Homemade Churros Recipe
>> Saturday, June 25, 2011
So, Thursday night this past week was Mexican night at our house. I wasn't feeling very good all day (pregnancy crap, AGAIN) and didn't feel like cooking anything for dinner. In fact, the only thing I got accomplished on Thursday was a quick trip to the grocery store. To most of my friends who think I'm "super mom" and do 50 million things a day, I realize this might be shocking; I know. But really, my house was a mess and I needed to do laundry, but I just didn't have it in me to do those tasks. But we were out of milk and eggs, so a trip to the grocery store was necessary.
Anyway, I saw some Taco Shells on sale at the grocery store and realized that I think my older son had only had tacos one other time in his life. They are so easy to make, but I never think of it. So, I bought the shells and already had everything else I needed.
That afternoon as I was prepping everything for dinner, I took a quick break to look at my blog feed. You know, 'cause I'm addicted. I found a Homemade Churro recipe that I thought looked good. I have made curros before, but they weren't the greatest and I thought it was time for a new recipe.
Um, these were delicious! I'll spare you photos of the process because Joy the Baker does such a wonderful job. Check out her post and her notes on how the process works. They are easy, but like she said, there were several times in the process I thought I had ruined it. She made a dark chocolate sauce for dipping, but I didn't and I think they were still wonderful. This also made more than our family could eat at once and they really don't keep well overnight (I tried, by golly). So find a friend and share them :)
Here's the recipe:
Homemade Churros and Hot Dark Chocolate
makes about 20 small churros, from The NY Times
canola or vegetable oil, for frying
1/2 cup, plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
Add enough oil to a large saucepan or deep skillet to measure 2-inches deep. Attach a candy/deep fry thermometer to to side of the pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cups sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter, water, 1 tablespoon of sugar and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and add flour all at once. Quickly stir together with a spatula until no lumps remain, and the mixture begins to form a ball. This will take about 30 to 45 seconds. Remove from heat and place loose dough ball in a large bowl.
With a spatula, beat the eggs into the dough one egg at a time. The mixture may appear to be a broken mess, but keep stirring. Keep the faith.
After the eggs are added, the mixture will be slightly gummy and slightly thick. That’s perfect.
Spoon batter into a large pastry, or strong Ziplock bag with a Aceto 829 (large open star) tip attached.
Heat the oil, over medium heat, to 350 degrees F.
Carefully pipe about 4 inch long dough segments into the hot oil. Use a pair of kitchen sheers to cut the dough from the star tip. It’s hard not to splash yourself with hot oil, just be as careful as possible.
Fry dough for 5 to 7 minutes. This might seem like a long time, but the dough through the center needs to cook through. The churros will be a deep golden brown, and may split slightly when cooked. Keep an eye on the timer. Remove churros from hot oil and place on a paper towel. After slightly de-greased, toss in cinnamon sugar mixture and place on a plate to serve.
1/2 cup, plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
Add enough oil to a large saucepan or deep skillet to measure 2-inches deep. Attach a candy/deep fry thermometer to to side of the pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cups sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter, water, 1 tablespoon of sugar and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and add flour all at once. Quickly stir together with a spatula until no lumps remain, and the mixture begins to form a ball. This will take about 30 to 45 seconds. Remove from heat and place loose dough ball in a large bowl.
With a spatula, beat the eggs into the dough one egg at a time. The mixture may appear to be a broken mess, but keep stirring. Keep the faith.
After the eggs are added, the mixture will be slightly gummy and slightly thick. That’s perfect.
Spoon batter into a large pastry, or strong Ziplock bag with a Aceto 829 (large open star) tip attached.
Heat the oil, over medium heat, to 350 degrees F.
Carefully pipe about 4 inch long dough segments into the hot oil. Use a pair of kitchen sheers to cut the dough from the star tip. It’s hard not to splash yourself with hot oil, just be as careful as possible.
Fry dough for 5 to 7 minutes. This might seem like a long time, but the dough through the center needs to cook through. The churros will be a deep golden brown, and may split slightly when cooked. Keep an eye on the timer. Remove churros from hot oil and place on a paper towel. After slightly de-greased, toss in cinnamon sugar mixture and place on a plate to serve.
