Manon Lagrève’s beignets
You can’t beat a doughnut, and French beignets are a great version! We love this recipe from Manon Lagrève, which creates a treat that is like a cross between an apple fritter and a doughnut.
The simplicity of the recipe is hugely appealing: “Une poignée de farine par oeuf et du lait” – a handful of flour for each egg and some milk – is the recipe my Mamie Suzanne gave to me when I asked her how she made her beignets,” says Manon Lagrève. “I had to try it a couple of times to get it right. We sometimes had a beignets evening at Mamie’s, when the only thing we ate were these apples wrapped in a light, deep-fried dough.”
Recipe taken from Et Voila: A Simple French Baking Love Story by Manon Lagrève (OH Editions, £22) and tested by delicious.
Ingredients
- 4 medium free-range eggs
- 4 tsp caster sugar
- 120g plain flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp whole milk
- 1 tsp rum, calvados or amaretto
- 1 litre vegetable oil to deep-fry
- 4 apples, peeled, cored and sliced into rounds
- 100g icing sugar
Useful to have
- Digital probe thermometer
Method
- To make the beignet batter, separate the eggs into 2 clean mixing bowls. Add the sugar to the yolks and whisk well, then add the flour, baking powder, milk and alcohol, and whisk again into a smooth batter.
- Pour the oil into a large deep saucepan or wok and heat to 150-170°C. Meanwhile, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks, then gently fold them into the batter.
- Use a fork to dip apple slices into the batter, then carefully add to the oil, frying on each side for 2 minutes until they get that nice brown colour. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve immediately.
Nutrition
- 430kcals Calories
- 8.7g (2g saturated) Fat
- 11g Protein
- 75g (50g sugars) Carbs
- 3.3g Fibre
- 0.2g Salt
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