Loukoumades with Vanilla Sauce

I have a new found appreciation for the art of making loukoumades. When I first received the request, I thought to myself "fried dough, how hard could this be?!"....50 loukoumades later, I finally started to get the hang of it! This is more about technique than the actual recipe. Anybody can make the batter, but I had a lot of trial and error of trying to get them close the right shape. With that said, these were...

Crispy

Crunchy

Fluffy

I got the idea for the vanilla sauce from a bougie steakhouse here on long island that used to make them. It literally tastes like ice cream and will not melt on your loukoumades! You can make both the classic simple syrup and vanilla sauce on the side to really WOW the crowd.

1 cup of lukewarm water (about 105-110 degrees)

1 packet instant dry yeast

1 tablespoon honey (can sub sugar)

1 1/2 - 2 cups of all purpose flour, add slowly*

1/4 cup corn starch

Pinch of salt

Oil for frying (avoid anything with a lot of flavor, use something like canola)

*Make the consistency slightly thicker than pancake batter

1. Combine water, yeast, honey in a large bowl and gently stir to combine, let rest for a few minutes until bubbles form

2. Whisk flour, corn start, and pinch of salt until it a batter is formed

3. Cover with plastic wrap and a dish towel, set aside in a warm place for 40-1 hour (until doubled in size)

4. Fill a large pot with enough oil to comfortably cover the loukoumades (about 3 inches) and heat on high (350-375 degrees at least!)

5. Have a glass of tap water nearby and a tablespoon

6. With one hand, squeeze the batter in your hand to pop up through your palm and scrape some the batter onto the wet spoon (see the technique here)

7. Drop the batter into hot oil. Don't overcrowd the pot.

8. Cook on all sides until golden brown and remove on top paper towels to drain when ready. Repeat step to cook until you are done.

9. Dress them however you want or serve them plain with sauces on the side!

1 cup of water

1 cup of sugar

1 slice of lemon (about 1/2" thick)

1 tablespoon of honey

Add all ingredients to a pot and bring to a boil, transfer to another container and let cool completely before serving.

Stores in the fridge well for a few weeks. You can use this to make other desserts like melomakarona!

2 cups heavy cream

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup salted butter

2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract

1. Over medium heat, melt butter and add heavy cream, sugar, butter, vanilla extract and whisk constantly until it comes to a boil

2. Reduce the heat to medium-low until it thickens (10-15 minutes max)

3. Remove from heat and transfer to a container to cool slightly

4. Give it a stir, add plastic wrap directly over sauce to prevent a skin from forming and cool in the refrigerator for a few hours to thicken like pudding (best overnight)

Best when served hot and fresh! Use can dress them with:

Honey

Cinnamon

Confectioners Sugar

Chopped Nuts

Vanilla Dipping Sauce

Nutella

Simple Syrup

Crumbled Oreo Cookies

Sky is the limit...go for it!