Recipe: Churros

We had a churro party the other night.  The nice thing with churros over doughnuts is that you don't need to wait for the dough to proof, you just make the batter and start frying.  Churro batter is very similar to a choux paste - some people use just that - but I think there is a benefit to tailoring the tool to the task.  I've made the choux paste style churros before, but as good as they were, they never quite sold me 100%.  

I like this style with a little baking powder in the mix because the churros come up really fluffy.  The outside gets good and crispy while the inside stays soft and chewy.  These are the churros you want to make if you want to go the distance and fill them with chocolate, cajeta, jams etc.  

mix the paste

This recipe is a bit bigger than some others for a couple reasons - the first time we made this batter, we were making a double batch, which called for 4 eggs, but after adding the 3rd egg, the batter was getting pretty soft and I made the executive call to stop there.  The churros came out amazing, so if it ain't broke, I'm not going to fix it, and a recipe calling for 1.5 eggs is just silly.  As for the size, a "double batch" will happily do for 6 people - I wouldn't bother setting up a deep fryer for less, so double is the new single.

You will need:

2C                        flour
2C                       water
3                          eggs
1/2tsp                  salt
2Tbs                    sugar

beat in the eggs

1tsp                     vanilla paste
8Tbs                   butter
2tsp                     baking powder
as needed            sugar or cinnamon sugar for dusting

Method:

 - get a deep fryer setup warming to 350F / 177C
 - put the water, butter, sugar and salt in a pot on the stove to boil
 - sift the baking powder and flour together
 - when the water comes to a boil, add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon to bring it together
 - transfer the mix to a mixer with a paddle attachment and mix
 - add the eggs one at a time, mixing well between each one

fry

 - mix in the vanilla
 - transfer the batter to a piping bag with a star tip
 - pipe the churros into the hot oil
 - turn to colour evenly
 - remove from the oil and drain on paper towel
 - toss in sugar or cinnamon sugar
 - serve warm