Easy Beignet Recipe NO YEAST from the French Countryside

Welcome to The Storied Recipe Podcast, a podcast about food, culture, and love.

This recipe for Beignets Without Yeast came from my podcast guest, Claire Marie Murray. Make sure you listen to her episode Tales from the French Countryside while you roll, cut, and fry these delicious pastries!   

I say Bugnes, you say Beignet! 

"Beignet" is the English translation of "bugnes" – a fluffy, golden, crispy, sweet treat, delicious by any name!

While New Orleans-style beignets are now made with yeast, French bugnes are still generally made without yeast.

Every town in France has its own variation of these pastries, but Bugnes Lyonnaises are the most famous of all.

However, these particular bugnes originated in the idyllic Loire Valley, just 4 hours from Lyon.

There in the Valley of the Kings, where castles are as common as mushrooms, Claire Marie learned to make these bugnes called Russeroles. Every year, Claire, her grandmother, and all their neighbors made Russeroles for Mi-Carême, a mini-carnival the region still celebrates halfway through the Lenten season. 

What To Expect (Flavor & Texture)

• These bugnes are like magic! You'll roll the yeast-free dough very, very thinly. But as soon as they drop into the hot oil - Surprise! The beignets puff up to 8 or 10 times their original height!
• Because they are made without yeast, these beignets are very fluffy, airy, and light on the inside. 
• They are not as chewy or dense as New Orleans-style beignets.
• A high ratio of eggs also creates a bit of a stretchy texture inside and a pleasant French toast flavor.
• Every crunchy bite begins with a little shot of sweetness. In French, bugnes are lightly sprinkled with granulated sugar. Here in the US, traditional beignets are dusted with powdered sugar. Your choice!

Can You Make Beignets Without Yeast? Isn't That A Critical Ingredient?

Three things give French bugnes their magical rise and pillowy interior:

• Baking powder: the main rising agent in Claire's russeroles and other French provincial bugnes (like Bugnes Lyonnaises). The baking powder also keeps the interior soft. 
  • (P.S. I’ve bought bad baking powder multiple times in my life. Although I’m not generally a brand name loyalist, the only baking powder I trust is Rumford Double Acting Baking Powder.)
• Eggs: This yeast-free beignet recipe calls for three eggs compared to just a single egg in typical New Orleans-style beignets. 
• Moisture: Some versions of French bugnes, and the earliest versions of New Orleans-style beignets, were made with choux pastry. Choux pastry dough is made with hot water. The dough is so wet, so it must be dropped, piped, or spooned into the hot oil. As the moisture heats and expands, the beignets rise. 
  • These Russeroles are not made with choux pastry. Nevertheless, the dough is quite sticky and wet. So they get a little lift from their high moisture content as well.  

Bread Flour or All Purpose Flour?

• Bread flour was designed to work hand in hand with yeast. Bread flour has more protein which develops into gluten as yeast causes the dough to rise.
• Many beignet recipes call for bread flour because those recipes are creating a yeasted dough and are relying on yeast for the rise.
• However, as explained above, these homemade beignets do NOT depend on yeast for their rise. So feel free to use all-purpose flour for these yeast free beignets .

Bugnes to Beignets: An Origin Story

Let's start with this acknowledgment: Fried dough is a pretty ubiquitous food. Every culture has some version of pastry cooked in hot oil! So it's almost impossible to trace the exact origin of French Bugnes -> American Beignets. With that said...

Ancient Origins

• French bugnes may date back to Roman donuts, called Globi or Scriblita.
• Some scholars argue that Arabs from the Muslim World taught Romans to add leavening to their fried dough. Before that, Roman donuts were thick and dense.

Rome to France

• In 53 AD, Romans conquered the south of current-day France. They brought their version of doughnuts with them.
• Towns throughout France began to develop their own versions, which they named "bugnes" - or "tumor" - for the way the dough swelled in the hot oil. (Personally, I liked the name better before I learned that!)

France to New Orleans

• There's debate on the time and manner in which the French brought their bugnes to New Orleans.
• The most popular version of the story is that the Ursuline order of French nuns brought these with them in 1727 when they established a school in New Orleans.
• However, many scholars agree that this is just a myth. They argue the persecuted French Acadians, who were driven out of Canada and found refuge in the Bayou, first introduced bugnes to New Orleans. 
• Bugnes became beignet ("Ben-YAY") in New Orleans. (That's why, in this post, I always refer to the French version as "bugnes" and the American version as "beignets".)

The Evolution of Beignets in New Orleans

• Once in New Orleans, Café du Monde quickly became the gold standard for these French treats. They used the American name "doughnuts" on their menu until the late 20th Century. Then, Café du Monde reverted to the more French-sounding "beignet".
• Around the same time, Café du Monde also began adding yeast to their beignet dough.
• Café du Monde was also responsible for pairing beignets with their famous version of Café au Lait – Chicory Coffee with milk.

More History! Beignets & Mardi Gras

Bugnes & Carnival

• For several centuries in the early Middle Ages, Carnival was an entire season that lasted between Epiphany (January 6th) and Lent (the 6 weeks of preparation for Easter). Everyday people enjoyed this season to the maximum.
• Later, Carnival became a one-week series of celebrations in France that culminated in Mardi Gras, translated as "Fat Tuesday". Fat Tuesday was the last day before Ash Wednesday, a day of fasting that kicked off the Lenten season of abstinence.
• During Carnival - and especially on Mardi Gras - people still indulge in fatty, sugary foods (and alcohol) in preparation for a season of abstinence (now many people simply indulge on Mardi Gras and do not follow their revelries with an observance of Ash Wednesday or Lent).

Beignets & Mardi Gras

• Now New Orleans is famous for both of these French traditions: Beignets and Mardi Gras. 

Russeroles & Mi-Carême

• In Claire Marie's region of the Loire Valley (The Valley of the Kings), the city breaks fast halfway through the Lenten Season to celebrate Mi-Carême together.
• Claire Marie's grandmother and her friends made these Russeroles - the Loire Valley's version of bugnes - to share and enjoy during this festival.

Key Ingredient: What is Rhum?

• Claire Marie's recipe calls for "Rhum" which is the French version of rum. It's made from sugar cane.
• However, when possible, Claire Marie's grandmother used "hooch", a homemade whiskey.
• With that said, I'd suggest adding whichever flavor of alcohol you prefer. You could even use vanilla extract, which also has a high alcoholic content.

How Do You Cut Out Beignets?

• Always work with a very well-floured surface. The dough is sticky!
• You may want to use parchment paper. If the dough sticks to parchment paper, you can turn it upside down and flip the beignets into your hand. You can't do that with a solid surface.
• Once rolled to 1/8 of an inch, trim the uneven edges so you have a perfect square or rectangle. Add the extra dough to one of the balls chilling in the fridge.

Diamonds or Squares? 

• American beignets are cut into squares. French beignets (Bugnes Lyonnaises, Russeroles, and others) are more typically cut into diamonds. 
• You sure can cut your dough into either shape. Both shapes will result in equally delicious beignets!
• It's easier to cut a rectangle into squares. 
• On the other hand, I think the diamonds look pretty cool!

If you choose to cut the dough into diamonds, use this diagram to help you:

• Start by notching the top edge of the dough into four equal sections. (First,  notch the middle. Then, divide each half into half.) Repeat on the bottom and sides.
• Then, "connect the dots" diagonally. First, cut corner to corner, then middle to middle, and finally, quarter to quarter.
• Cut diagonals in the other direction.
• Either fry the leftover triangles OR add them to the next ball of dough.

Equipment Options

• Metal whisk
• Food processor with a dough hook (optional)
• Sharp knife OR pastry cutter OR pizza cutter
• Enameled dutch oven OR large pot OR deep fat fryer
• Baking sheet
• Slotted spoon
• Candy thermometer

Can You Freeze Beignets?

• No, these really need to be eaten fresh. Nothing like a warm beignet!
• Cook with Belula suggests freezing the beignet dough. I have not tried this but I do trust Belula, who is a trained pastry chef.

Recipe Contributor: Claire Marie

Claire Marie Murray moved throughout France 15 times in 18 years. Eventually, her family of 12 settled near her grandmother in The Valley of the Kings.

Along this river valley, castles are as common as mushrooms and pine trees reach the sky.

However, as Claire-Marie explains, pain touches every person of every generation, even those living in the Valley of Kings. 

In this episode, Claire-Marie sets an example of redeeming our pain with empathy, and forgiveness and making things easier for those in our care. 

Listen to Claire Marie's Episode on The Storied Recipe Podcast

Learn more about Claire Marie and her grandmother's bugnes recipe in this episode

Recipe

Easy Beignet Recipe NO YEAST from French Countryside

How to make beignets without yeast, from an authentic French Russeroles Bugnes recipe. When this beignet dough hits the hot oil, it massively expands, resulting in light, crispy, and beautifully golden pastries.

4.75 from 16 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 2 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Course Baking

Cuisine Pies and Pastries, Western European

Servings 36 servings

Calories 163 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 3 Eggs
• 1 pinch Salt
• 1 tablespoon Sugar large tablespoon + more to sprinkle on top
• 120 g Butter very soft (1/2 cup or 1 stick)
• 12 g Baking powder (3 tsp)
• 200 g Flour (or 1.5 cups) *See Note 1
• 1 teaspoon French Rhum Replace with rum or whiskey
• 1/2 Liter Neutral Oil e.g. vegetable oil, canola oil, etc., for frying

Instructions

 

Cue Up The Episode!

• Make sure to listen to Claire-Marie on The Storied Recipe Podcast, Tales from the French Countryside while you make her Russeroles recipe!

Make The Recipe

• Whisk the eggs, sugar, butter, baking powder, flour and rhum.
• Lightly work the dough on a floured board. Knead a few minutes or until just past sticky. (Alternatively, you could use a food processor or a mixer with a dough hook.
• Form dough into a ball.
• Cover with plastic wrap. Chill and rest for at least an hour in the fridge.
• Divide the dough roughly into half. Leave the second ball in the fridge. (See Note 2)
• Liberally flour your surface. You may want to use parchment paper to make it easier to remove the diamonds later.
• Shape the dough into a rectangular shaped disc, then roll the disc into a rectangle that is very, very thin - about 1/8 of an inch tall. It should be about 1x1 inch.
• Use a pastry cutter, a very sharp knife, or a pizza cutter to cut the dough into diamonds. Use the diagram for help, if necessary. You can also cut the pastry into squares as well, if you'd prefer. Repeat with the other balls of dough.
• Heat at least 3 inches of oil in a Dutch Oven, deep fryer, or large pot to 375 degrees F (190 degrees Celsius). (See Note 3)
• Prepare a plate or baking sheet by lining with paper towels.
• Drop a few pastries into the hot oil at a time. They'll float to the top and you'll flip them over. Cook until golden. This will take between 3 and 5 minutes, depending on how full your pan is. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels.
• Sprinkle sugar over the tops of the beignets. In France, it's more common to use granulated sugar, but in New Orleans or other places in the US, icing/powdered sugar is more common.
• Best eaten fresh!

Notes

• Note 1: Start with 200 grams and slowly add more flour if too sticky
• Note 2: The dough is already sticky and will be especially difficult to work with at room temperature. Keep in the fridge any dough you're not actively working with.
• Note 3: If you don't have a deep fryer or a candy thermometer, you can test if the oil is hot enough by dropping just a small square of dough in. If it puffs up and quickly turns golden, the oil is ready.
• Serve with a cup of coffee or Cafe au Lait!
• Make sure to listen to Claire-Marie on The Storied Recipe Podcast, Tales from the French Countryside while you make her Russeroles recipe!

Nutrition

Calories: 163kcalCarbohydrates: 4gProtein: 1gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 8gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 63mgPotassium: 11mgFiber: 0.1gSugar: 0.1gVitamin A: 103IUCalcium: 23mgIron: 0.2mg

Keyword Easter, Holiday Recipes, No Yeast Beignet, Shrove Tuesday

Tune into The Storied Recipe PodcastEvery recipe comes with a story!