Okay. I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering how someone who usually posts about salad and working out can have the audacity to write about something fried. And you’re right. I feel guilty about doing so as I type. However, I beg you will allow me this one divergence, understanding that I don’t do it to make your health kick more difficult, but instead to show you how an all-around healthy lifestyle can make something as naughty as this taste so much better than it otherwise would.
As mentioned in an earlier post, making these homemade doughnut-like sweet treats is as easy as pie... and just as tasty. When sharing this delectable indulgence with friends, they often find that it is very similar to something they remember from their childhood. Funny enough, that’s the same inspiration for me.
Some of my earliest memories put me back in my grandmother’s kitchen, hanging off her fuzzy sky blue robe and hearing the words, “patience dear” as I beg for my first taste of the sugary concoction she was so famous to us grandkids for. As I’ve stated in so many of my articles, she was a culinary legend, not just in our own family circle, but throughout the neighborhood. If you didn’t have her desserts in your bake sale, you didn’t have a bake sale. And it didn’t stop with the sweets. She mastered all things savory, too. She made a meat pie that to this day, I’ve never been able to duplicate. And I will never give up trying because it was that good.
I like to think I am pretty disciplined when it comes to overindulging in unhealthy foods, but this approach is no match for these scrumptious samples of heaven. If you have leftover dough from my last recipe, fear not. The dough itself won’t be as sweet, but there are ways to compensate for that. Read on to find out how.
Grandma's Famous Fried Sweet Dough
Ingredients:
8 cups flour
4 cups warm (not hot) water
4 tablespoons oil
¾ cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon (optional)
2½ teaspoons salt
2½ tablespoons yeast
5-10 Quarts frying oil or peanut oil, depending on method
Directions:
Warm one cup of water and stir in the yeast until combined. This will get the yeast to do its thing a little faster. Do not use hot water as it will kill the yeast.
In a standing mixer with a dough hook, add the oil to the bowl and wipe it to the sides and to the dough hook itself. This is an insider trick from my grandmother and is absolutely brilliant. (If you do not have a standing mixer, do the way your grandmother did and then feel free to skip the gym)
Add most of the flour, saving some for adjustments during mixing.
Add the sugar and give it a quick stir with the mixer or even just a spoon.
Turn the mixer on its slowest setting and add the yeast mixture while on. Keep on and slowly continue to add water until the dough has some springiness and is just slightly sticky.
Alternate back and forth between remaining flour and water until the desired consistency is reached, while trying not to over mix the dough, which will make it too tough.
Remove from mixer and place into a large, greased bowl and gently knead it into the bottom so that it is level.
Cover with a damp cheese cloth and place in a warm area and let sit for one hour.
Add oil to your fryer and heat to 375°. An actual fryer with a built-in thermostat is the best tool to help regulate the oil temperature and prevent raw dough with a burnt exterior if it gets too hot, or oil-saturated dough if the temperature is too cool. If you do not have a fryer, a large kettle is just fine. Simply use a thermometer to help regulate the temperature. If it’s getting too hot, carefully add a little more oil to cool.
Once dough is smooth, airy, and springy, use a dough knife to separate it into large rolls 1-2 lb balls of dough.
Place each dough ball onto a floured cutting board, and flatten either by hand or using a rolling pin until about a half inch thick. I prefer by hand as it better maintains the dough’s natural airiness.
Slice into any desired shape as long as they are no thicker than about a half inch. The original method is to cut them into approximately 8-inch x 2-inch strips.
Fry, flipping once, until golden on both sides.
While frying, pour 1-2 cups sugar into baking dish and set aside for sugar-coated application. If you’d like to try with cinnamon, add that here as well. But I recommend trying without first.
Remove from oil and place onto paper towels to absorb some of the oil.
Move to baking dish with sugar and gently toss until evenly coated.
Get creative with your dips, toppings, etc. If one of the kids has some friends over, I may even dip them in chocolate and sprinkles.
Enjoy and you’re welcome!