
Beignets
- Published: 14 Mar 19
- Updated: 18 Mar 24
These nutmeg-scented beignets dusted in icing sugar are the perfect sweet treat to nibble on for movie night.

Need something to dunk? Try our cinnamon-dusted beignets with chocolate dipping sauce.
-
Makes 18
-
Hands-on time 25 min, plus at least 3 hours rising
Ingredients
- 175ml warm water
- ½ tbsp dried active yeast
- 50g caster sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 medium free-range egg
- 125ml evaporated milk
- 430g plain flour, plus extra to dust
- 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 30g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- Vegetable oil for deep frying and greasing
- Icing sugar to dust
Useful to have…
- Digital probe thermometer
Method
- Pour half the warm water into a large, clean bowl, then add the yeast and 1 tsp of the sugar, stirring until the yeast/sugar have dissolved. Leave in a warm place for 10-15 minutes or until the surface froths. Add the salt, egg, evaporated milk, the rest of the sugar and the remaining water, then mix. Add half the flour and the 1 tsp nutmeg, then mix well. Beat in the butter, then the remaining flour. Once the mixture has come together to form a fairly sticky dough, put in a greased bowl, cover and chill for at least 3 hours or up to 24 (see Make Ahead).
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy-based saucepan (don’t fill it to much more than half full) or deep-fat fryer, until it reads 180°C on a digital probe thermometer – see tips. (If you don’t have a digital probe thermometer you can test if the oil is hot enough by adding a cube of bread – it should turn crisp and brown in around 30 seconds.
- Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 0.5cm thick. Cut into 6cm squares to make around 18 beignets (see Make Ahead). Fry the beignets in batches for 2-3 minutes, turning regularly, until golden brown (they’ll puff as they fry). Drain on kitchen paper and dust with icing sugar (see tips). Serve warm.
- Recipe from February 2019 Issue
Nutrition
- Calories
- 166kcals
- Fat
- 6.3g (1.7g saturated)
- Protein
- 3.6g
- Carbohydrates
- 23.2g (4.9g sugars)
- Fibre
- 1g
- Salt
- 0.2g
delicious. tips
See delicious. Kitchen for how to deep-fry in a pan. Dust the cooked beignets with more nutmeg, if you like.
The beignets will taste better if the dough is left to rise slowy for the full 24 hours in the fridge.
If you don’t want to cook all 18 beignets at once, only cut out as many as you want (step 3). Put the uncooked dough on a flour-dusted baking sheet, freeze until solid, then transfer to a freezerproof container or food bag and keep in the freezer for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight on a plate in the fridge, then continue.
Buy ingredients online
Rate & review
Rate
Reviews
Subscribe to our magazine
Food stories, skills and tested recipes, straight to your door... Enjoy 5 issues for just £5 with our special introductory offer.
Subscribe
Unleash your inner chef
Looking for inspiration? Receive the latest recipes with our newsletter