CANADIAN FRIED PASTRY DOUGH

 

happy september first! as summer winds down to an end, i thought making fair/carnival food would be the perfect way to celebrate the last few days of summer (hi fall, i missed you). with the CNE taking place in toronto, fried food galore is being served including my favourite.. canadian fried pastry dough. you can check out the article i wrote for food52 on fried dough here & get the recipe below! now let's get ready to welcome pumpkin everything back into our lives again.

ingredients

for the dough

  • ¼ warm water
  • 2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup warm whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 egg
  • 2 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • vegetable oil, for deep frying

for the topping

  • ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 cup cinnamon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

directions

  • in a large mixing bowl add water, yeast and sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes to allow the yeast to activate. If your yeast does not foam start again (water could be too hot or yeast could be expired).
  • stir in whole milk, salt, vanilla, egg and oil. Mix until ingredients are well incorporated.
  • add dough one cup at a time and mix until a dough begins to form.
  • turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 8-10 minutes, adding flour as needed until the dough is no longer wet & sticky.
  • form into a ball and let rise in a covered bowl for 1 hour, or until dough as doubled in size.
  • once dough has risen begin to heat your oil to 350-375 degrees. Pot or frying pan should be high enough to allow oil to be 3-4 inches deep.
  • roll out dough to a flat oval shape that is about 1 cm thick.
  • fry dough for 2 minutes on each side, and transfer to a paper towel to drain excess oil.
  • brush with melted butter and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.
  • repeat frying one at a time until you have used up all your dough.
  • close your eyes, pretend you are surrounded by farris wheels & games and take a bite into summer.

like what you see? get it here. cake stand | linen | plate 

FORTUNE COOKIES

 

i had chinese takeout twice last week (shhh..). when i finished my meal & cracked open the fortune cookie i thought to myself "o.m.g i could totally make these!" & here we are. i thought they would be difficult to shape as good as the actual take-out ones, but they ended up being pretty easy (plus taste a lot better then sweet flavoured cardboard). complete with much funnier fortunes than the wise chinese sayings. i think these would be so perfect for a dinner party or any type of party for that matter. it makes me want to host something, just so i can make them. i highly reccomend using a silpat, or a similar silicon batter as it can be difficult to peel them off the baking tray as quickly as needed. i would also like to point out the fact that i used a poutine bowl. it is new favourite cermaic bowl made by hugo didier & i will put ANYTHING i can in it.

ingredients

  • 2 egg whites
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 20 fortunes

directions

  • preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  • in a mixing bowl whisk egg whites, flour, sugar, vanilla, water & salt until a smooth batter is formed.
  • on a silpat pour a tablespoon of batter and spread into a thin 4-inch circle. bake about 2-4 cookies per sheet, depending how fast you can move once they come out.
  • bake for 6 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. remove from oven and within the first 60 seconds fold each cookie.
  • to fold into shape, fold each cookie in half with the fortune inside and using a bowl bend the edges together. place in muffin tin until the cookie hardens into shape.
  • repeat this for the remainder of the batter.

like what you see? get it here. poutine bowl | silpat | linen 

COLD BREW CINNAMON COFFEE

 

THIS is my drink of choice. the drink that keeps me venturing to starbucks every morning. even when summer is over (aka. ice coffee season), i am still that weird person in line at starbucks asking if they have ice coffee readily available, regardless of the -30 temperature outside. i have tried to make it at home countless times & it never worked out. adding ice to hot coffee is just NOT how it's done. i'm sure you've all tried it & have been less then satisfied with your watery lukewarm coffee. introducing: the cold brew. this must be the starbucks secret to making such perfect ice coffee. it takes time to steep, but it never taste bitter & it produces an extra strong (extra dark) ready to go ice cold coffee. i have also made a cinnamon infused syrup because ice coffee deserves to be lightly sweetened. so now with summer coming to an end, i can make my own at home, without any barista judgment.

ingredients

  • 2/3 cup ground coffee beans
  • 3 cups cold water
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • cream or milk, to taste

directions

  • in a french press, combined the coffee grounds & cold water. let sit over night to let the coffee infuse.
  • make the cinnamon simple syrup by adding the sugar, water, cinnamon stick & vanilla in a sauce pan. bring to a boil & remove from heat. let cool.
  • when you are ready to assemble the ice coffee add ice cubes, syrup, coffee & milk.

alternative recipe: head to your nearest starbucks, order ice coffee. bring home & pour in fancy glass. finish off with a swirly straw.

like what you see? get it here. cream boat | spoon | linen