the review: simple beignets

I was at the grocery store last night getting some last minute ingredients for dinner when I realized that today was Mardi Gras. After a slight panic that I had nothing Cajun to feed my children in celebration, I decided to give it up. You just can’t be mother of the year all the time.

Of course, I completely changed course this morning, at which point I really had nothing to feed my children. No King Cake, no beignet mix, no biscuits that I could make into beignets, no purple sprinkles with which to dress up their toast or cream of wheat in purple, green, and gold. This, my friends, is when you have to love the internet.

Do you have any idea how many recipes there are for beignets? I really wanted to make these from Joy the Baker but didn’t have buttermilk or whole milk or time to let them rise. Or how about these from Food 52? Nope. Didn’t have tapioca flour. Right. Then I stumbled on a recipe for beignets with no yeast and no buttermilk. Twice. The same recipe in two different places. Perfect.

These are ridiculously easy. Melt butter in water. Stir in flour and salt. Stir in eggs one at a time.

Drop into hot oil (I used less than an inch). Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Done. Aren’t they beautiful?

Only problem? They don’t taste like beignets. Total let down. They are good, a bit eggy, but good. They are definitely not beignets. So the moral of the story is if you need beignets (or as my grandmother always said, “you have an envie”) and you don’t have two hours to make these or these, do what my grandmother used to do: get yourself a can of biscuits, cut them in half, and fry them in hot oil before dredging them in powdered sugar. A simple and much better substitute for the immediate beignet craving.

If you have never had a beignet and want a fun treat, by all means, make these. But don’t expect the same thing when you finally make your way to Café du Monde or Morning Call.

My son’s response to this whole escapade? “Mom? Do you know how to make those other kind of doughnuts? You know, the ones with sprinkles?”

He settled on Honey Bunches of Oats and a toaster waffle. I’m raising such gourmets.