quick churro balls

April 7, 2007 at 8:24 pm | Posted in No-Bakes, Uncategorized | 10 Comments

i have been working on an essay for two days straight and it’s killing me. this afternoon i had a sudden craving for banana cake with cream cheese frosting, but obviously i can’t afford to do that right now since i still have 2200 more words to go. so i got hold of a magazine my mum bought a month ago. the section is called “in a flash” – piping hot snacks you can whip up in a jiffy when the kids, and the not-so-young, have sudden sweet cravings. walla, this is spot-on.

i first ate churros at, believe it or not, disneyland in los angeles. i was there on holiday with the aunt, uncle and cousin in december 1994. i remember us taking a break from the rides and off we trodded to a stall that sold warm cinnamon-sugar churros and piping hot chocolate. the winter was icy cold; by the time we got to our seat the hot chocolate turned cold! isn’t it amazing how food can evoke pretty memories?

these cuties are incredibly easy to make. the recipe called for the dough to be put into a piping bag, but since i wanted to cut corners, i just rolled it into balls of around 1 inch in diameter.

adapted from food & travel, march 2007

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 cup water
3 tbsp sugar
a pinch of salt
2 egg yolks
oil for deep frying
icing sugar, cinnamon powder an melted chocolate (optional) to finish

1. sift flour with baking powder.
2. bring water to a boil, and add sugar and salt. stir until dissolved.
3. remove water from heat and beat in the flour. beat continuously until you get a smooth batter. add egg yolks and beat until well-incorporated.
4. heat oil in a wok.
5. shape dough into small balls of around 1 inch in diameter. fry balls in hot oil until golden brown for about 3-4 minutes. drain on paper towel.
6. dust with icing sugar and cinnamon powder, and dip in melted chocolate if you like.

i will do nice proper long ones the next time round. 🙂