[
{
"name": "Air - MedRect Combo - Inline Content 1",
"component": "11490391",
"insertPoint": "3",
"requiredCountToDisplay": "1",
"parentWrapperClass": "fdn-ads-inline-content-block"
},{
"name": "Air - MedRect Combo - Inline Content 2",
"component": "11490392",
"insertPoint": "7",
"requiredCountToDisplay": "5",
"parentWrapperClass": "fdn-ads-inline-content-block"
},{
"name": "Air - MedRect Combo - Inline Content 3",
"component": "11490393",
"insertPoint": "12",
"requiredCountToDisplay": "9",
"parentWrapperClass": "fdn-ads-inline-content-block"
}
]
Untitled Document
I have a recurring dream that puts me in New Orleans.
In fact, I have the dream often enough that I honestly can’t remember
exactly when I was there last. All I know is that my last trip predates
9/11. It’s been a long time, I know, but the dreams, they started
after Katrina and her gang came in and smacked the city upside its head.
Although I didn’t join concerned friends in
post-hurricane cleanup, I went to sleep trying to make sense of the
televised images and patch them with the images from my mind’s eye.
My call to action was joining the Southern Foodways Alliance, an Oxford,
Miss.-based organization dedicated to preserving the culinary traditions of
the South.
For this Yankee, the culinary traditions of the South
were a foreign concept, and I knew I desperately needed to be schooled.
Eighteen months after the hurricane, I have yet to lay eyes on New Orleans,
but a trip later this spring is in the offing.
In the meantime, I’ll pay tribute to a culture
that refuses to die, thank goodness, and I’ll fry some dough for
breakfast, Café du Monde-style. Sounds like a breakfast of champions
for Mardi Gras (Feb. 20), n’est-ce pas,
chère?
PICAYUNEBEIGNETS
Adapted from Donuts: An American Passion by
John T. Edge
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup barley flour (Arrowhead Mills and Bob’s
Red Mill are two known brands)
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
One large egg, room temperature
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and cooled
slightly
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 gallon vegetable oil for frying
Powdered sugar for sprinkling
In a large mixing bowl, combine both flours, sugar,
baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk
together buttermilk and egg, then add the melted butter and vanilla, mixing
well. Add liquid
ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.
Divide the resulting dough into two balls. On a
floured surface, knead each ball 10 to 20 times and roll out with a rolling
pin into a 9-by-9-inch square about 1/8 inch thick. Next, cut the big
square into 12 small squares.
Pour oil into a cast-iron Dutch oven or other deep,
heavy-bottomed pot until it reaches a depth of 3 to 4 inches. Heat oil over
medium-high heat to 370 degrees; this will take 15 to 20 minutes.
Fry three or four beignets at a time, turning once
shortly after dropping them into the oil, for about two minutes total or
until lightly browned on both sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain
on paper. Allow oil to return to 370 degrees before adding a new batch of
dough squares. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve hot. You can keep the
beignets warm in a 200-degree oven until you’re ready to serve them.
Makes 24 beignets.
Culinary questions? Contact Kim O’Donnel at
[email protected].
Illinois Times has provided readers with independent journalism for almost 50 years, from news and politics to arts and culture.
Your support will help cover the costs of editorial content published each week. Without local news organizations, we would be less informed about the issues that affect our community..
Click here to show your support for community journalism.