Saturday, September 17, 2016

Beignets #Recipe @PegCochran

This week a lot of mystery writers are attending Bouchercon--an annual mystery writer/editor/agent/publisher conference.  It's being held in New Orleans and my Facebook feed is filled with people talking about beignets, eating beignets and pictures of beignets.

What are beignets?  They are a sort of fried doughnut and a specialty of New Orleans--no visit is complete without at least one!  The best place to get them is at the Cafe du Monde which is always crowded with people drinking coffee and eating beignets.  

Since I didn't get to go to Bouchercon (although I did make my fourth trip to New Orleans in June), when I happened upon this beignet mix in the grocery store, I decided to make my own!

I know it's cheating to use a mix...but the real challenge is in rolling these out and frying them...and waiting long enough for them to cool so you don't burn your mouth when you eat them!

So...start with a box of Cafe du Monde beignet mix (available by mail order).  Add water.

 
Put a good bit of flour on your counter and roll out your dough to about 1/8 inch thick.  I found it was a little sticky but by dusting with flour, it was fine.  (I did divide the recipe because if I'd made the entire recipe we'd be eating way too many beignets!


Cut dough into squares--more or less.  Mine weren't even but they still worked and still tasted good!  One cup of mix made about a dozen beignets.

  Heat a couple of inches of oil in a pan to 370 degrees (use a thermometer to check your temp--it took a lot longer to heat up than I expected.)

 Drop two or three squares of dough into the hot oil--I found using a metal spatula to get them off the counter worked best.  My squares sometimes stretched out to unusual shapes but that didn't in any way affect the deliciousness of the beignets!

When the beignets have risen to the top and turned golden brown on both sides, remove from the hot oil.  Dust with powdered sugar while still warm.  You can't eat the beignets at Cafe du Monde without coming away awash in powdered sugar so don't hold back!

 
I started out using my powdered sugar shaker and finally resorted to pouring powdered sugar into a mesh strainer.  You want PLENTY of sugar!

 They are so, so good!





BON APPETIT!

ET LAISSEZ LES BONS TEMPS ROULER!

LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL!

And for your reading pleasure...No Farm, No Foul is now available!

An RT Magazine TOP PICK!  NOW ONLY $6.11 ON AMAZON




On her blog, The Farmer’s Daughter, Shelby McDonald is growing her audience as she posts recipes, gardening tips, and her experiences raising two kids and running Love Blossom Farm in the small western Michigan town of Lovett.

Working the farm is demanding but peaceful—until that peace is shattered when the minister’s wife is murdered on Shelby’s property during a fund-raiser for a local church. But the manure really hits the fan when Shelby’s good friend veterinarian Kelly Thacker emerges as the prime suspect. Shelby decides to dig in and find the murderer by herself. As more suspects crop up, she’ll have to move fast—before someone else buys the farm. . . .

10 comments:

  1. thanks for sharing the recipe Peg--now those of us who didn't go don't have to pout! and you are right, all the people in photos are covered with powdered sugar!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was convinced I could eat one without getting sugar on myself...I was wrong! Besides, I think it's part of the experience!

      Delete
    2. Great recipe Enjoying some now @cafedumomdenola w/@Bouchercon 2015 mystery authors

      Delete
    3. Great recipe Enjoying some now @cafedumomdenola w/@Bouchercon 2015 mystery authors

      Delete
  2. Ah, Beignets are the BEST, light, fluffy and comvered with powdered sugar, I mean what else could you want? I make regular trips to a local resturant (Hattie's Chicken Shack) for their Beignets! I am so glad to hear the Cafe Du Monde mix works well, but I don't know if my diet could survive it, LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm pretty sure they did serious damage to my diet, but they were oh so worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. What is it about fried goodies that makes them so irresistible?!
    Yum!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've always wanted to try these, I guess now is the time! Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Those things are so good! (Sez me after not one but two trips to the Cafe du Monde.)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Those things are so good! (Sez me after not one but two trips to the Cafe du Monde.)

    ReplyDelete