Mardi Gras!

Sweet dough and PC tools

There's definitely a reason to call it Fat Tuesday...I realized this as I watched my sweet, yeast-filled dough puff in a hot boiling pot of oil!  Yep, it's beignet time again.

Like I mentioned earlier, there is an official mix produced by Cafe Du Monde.  I've never tried this, but have an inkling that it's probably a mixture of the dry ingredients included in many beignet recipes.  Speaking of recipes, you already know how much I love Allrecipes.com.  When looking at my favorite beignet recipe, I came across another that's just slightly different.  The results, however, were definitely more satisfying.

Ready for powdered sugar

Note to self: must buy a good spider from Williams-Sonoma.  It would be infinitely handy in my beignet production!

Spider skimmer from WS

COSTAS FRENCH MARKET DOUGHNUTS (Beignets)

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup water 1 tablespoon yeast 1/4 cup shortening 1/2 cup sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup boiling water

1 cup evaporated milk 2 eggs, beaten 7 1/2 cups flour 1 quart vegetable oil for frying 1 cup confectioners' sugar for dusting

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Pour 1/2 cup room temperature water into a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let stand for about 5 minutes to dissolve.
2.	Combine the shortening, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Pour the boiling water over the shortening mixture and then stir in the evaporated milk. Wait for the mixture to cool down until it is lukewarm. Then, add the yeast and water mixture and beaten eggs.
3.	Slowly mix in the flour until the dough forms a ball. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
4.	Working with a small portion (a little larger than a baseball) at a time, roll out the dough 1/8-inch thick. Cut the rolled out dough into strips 2 to 3-inches wide, then cut again in the opposite direction and at an angle, making diamond shapes.
5.	Heat your oil for frying in a deep and wide, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat to 360 degree F (180 degrees C).
6.	Slide dough slowly into the oil to avoid splattering and deep fry until they puff up and are golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Carefully remove onto a rack with paper towels underneath and allow to cool until you can handle them. Place in a clean paper bag with confectioners' sugar and shake gently until covered generously or, use a sifter to dust the beignets with powdered sugar.

Cafe au lait, anyone?

First batch of beignets...not Cafe du Monde, but not bad!

I'll admit, I've never been to Mardi Gras nor have I ever visited New Orleans.  (It's on my list.)  However, I love all things Cajun and Creole almost as much as I love jazz and Harry Connick, Jr.

Last year around Mardi Gras, I had the hankering for some beignets.  Not exactly something you can run to the bakery and buy (at least in Georgetown).  Now, I will say that if you live or work near downtown Lexington, Doodle's is your beignet fix!

The official mix from Cafe du Monde

What to do to satisfy this craving?  I know some markets actually carry the official Cafe du Monde beignet mix.  Again, I'm in Georgetown...so, to my fav cooking site Allrecipes.com!  (Have I mentioned how much I love this site?)   I found a pretty simple (if a beignet recipe can be simple), straightforward entry with a slew of great reviews.  Another thing I love about Allrecipes.com is that other folks try out the recipes listed and give feedback kind of like Amazon.com.  (I'm one of those nerds who loves to read reviews and ratings.)

The ingredients were simple enough.  The directions not too complicated.  I realized, though, that having a Fry Daddy would have been handy!  The result...not too bad!  Light, cripsy and sweet...and perfect with a hot cup of cafe au lait!


BEIGNETS
(from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F /45 degrees C) 1/2 cup white sugar 1 teaspoon salt 2 eggs

1 cup evaporated milk 7 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 cup shortening 1 quart vegetable oil for frying 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions:

1.	In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar, salt, eggs, evaporated milk, and blend well. Mix in 4 cups of the flour and beat until smooth. Add the shortening, and then the remaining 3 cups of flour. Cover and chill for up to 24 hours.
2.	Roll out dough 1/8 inch thick. Cut into 2 1/2 inch squares. Fry in 360 degree F (180 degrees C) hot oil. If beignets do not pop up, oil is not hot enough. Drain onto paper towels.
3.	Shake confectioners' sugar on hot beignets. Serve warm.

Bonjour, Petit Gateaux!

This is a bit of a back posting, but perhaps worth sharing....especially since I wasn't blogging in December!


My daughter's 9th birthday had a French twist!  After falling in love with the book Tales of Desperaux, she'd decided long before December that she wanted a French theme for her party.  Ok....how to do that?  We combined the ideas of the season, her favorite sport (ice skating) and this location to come up with "Winter in Paris".  Decorations - easy...winter stuff!  Thanks to my crafty niece, Daphne, for whipping up some cute Parisian touches.  (Check out her Etsy shop!)

Every kid's party seems to require an activity, craft, or some crazy arcade venture.  Our activity?  The kids became painters in their own French gallery.  A make-it, take-it project!   Viola...instant party favors - a finished painted 8 x 10 canvas!  Actually, supplies for this activity were cheaper than stuff I might have bought for a favor bag!  Thanks to a handy Granny, each young painter also received a pretty nifty beret!

Bon appetit!

But wait...there's more.  As part of the make-it, eat-it activity (after all...it is France), we opted for a create-your-own crepe bar!  The kids were able to make their own choices as to crepe toppings or fillings - fruit, chocolate chips, Nutella (of course), whipped cream.

For snacks, semi-traditional birthday fare.  The French twist here was adding labels with the French translation for the snack.  After all, wouldn't you rather have a petit gateaux than a cupcake?  Speaking of sweets, the cupcakes were lemon with buttercream frosting.  Also, I had made some pretty yummy strawberry cookies with cream cheese frosting...these were super easy and made from a cake mix!

All in all, a fun afternoon trip to the City of Lights.  A super fun way to celebrate a birthday and adding a little cultural flair at the same time!

Easy Strawberry Snowball Cookies

Strawberry Snowball Cookies
(adapted from an Allrecipes.com post)

Ingredients
2 eggs
1 package strawberry cake mix
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Directions
1. Mix together cake batter ingredients in large bowl or KitchenAid
2. Roll into 1" balls and set on ungreased or parchment covered cookie sheet
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 5-10 (Watch carefully during this stage.  I always wait for a crinkly-looking crust to appear.)
4.  Frost with homemade or store bought cream cheese icing.  Decorate as desired.