Sweet Mondays: Churros

Sweet, crunchy on the outside and warm on the inside, and usually eaten with a chocolate sauce or with Nutella.  Who wouldn't love to eat churros? With Cinco de Mayo coming up soon, I thought I would share one of my family's favorite Mexican desserts.

We made some the other day and they are very easy to make.  The dough took about 5 minutes to prepare and as soon as the oil was heated up, they cooked fairly quickly too.  I made them in long strips with a churro maker, but I have read that some people simply use a large star decorating tip and a pastry bag to get the same shape.  I also made some that were bite size so that it was easier for the little ones to eat. Either way you make them, they are really good!

Churros Recipe (adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

1 Cup Water

1 Tbsp. Sugar

1/2 Tsp. Salt

1 Tbsp.  Vegetable Oil

1 Cup All-Purpose Flour

Oil for Frying

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 Tsp. Cinnamon

Instructions

1. In a saucepan, add the water, 1 tablespoon of sugar, salt and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.  Bring these to a boil and then remove the pan from the heat.

2. Stir in 1 cup of flour until the dough forms a ball.  Set aside.

3. Heat the oil for frying in a deep pan or a dutch oven.  Heat the oil to 375 degrees fahrenheit (or 190 degrees celsius).  Pipe strips of the dough into the oil with a churro maker or with a pastry bag.  Fry the strips until they are a golden color and then drain them on paper towels. 

4. Combine 1/2 cup of sugar with 1 teaspoon cinnamon on a shallow plate. Roll the churros in the mixture.

5. Enjoy!