Description
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.
Ingredients
- 3 Eggs
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1 tbsp 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 tsp 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!
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Baking
- Cuisine: Pies and Pastries, Western European
Nutrition
- Calories: 163
- Sugar: 0.1
- Sodium: 63
- Fat: 16
- Saturated Fat: 4
- Carbohydrates: 4
- Fiber: 0.1
- Protein: 1
- Cholesterol: 21