Beignets, A Southern Classic

If any of you have ever been to the French Quarter in New Orleans, you might have eaten at the world famous Cafe du Monde. One of the greatest southern dishes is served here - beignets. To the casual tourist, these may seem like overated scones dipped in powdered sugar, but to the true southern connisseur, they are a delightful treat.Pronounced "ben-yay," it is a deep fried dough pastry, brought to America by the French. Not only are they served as a dessert, but they can also be a savory treat, often served with crawfish or shrimp. When eaten as a dessert, they are really good with hot chocolate or wassail in the winter. I have altered my recipe to be used in a breadmaker on the "dough" setting, but you could make it as a tradition dough recipe. Just know that my ingredients are in the order you would use in a breadmaker. When you get to the last step, it's really fun to let the kids shake the beignets in the ziploc bag. My little girl LOVED this! They are fun to eat, but just be careful not to inhale the powdered sugar!

Beignets

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 Tbs. butter, room temperature

1 tsp. salt

4 cups flour

1 Tbs. sugar

2 1/4 tsp. yeast

Vegetable Oil, for frying

Powdered Sugar

Directions:

1. Add the ingredients to your breadmaker in order listed (this uses a breadmaker with a capacity for 2 pounds). Set the breadmaker on the dough setting and leave. This should take about 90 minutes.

2. When the dough is ready, remove from breadmaker and roll out on a floured surface, about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into 2 inch squares.
3. Pour vegetable oil into deep saucepan, at least half way full. Heat oil to 375 degrees. Drop dough into hot oil and fry until light golden brown. Turn over and fry other side. Dough will puff up as it is frying. Each side should only take a few seconds if your oil is the right temperature.
4. While the beignets are warm, place them in a ziploc bag with powdered sugar, and shake bag to coat.