churro-licious!

i'm kind of a sucker for churros. i'm not sure exactly what it is about them that makes me smile. the sugar? the cinnamon? the fried crunchy goodness of it all? whatever it is, i have to use a lot of self-control to just keep walking when i see them all sugary & toasty in those little warming cabinets. unlucky for me (but i guess lucky for my waistline), i don't see them around too often anymore.

tonight i decided to make a slow cooker chicken fajita recipe that i found on pinterest (blog post on that to follow). and i thought, why not make some salsa and guacamole to go along with it? (blog to follow) i felt like i was on a roll with adding fun things to my mexican meal (not to mention i happened to have the day off), so i thought i'd finish it off with some delicious churros.

one of the things i love about this recipe is it calls for adding some lime juice to the frying oil, which gives the churros an extra little refreshing boost. it's awesome. and since i'm making these at home, i feel less guilty about consuming them, because they're not a foot long! the recipe is adapted from the great big cookie book.

Churros

1 cup water

4 tbs sugar

pinch of salt

1.5 cups all purpose flour

1 egg

oil for deep frying

1/2 lime (juice)

1 tbs cinnamon

bring the water, 1tbs sugar, and salt to a boil. remove from heat and beat in flour until smooth. beat in the egg with a wooden spoon until the mixture is smooth and satiny. set the batter aside.

pour the oil into a deep frying pan (my 4qt dutch oven worked well) to a depth of ~2 inches. add the lime and heat oil to 375 degrees F. in a small bowl, mix together the remaining sugar and cinnamon and set aside. 

put batter into a pastry bag fitted with a fluted nozzle. pipe 2-3 inch strips of batter and add to the oil a few at a time. fry for 3-4 minutes, until golden brown. remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. roll the hot churros in the sugar / cinnamon mixture.