’t perfect squares, that’s ok. Although traditionally they are squares, it’s ok if they change shape while lowering them in the oil, mine did.
Once you drain them onto paper towels, immediately sprinkle or toss them with confectioners sugar. Serve immediately!
Beignets do require a little work but they are so worth it. The light, fluffy texture gives you the feeling that you are eating fried air when in actuality, you of course aren’t. The beignet is a perfect example of taking simple ingredients and turning them into an incredible treat. It’s proof that you don’t need to reinvent the wheel to make a delicious food item. Enjoy these with a cup of coffee or maybe even a scoop of ice cream. Either way, do it with pizazz as New Orleans really knows how to do.
Traditional New Orleans Beignets
Prep Time: 2 hours 15 minutes Cook Time: 5 minutes
Yield: Makes about 32 Beignets
- 1 ½ cup Warm Water (about 100-115ºF)
- 2/3 cup Sugar
- 2 ¼ tsp. Active Dry Yeast
- 2 ea. Large Eggs, room temperature
- 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1 cup Evaporated Milk
- 7 cup Bread Flour
- 1 ½ tsp. Salt
- 5 Tbsp Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
- 3 Qt Vegetable or Peanut Oil
- 2 cup Confectioner’s Sugar
PROCEDURE
- In a medium-size bowl, add the warm water, sugar, and yeast and whisk well to combine. Set aside for about 10 minutes, or until the mixture has bubbled up and become foamy.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs until smooth. Beat in the vanilla and evaporated milk. Beat in 3 and 1/2 cups of the flour until smooth. Turn the mixer to low speed and slowly pour in the yeast mixture; beat until smooth.
- Add in the butter and beat until incorporated. Finally, beat in the remaining 3 and 1/2 cups of flour and salt. Beat until dough is smooth and well blended for approximately 2 minutes.
- Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat a deep-fryer 350ºF. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Set up a a wire rack and paper towels to drain the beignets when they are finished frying.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a ¼ inch thick rectangle. Cut the dough into 3 inch squares.
- In batches, fry the dough until they puff up and are golden brown in color, about 1 minute, making sure to flip midway through to ensure even cooking. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the beignets to the prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.
- Sprinkle or toss the fried beignets with powdered sugar and serve immediately.