Puffs-Buñuelos

I had a go at making some Puffs or Buñuelos, in Spanish. These fritters tastes great with just a simply sprinkle of some white sugar. To be honest, I had to adjust the oil temperature a couple of times before I finally got it right. If the oil is too hot, the puffs will easily burn while the inside remains raw. So, I reduced the heat from medium to moderate (using an electric cooker marked 3). I guess you will just have to do some trial and error initially, like I did. You will definitely get it right fairly quick. Try it!


Recipe adapted from Traditional Spanish Cooking by Janet Mendel

Puffs-Buñuelos
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients

240 ml (8 fl oz) Milk or Water
70 g (2 ½ oz) Butter
1 Tbsp Brandy or Anise Brandy (Optional)
30 g (1 oz) Sugar
Pinch of Sea Salt
125 g (4 ½ oz) Plain Flour
4 Eggs
Olive Oil for deep-frying
Sugar

Method

Place the milk, butter, sugar and salt in a heavy pan and heat until just boils. Lower the heat and add the flour all at once, beating it hard with a wooden spoon until it forms a smooth ball of dough.

Remove from the heat and beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat until cool and very smooth. Heat the oil in a deep fryer or heavy pan. Put in a cube of potato – when potato is nicely colored, the oil is hot enough to fry the buñuelos. Drop the balls of batter, by teaspoons, into the hot oil. Fry until golden and puffed up. Remove, drain and sprinkle the puffs with sugar. The puffs can also be split and filled with jam or confectioner’s custard.

Makes about 24