The Binary Chef - Deep Fried Goodness

August 21, 2009

In honor of fair/festival season...

Hot on the tail of our own Ventura County Fair it seems appropriate to relish in the thought of mouth-watering fair and festival foods.  Though the gyros, flamed up meats on sticks, sweet potato fries and grilled corn on the cob are always crowd pleasers, having a sweet-tooth myself I often head towards the fresh fruit smoothies, hand churned ice creams, churros and the mother of all deep fried goodness - the funnel cake.  

Funnel cakes have always been a signature fair and festival dish; they come in all shapes, sizes and with an endless array of toppings to boot.  I try to limit myself to 1 a year in light of the funnel cakes' inherent artery-clogging-goodness, but if you simply can't wait until the next fair or hippie-dippy festival rolls into town, here is a simple funnel cake recipe to hold you over.

The homemade funnel cake:

Main Ingredients:
- 3 eggs, beaten in a medium bowl
- 2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4 cups sifted flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- vegetable oil

Topings:
- seasonal fresh fruit
- fresh jam
- powdered sugar
- homemade whipped cream (no sugar necessary)

Directions:
Beat the 3 eggs together in a medium sized bowl and add the milk and sugar with a whisk.  In a separate, medium sized bowl, sift together the remaining dry ingredients.  Add the eggs, milk and sugar mix to the dry bowl and beat together until smooth.  In a deep skillet or frying pan, heat enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan (a few centimeters deep).  Using a kitchen funnel or a zip-lock bag with an end snipped off, pour the batter through the funnel and into the skillet, making swirls or curly-cues or zigzags as you like.  When the batter has cooked up to a golden brown color, flip it if necessary, and then blot the cake with a tea towel or paper towel.  Finish it off with a dusting of powdered sugar or a combination of your favorite toppings and enjoy!

*Funnel cakes are not recommended to be eaten before any whirly-topsy-turvy carnival rides; nor is anything else for that matter.