Heat The Oil And Prepare The Batter
Fill a large skillet halfway with vegetable oil, ideally using a pan with high sides to prevent splatter. Morone uses 2 cups of oil, but depending on the size of your skillet, the amount may differ. Heat the oil to 375 F, and while the oil is heating up, prepare the funnel cake batter.
To do that, get a medium bowl in it whisk together the pancake mix, the sugar, and the vanilla extract, mixing them until they are combined. Then start to whisk in the water a few tablespoons at a time, stirring until the batter is smooth. “The batter should be a similar thickness to cake batter,” Morone says. “If it still seems too thick after adding half a cup of water, add in additional water a tablespoon at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.”
How To Make Funnel Cakes From Scratch
How To Shallow Fry Desserts
If youve ever had funnel cake at a theme park it was most likely deep-fried, and the truth about fair food is that theres really no need for that.
Frying can seem intimidating for those of you that have never done it before but shallow frying is much safer and gives you complete control. To shallow fry this funnel cake recipe, all you have to do is pour about 2 inches of oil into a medium frying pan and turn on the heat. Once the oil is hot, pipe your batter into the oil and allow the funnel cake to fry up into a lovely golden-brown coil. I like to use a spider or fish fryer to turn over my funnel cakes.
This method of shallow frying is a simple and safe method to handle your cakes all while achieving that deeply fried crispiness.
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Faqs About This Funnel Cake Recipe
Is funnel cake made from pancake batter?
Yes, you can make a funnel cake with pancake batter. I actually have a delicious funnel cake recipe with pancake mix. So, if you want to give it a try, you have to check out that recipe!
What is funnel cake batter made of?
A funnel cake batter is traditionally made with flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. This recipe uses sparkling water to enhance the light and fluffy texture.
Time To Fry These Easy Funnel Cakes
To fry up your easy funnel cake, hold the bag with the batter a few inches above the oil , and squeeze gently in concentric circles. The batter will spread slightly, as you can see from the photo. Set a timer for two minutes. When the timer goes off, use a strainer or slotted spoon to flip the funnel cake over. Set a timer for another two minutes, and in the meantime, lay a few layers of paper towels on a plate, which you will need for the next step.
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The Best Funnel Cake Recipe
Funnel cakes are one of those sweet treats you don’t even think about until it’s time for the local fair.
But, now with this recipe, you don’t have to wait for the fair to eat some delicious funnel cakes! This recipe will give you everything you love about this iconic fried food without having to leave your home. I know, it seems impossible for that to be true, but it isn’t.
This funnel cake recipe literally makes perfect funnel cakes every, single, time! And all you need is about 5 minutes to prepare the funnel cakes and about 5 minutes to cook ’em!
Pretty ridiculous, right?!
How To Make Homemade Funnel Cake Rings
Core your apples and slice into ‘rings’ about a ½ inch thick. You are slicing sideways, not up and down as probably typically do. You’ll typically get four rings per apple. Fill the deep fryer or a deep pan with fresh frying oil. Turn on for it to heat. Add egg and whole milk in a bowl with the Bisquick. Mix all of the ingredients together with a spoon. Whisk to remove any lumps.
Test to see if the oil is hot enough by dropping a few small drops of batter into it. After the sizzle and turn brown then your fryer is ready for the apple rings.
Place each apple ring in the batter making sure it is completely coated.
Put in one apple ring at a time. Watch carefully, when the battered apple ring begins to turn brown, flip it over to the over side with a fork. Continue to watch so they don’t burn. Cover a baking sheet with paper towels. When both sides of the cooked apple rings are done, remove them from the deep fryer and drain on paper towel-lined baking sheet. Allow funnel cake rings to cool enough to touch.
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What You Need To Make This Recipe
Oil youll need to use an oil with a high smoke point to fry as a low smoke point oil can leave your food with an unpleasant taste. I recommend using vegetable oil, peanut oil, or canola oil for frying.
All-purpose flour regular all-purpose flour is perfect for this. Although if you only have cake flour, it can work as well. Bread flour can cause the batter to be too dry due to the high protein content.
Baking powder the baking powder helps the cakes puff up as it fries. Make sure to double-check that yours has not expired and purchase a new one if it has.
What Is A Funnel Cake
If youve been wondering Is funnel cake a cake?, the answer is no. Funnel cake is a lovely light batter fried until golden brown, most often topped with powdered sugar. It is a sweet and delicious fair food that no one really thinks to make at home, and yet it makes me wonder, why not?!
They are actually incredibly easy to make. If you can stir together a simple batter and heat a bit of oil in a pan, you can make this easy homemade funnel cake recipe!
But why stop there, if youre suddenly craving all the fair food, try these churros, caramel apples or homemade mini corn dogs. They are sure to satisfy your craving!
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The Quick Batter Hack
Traditional recipes call for a fairly standard batter: flour, eggs, sugar, milk, baking soda or baking powder, but I discovered that you can make awesome funnel cakes with “complete” buttermilk pancake mix . After all, these boxed mixes contain little more than, well, flour, eggs and milk , sugar, and leavening agents. Plus, many county fair funnel cake stands are likely starting from some kind of mix, anyhow. I like to doctor my mix with a touch more sugar and vanilla for true funnel cake flavor.
How Do I Know The Oil Is Hot Enough To Deep Fry
Heat the oil on medium heat for 15 minutes and then test it by putting just a small amount of batter into it. If it turns dark immediately then turn the temperature down and wait a few minutes for the heat to come down. The oil is heated when the test browns up slowly!
Funnel Cakes are a safe bet when youre looking for a mouthwatering snack that everyone will love! Here are more delicious snacks to try the next time you find yourself surrounded by a hungry crowd!
- Korean Corndogs with Korean Ketchup Made with fun additions like ramen noodles and french fries then served with a homemade sweet and spicy Korean Ketchup!
- Best Pepperoni Pizza Dip Enjoy this dip with your favorite tortilla chips, crackers, bread, or even vegetables, ready in just 30 minutes!
- Oatmeal Cream Pies Sweet oatmeal cookies sandwich a vanilla buttercream filling for an easy sweet treat everyone loves!
- Baked Buffalo Chicken Dip Made with real cream and blue cheese, rotisserie chicken, hot sauces, and spices for a dip with a kick of heat!
- Classic Maine Whoopie Pies A delicious hand-held treat thats the perfect ratio of chocolate cake and sweet vanilla marshmallow filling!
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A County Fair Classic
When I was growing up, my family had a tradition of visiting the county fair every year. I loved riding the ferris wheel and viewing all of the livestock, but what I looked forward to the most was all of the fair food! I loved the deep fried Oreos, corn dogs, kettle corn, and best of all, the funnel cakes! There really is nothing better than a hot funnel cake, dusted with powdered sugar.
I recently learned how to make my own funnel cakes at home, and I have to report, they are just as good as the ones I remember from the county fair! The best part is that theyre super easy to make, so I can enjoy hot and delicious funnel cakes whenever the craving strikes!
Why Are They Called Funnel Cakes? The reason theyre called funnel cakes is because when you cook it, you pour the batter into the oil using a funnel. Pouring the batter this way is what gives this tasty treat its fun and unique shape.
Fry The Funnel Cakes Garnish And Enjoy
Fry the batter for about 1 to 2 minutes until it is golden brown, then use tongs or a pair of spatulas to flip it to the other side and continue frying the funnel cake for another 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the cooked cake to a paper towel-lined plate using a spatula or, better yet, a large slotted spoon, which will help excess oil drip off.
Repeat the frying process with any remaining batter, then sprinkle your funnel cake with powdered sugar, add any toppings you’d like, and enjoy your classic carnival treat immediately.
“Funnel cakes are great because you can top them with pretty much anything, so powdered sugar is kind of the classic topping but you could do cinnamon sugar, or even go all out and do chocolate sauce, ice cream, fruit, or anything else you want on top,” Morone suggests. A sweet carnival treat without the steep price tag we consider that a pretty successful recipe.
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How To Make Donut Holes
Just like air fryer donuts, these little bites are super easy to make.
Once youve cut out the holes, use the scraps to roll into small balls to create more donut holes. The shape might not be perfectly round but they taste great!
How To Make Funnel Cake At Home
The reason I love this funnel cake recipe is that it completely busts the myth that you can only get a funnel cake at a fair. Making funnel cake is really just a matter of whisking together a milk-and-flour-based batter and frying it up in a pan. After combining all the ingredients in one bowl, transfer the funnel cake batter into a piping bag so that its easy to spiral over a thin layer of hot oil. This allows you to skillfully achieve the coiled funnel cake look at home and without any fuss.
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What Is Funnel Cake Batter Made Of
When you are wondering how to make funnel cake, you might think you need a bunch of fancy ingredients. Typically funnel cake batter is made using egg, flour and baking powder as well as other simple ingredients, however, with this funnel easy funnel cake recipe, it is made using pancake mix. The funnel cake from pancake mix means you only need 3 ingredients and the oil to fry it in. Then you can have carnival pancake funnel cake anytime you want.
How To Make Caramel Sauce
Melt butter in a double boiler.
Add the brown sugar stirring for 2 minutes.
Pour in the heavy cream stirring for an additional 2 minutes.
Take off the top half of the double boiler and add the vanilla. Stir well to make sure that the vanilla is blended into the sauce.
Pour into a jar allowing to cool completely.
Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
You could also serve with other funnel cake toppings, like powdered sugar or cinnamon.
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What Kind Of Toppings Go On Funnel Cake
Typically people use powdered sugar on top of funnel cake. Cinnamon sugar, like a cinnamon powdered sugar or brown sugar, could be added over the top. You can also use chocolate chips, chocolate syrup or caramel sauce drizzled over the top. Whipped cream or jam are more options. I have even seen people put fruit, like strawberries and bananas, and ice cream over funnel cake.
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Pour And Heat Your Frying Oil For This Easy Funnel Cake Recipe
Pour the oil into your Dutch oven, and heat it to 375 degrees Fahrenheit over medium heat. If you don’t happen to have a thermometer handy, Carli suggests keeping an eye on the oil for small bubbles and then sprinkling a drop of water into the oil to see if it sizzles immediately. If it does, then your oil is hot enough for frying your easy funnel cakes. While your oil is heating up, you’ll want to move on to the next two steps, i.e., mixing your batter and transferring it to a plastic bag .
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What I Love About This Recipe
- Quick To Make! These homemade funnel cakes are ready in just 20 minutes!
- Prep Ahead Of Time! You can easily whip up this batter and then store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days before frying the cakes up!
- Easy Ingredients! Only common pantry ingredients are used for this recipe which is great for convenience but may also mean youll find yourself making them all the time!
- Toppings! Cover your funnel cake in chocolate syrup, fruit, Perfect Homemade Whipped Cream, powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, maple syrup, and even sprinkles! Dream up any toppings youd like!
Tips For Frying Churros
One of the most important parts of making the best churros recipe is being sure that your oil is heated to the correct temperature. You will need to use a thermometer to be sure that you are frying them in oil that is between the recommended 360-365°F. If you use a lower temperature, you run the risk of your churros coming out soggy. If your oil is too hot, you will likely end up with churros with burnt outsides and raw insides.
Keep an eye on your oil temperature the whole time you are frying. I strongly recommend you only fry 2-3 churros at a time, as adding the batter will cause your temperature to drop. A drop thats too significant can leave you with soggy churros! After you cook each batch, give the oil as much time as is needed to return to the proper temperature for frying.
Another thing to keep in mind is that you should keep your heat source fairly consistent. I recommend a medium heat. Expert tip: Start heating your oil before you start making your dough, as it will take a while for the oil to reach the proper temperature. If you crank up the heat to high in between batches to quickly get the oil back to temperature, the temperature will continue to climb rapidly, which can leave you with burnt churros!
Paying attention to your oil heat is probably the most important factor in making this otherwise simple recipe!
Enjoy!
- Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Crisps Dessert, snack or appetizer!
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Gather Your Ingredients For An Easy Funnel Cake
Remember when we said this recipe uses common ingredients? That was no carnival trick! All you need here is vegetable oil for the frying, some buttermilk pancake mix, some regular sugar, vanilla extract, water, and powdered sugar, for garnishing the finished cakes.
“The special ingredient here is pancake mix,” Morone says. “It really makes it easier and cuts down on the amount of ingredients you need for this. You want to make sure you use one of the mixes that say ‘complete’ on them, meaning that you only would only need to add water to the mixture to make pancakes.”
Recipe Notes And Helpful Tips
- To measure the flour spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with the back of a table knife.
- When the batter is dropped into the oil the funnel cake will naturally take on the shape and size of the pan you are frying it in. So keep that in mind when choosing a pan. I use an 8 inch pot for these.
- Use a measuring cup with a spout or a thin funnel that flows fairly slow. The measuring cup with a spout is much easier and less messy.
- A candy thermometer attached to the side of the pot will help you control the temperature of the oil. The oil rises when there is nothing in the pot and drops when you add the batter. Turn up or down the heat to try to maintain a somewhat constant oil temperature. A little bump up or down works best.
- Dont get too wrapped up in the drizzling process. A slow steady drizzle in circles followed by a crisscross pattern connecting those circles together is all you need. Somehow it all seems to work out just fine without working too hard on it.
- For best results I recommend using the batter soon after mixing it however I have had good results using it up to 24 hours after mixing it. Always store the batter in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
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