Churros and Chocolate Sauce: Deep Fried Joy.

Please make these. Pleaseplease make these. Because good heavens are they good. And not in the way you’d expect. Firstly, I think you’d expect them to be tricky and fiddly to make. Frying and piping bag-ing and all sorts of faff. But NO. Oh nonono. As long as you go steady, and are in possession of said piping bag, even if you’re not (see notes), it will be a breeze.

Secondly I think you’d expect stodge. Deep fried, carby-fullness stodge. But again nonoNO. These little sausages of joy are light as a cloud; all crispy on the outside and airy on the inside. Even the chocolate sauce is smooth and silky rather than sticky and gooey.

They’re so light and non-deep-fried-feeling that they, I’ll admit, appeared on my breakfast plate this morning. And I’m only a teeeensy bit ashamed. In fact no, not even a teensy bit...the Spanish wouldn’t be. Especially as they were accompanied by sweet and juicy and oh so healthy pineapple, which didn’t even go neeeeeear the sauce. Though if it happened to have fallen in I wouldn’t have complained.

So go on, give it a go, and you’ll see that frying doesn’t have to mean stress and doesn’t have to mean stodge. And you will then love me forever for directing you to the MOST delicious of revelation. With Love and Cake.

Churros and Chocolate Sauce.

From Thomasina Miers' Mexican Food Made Simple

A few notes:

• If you don’t have a piping bag, fear not. Just fry little spoonfuls of batter, and you’ll have mini donuts...and my goodness is that a result that doesn't feel like 'making do'. If you do have one and also happen to have a large star nozzle then BRILL...yours will have the more traditional serrated edges. I thought I had one but didn’t. Hey ho.  
• To achieve the light, non-stodge texture we're after you need the oil to be hot enough to cook speedily without being so hot that the outside burns before the inside is cooked. If you have a cooking thermometer just make sure that the oil is around 170°c. If not, when the pan has been on a medium heat for 5 minutes or so, pop a little cube of bread in the oil and you want it to bubble and turn golden brown in less that 30 seconds...if not, adjust the temperature accordingly.
• In terms of the amount of oil, it's more about the level it reaches in you pan than millilitres, so go for it being filled about a third full. When frying like this I always choose the smallest pan sensible, so that you have to deal with as little hot fat as possible. It might mean a few more batches but I'll take that over vats of boiling oil.

Makes enough for 6

You will need

For the sauce

250g chocolate of your choice

2 tbsp golden syrup

300ml double cream

For the churros

a heavy based saucepan 

a piping bag if poss (see notes)

90g caster sugar

1 tbsp cinnamon

125g plain flour

125g self raising flour

pinch salt

2 tbsp olive oil

450ml freshly boiled water

around 1 litre of vegetable or sunflower oil

• First job is to make the sauce. All you do is pop all the ingredients into a little saucepan and heat gently until everything is lovely and melty. Done.
• Next for the churros. First mix the sugar and cinnamon together on a plate and set aside.
• Now for the dough. Sift the flours and salt into a bowl and make a well in the middle.
• In another bowl mix the water and olive oil together and pour into the well in the flour
• Beat together until combined and you will have a firm dough. Set it aside to rest for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile get the oil on a medium heat and heat to 170°c or so that a cube of bread browns in less that 30 seconds (see notes).
• When it's ready, pop the dough into your piping bag and squeeze out sausages of dough as long as you want them, into the oil, snipping them away from the nozzle of the piping bag with scissors. Don't overcrowd the pan, you don't want the churros to stick together.
• Leave to cook for 3-4 minutes, flipping them over once or twice, until golden brown and a bit of the bubbling has subsided.
• After a quick drain on kitchen paper, roll the hot churros in the spiced sugar.
• Get on with cooking the rest of the dough in the same manner.
• Then....it's time...lay back, dunk and enjoy. Yesssss.