Celebrate the Paniyiri Greek Festival at home with this sweet honey puffs recipe
In 1976 a group of passionate Greek Australians sought to share their storied cultural traditions with the people of Brisbane. Four decades later and Paniyiri Greek Festival has grown to become Queensland’s signature celebration of all things Greek and the state’s largest cultural festival. As far as success stories go, this one is pretty amazing. Following the cancellation of this year’s festival due to strict social-distancing restrictions, the fine folks behind Paniyiri Greek Festival decided to move their celebrations online this Sunday May 24. To help you experience one of the most colourful and flavoursome cultures at home, the’ve also shared their mouth-watering honey puffs (loukoumades) recipe. These sweet balls of goodness are a traditional Greek dessert that somewhat resembles the golden crispy-meets-fluffy texture of a doughnut. Once fried to perfection, the puffs are coated with a sweet honey syrup and sprinkled with cinnamon – yum! If you’re keen to give these bad boys a crack, fire up the saucepan and get ballin’.
INGREDIENTS
1 packet of dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
250 ml warm water
250 g plain flour, sifted
½ teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil for deep-frying
1 teaspoon cinnamon
6 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons water
METHOD
To make the batter
Dissolve the yeast in ½ cup of warm water for 15 minutes or until it becomes frothy.
Place the flour and salt in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the yeast solution and remaining ½ cup warm water.
Mix well to make a thick batter.
Cover with a kitchen towel and leave for one hour in a warm place or until the batter has doubled in size.
To make the syrup
Place the honey and water in saucepan and simmer, stirring for ten minutes.
Set aside and cool.
To make the honey puffs
Heat oil in a large saucepan suitable for deep-frying.
Drop heaped tablespoons of the batter into the hot oil, turning them as they puff up.
Fry for about three minutes or until they are golden brown.
Drain on paper towels and keep warm until all batter is used.
To serve, place on a large platter, spoon the syrup over the honey puffs and sprinkle with cinnamon.
This recipe was supplied by Paniyiri Greek Festival. To experience the online celebrations this Sunday May 24, head here.
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