Description
Obviously, the best way to eat fresh locally-grown strawberries is straight up with a sprinkling of sugar... but these crispy fritters come a very close second, especially when they're fresh out of the fryer and generously dusted with icing sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 quart strawberries
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp butter, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Icing sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Wash the berries, then pat completely dry. Remove the hulls, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill completely.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together egg and milk. Add sugar, butter, vanilla extract and almond extract, and whisk until well combined. Sift in the flour and salt, and whisk until you have a smooth, thick batter.
- In a deep, heavy pot, heat 2-3 inches of oil to 375F (or use a deep fryer, if you prefer).
- Working in batches of 4-5 fritters at a time, spear a strawberry with a fondue fork or a long metal skewer, and dip into the batter to coat completely. Drop the fritter into the hot oil and fry until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes, turning once about halfway through. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with paper towels to drain.
- Dust the finished fritters generously with confectioners' sugar, and serve immediately. (As hard as it might be, I do strongly suggest eating the whole batch in one sitting, because they honestly won't be nearly as good by the next day. I have faith in you. You can do it.)
Notes
This recipe works best with the smaller locally-grown Canadian berries. If you must use the larger California strawberries, then cut them in half before dunking in batter to get a similar fruit-to-batter ratio.
While I haven't tested it out yet, I suspect this same batter can be adapted to work with other fruits - thin cross-wise slices of cored apple, large bite-sized chunks of ripe peach or plum, one-inch long chunks of banana, or whole pitted cherries (though for the latter, I'd probably cut into halves, fold into the batter and then drop into the oil by spoonfuls like a more traditional fritter).
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Dessert