Manageability – Just Deep Fryin’.
I don’t have the sweetest of sweet tooths. I’ve never been ga-ga over chocolate, and I don’t exactly scream for ice cream. However I have always loved pastry/doughy desserts like donuts, cupcakes, and chocolate-covered pretzels (or chocolate dipped pretzels from Auntie Anne’s, back when malls existed). That’s why My Greek Dish’s traditional Greek Loukoumades were big hits for me. Every one of them.
Soft, warm, sweet, and doughy, these loukoumades are like a combination of donut holes and funnel cake. The recipe calls for a honey glaze and walnuts topped with cinnamon powder, but knowing myself I replaced those with powdered sugar and put the chocolate on the side for dipping. The dough itself is really sticky, so don’t expect these to come out as soft perfect little Titleists. They’re going to have a little lump. But after that, it’s smooth sailing. You’re just deep fryin’.
Like I said, these are so tasty, and because they’re so small you are sure to eat more than you need. Be sure to have a couch nearby where you can lay down and regret how many you ate. Loved them.
Ingredients
For the loukoumades
- 1 cup of lukewarm water (240g /8.5 oz.)
- 1 cup of lukewarm milk (240g/ 8.5 oz.)
- 1 picture of Luke Warmmilk, a guy I met at a Firestone one day
- 15 g active dry yeast (0.5 oz.)
- 3 and 1/4 of a cup flour (450g /16 oz.)
- 2 tbsps sugar
- 1 flat tsp salt
- 4 tbsps olive oil
- oil for frying (vegetable)
To garnish
- 3/4 cup honey (350g/ 13 oz.)
- cinnamon powder
- chopped walnuts
For the chocolate sauce
- 200g dark chocolate, chopped (7 ounces)
- 110ml water (4 fluid ounces)
- 75g caster sugar (3 ounces)
Instructions
- To prepare this traditional loukoumades recipe, start by making the dough. In the mixers bowl add the water and yeast. Stir with a fork and wait for 5 minutes, until the yeast dissolves completely. Into the same bowl, add the rest of the ingredients for the dough and whisk at high speed (for about 2 minutes) until the mixture becomes a smooth batter. Cover the bowl with some plastic wrap and let the dough rest in a warm place for at least 1 hour to rise. Go take a nap or read a chapter of a book.
- Into a medium sized frying pan pour enough vegetable oil to deep fry the loukoumades. Heat the oil to high heat until it begins to bubble. Test if the oil is hot enough by dipping in some of the dough for the loukoumades. If it sizzles the oil is ready. You can also try your finger. If it sizzles, it’s ready.
- Dip a tablespoon in some water and spoon out some of the dough into the hot oil. Repeat this procedure until the surface off the pan is comfortably filled. You should dip the spoon in the water every time, so that the batter doesn’t stick on it.
- While the loukoumades are fried, use a slotted spoon to push them into the oil and turn them on all sides, until golden brown. Place the loukoumades on some kitchen paper to drain. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
- When done, place the loukoumades on a large platter, drizzle with the heated honey and sprinkle with cinnamon and chopped walnuts. I skipped the walnuts because, whatever I can do what I want.
- If you are in a mood for some chocolate, replace the honey with chocolate sauce. To prepare the chocolate sauce for the loukoumades, add in a saucepan the sugar and water and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring continuously, until the sugar has dissolved. Add the chocolate (chopped) and whisk, until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.
- Pour the warm chocolate over the loukoumades, sprinkle with some roughly chopped walnuts or almonds and enjoy!
- Note – we used powdered sugar instead of cinnamon, and kept the chocolate on the side for dipping. Again, I can do whatever I want.