Puffy Nothings
Description
Delicious pastries for the whole family. Serve the fluffy fried doughnuts warm with condensed milk or any fruit sauces or jams. In my family we love these light, hollow puffs with a glass of warm cocoa or milk. The recipe is simple and easy, the ingredient list is short and everything is usually already in any fridge. I use thick, full-fat kefir—then the doughnuts turn out very airy. If you don’t have baking powder, add 1/2 tsp baking soda to the dough; you don’t need to dissolve it first—the kefir will do that. The amount of flour may vary, but don’t add too much flour: the dough should stay soft and tender so it rises well during frying. Despite frying in plenty of oil, the doughnuts don’t soak it up. The pastries are ready. Serve at the table.
Instructions
- 1
Step 1
Prepare the ingredients. Let’s begin!
- 2
Step 2
In a deep bowl, combine kefir, egg, sugar, and salt. Whisk well.
- 3
Step 3
Add most of the flour, baking powder, and vegetable oil.
- 4
Step 4
Knead a soft dough using the remaining flour. Let it rest a little; I usually leave it for 10 minutes.
- 5
Step 5
Cut off a small piece of dough and roll it out into a rectangle; the dough should be 5 mm thick. Cut it into small rectangles. In the centre of each piece, make a slit a couple of centimetres long and pull one end through. That gives you these “inside-out” puffs.
- 6
Step 6
In a small frying pan, heat one cup of refined vegetable oil until very hot. Place the pyshki in the oil so they do not touch each other. Bear in mind that they will expand; while I was photographing them, they had already grown a little.
- 7
Step 7
Turn the fritters over and fry until golden brown.
- 8
Step 8
Place the pishki on paper towels to absorb excess oil.
- 9
Step 9
While the pastries are still hot, you can sprinkle them lightly with confectioners’ sugar if you like.
- 10
Step 10
This is what they look like inside—light and fluffy.