New Orlean French Beignet

I would never have known what a beignet was if not for my kids! They were watching Disney's version of Princess & The Frog during the school holidays. It's a very different setting all together ~  there's no princess, there's no castle, there's no evil witch. On the bright side ~ there's a handsome prince, great jazzy music, and a creepy voodooman who can croon! Now what has all this got to do with beignet? Well, the "Princess" turned out to be a poor hardworking young lady who dreamt of opening her own restaurant in New Orleans & boy, can she cook! Guess what her best dish was? French Quarter Beignet! 

I guess Disney did well with this movie because Justin said he could just smell the sweet beignet from the TV! Darren made me promise to make these delectable sweets once I've found the right recipe.... So that was when I went in search for answers.

To make it simple, a beignet is a small square doughnut dipped in powdered sugar! It is one of New Orleans' staple snacks. It's not the healthiest snack but once you've had one, you just can't stop!

French Beignet Recipe (adapted from Paula Deen's recipe on Foodnetwork.com)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 envelope active dry yeast
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup evaporated milk
7 cups bread flour
1/4 cup shortening
Nonstick spray
Oil, for deep-frying
3 cups confectioners' sugar

Method:

1. Mix water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.

2. In another bowl, beat the eggs, salt and evaporated milk together. Mix egg mixture to the yeast mixture. 3. In a separate bowl, measure out the bread flour. Add 3 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and stir to     combine. Add the shortening and continue to stir while adding the remaining flour. Remove dough from the bowl, place onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Spray a large bowl with nonstick spray. Put dough into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a towel. Let rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours.
4. Preheat oil in a deep-fryer to 350 degrees F.
5. Add the confectioners' sugar to a paper or plastic bag and set aside.
6. Roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness and cut into 1-inch squares. Deep-fry, flipping constantly,   until they become a golden color. After beignets are fried, drain them for a few seconds on paper towels,   and then toss them into the bag of confectioners' sugar. Hold bag closed and shake to coat evenly.