Cakespy: Deep-Fried Cupcakes on a Stick
This Recipe First Appeared In: This Week's Tasty 10
Note: Jessie Oleson (aka Cakespy) drops by every Monday to share a delicious dessert recipe.
[Photographs and original art: Jessie Oleson]
First things first. The title of this recipe has probably brought up a serious question, and I'd like to answer it straightaway.
The answer is yes, I am trying to kill you, Paula Deen style. These deep-fried cupcakes on sticks may in fact not stick to your New Year's resolution plan, but they're delicious.
The thick batter seals moisture into the cake, and the oil infuses it with a light savoriness that makes them absolutely tantalizing. The taste is like the intersection of childhood nostalgia and greasy fair food.
Deep Fried Cupcakes on Sticks
About the author: Jessie Oleson is a Seattle-based writer, illustrator, and cake anthropologist who runs Cakespy, an award-winning dessert website.
Ingredients
serves 12
- 12 mini cupcakes with buttercream frosting (smaller cupcakes work best; full-size cupcakes may not stay on the stick)
- 8-12 cups of vegetable or peanut oil, quantity depending on your pan
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups flour, divided
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Special Equipment
- Saucepan, for frying
- Candy or frying thermometer
- Popsicle sticks (available at most craft stores)
Procedures
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1
Start out by peeling the wrappers off of your cupcakes, and spear each one with a popsicle stick, so that it is embedded into the frosting but does not poke through to the top. Freeze them for at least 2 hours, or even overnight--you want them to be like little rocks.
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While the oil heats, prepare the batter. Place 1/2 cup of flour in a shallow bowl and set aside for the moment. Place 1 cup of flour in a small bowl and stir in the baking powder and salt. In a mixing cup, stir together the milk, vinegar, and oil. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry until smooth and free of most lumps. The batter should be thicker than a pancake batter--if it seems too liquidy (as if it might drip off when you dip the cupcakes in it), whisk in the remaining flour until it has reached the desired consistency.
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First, dredge your cupcake in the flour, covering it completely. Tap off excess and roll into the wet batter mixture until it is completely coated on all sides (the bottom may be bare; this is okay).
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6
Quickly dip the battered cupcake into the oil, holding the stick from the very end (do not drop it or you might get oil spatter!). You will only be dipping each cupcake for a very short time, so keep a careful eye on it.
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Do you have extra batter?
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10
I had a tiny bit left after frying all of my cupcakes, so I used it to deep fry a couple of peanut butter cups. It was delicious.
16 comments:
i love that we are deep-frying the frosting as well. yum.
PrettyNicola at 8:41AM on 01/11/10
Everything about this sounds incredible, and I'm not usually one for either cupcakes or deep-fried food. That cross section of the finished cupcake pushed me right over the edge. Put that in my belly!
Erin Meister at 9:20AM on 01/11/10
This is crazy.
In other news, I totally want to just cut to the chase and deep fry balls of icing.
dootsie at 12:27PM on 01/11/10
Thanks buddies. I have to admit--I was surprised that it *actually* worked. My first one was a bust (it seems like that is often the case with frying, it's more of a tester) because I left it in too long, but I got the hang of it pretty quickly and just made sure to remove them from the oil as soon as they turned golden (a second or two makes a big difference!) and the frosting DID remain intact, much to my amazement!
@dootsie, I don't see why it wouldn't work...after all it's done with ice cream, right? I would just make sure they are very cold when you start.
cakespy at 12:32PM on 01/11/10
Wow! I would definitely never have thought of this!
Very nice!!
Alma! at 4:48PM on 01/11/10
Have done this fried "whatever" thing as an experiment once with frozen ganache balls (stiff mix: ratio of dark chocolate to cream by weight was about 3:2). After frying immediately rolled in a mixture of raw sugar, Carnation Malted Milk Powder, and a pinch of Sea Salt. Was a bit messy, but tasted OK. Friends and relatives seemed to enjoy.
PommeDG at 6:51PM on 01/11/10
Wow! I must admit I am very pleased that you have posted this recipe on serious eats. I will definitely look into more of your recipes. I love cupcakes and have baked them almost everyday of the holiday season. But I never thought of frying them. Sure, it can be hazardous to health if you it them all the time. But it a wonderfully unique way of eating cupcakes. Its innovative and sheer genius! I will make them on my cheat day, which is usually on a Sunday. Keep it up, Jessie! :)
Food Vixen at 12:06AM on 01/12/10
Any idea how far ahead of time I could make these before serving them? I wonder if refrigerating them, after frying, for a few days would be ok? Any thoughts?
JBird at 2:55PM on 01/13/10
Gross. Really.
pegfoley at 3:14PM on 01/13/10
This looks delicious and I wish to try. But...diet. As soon as I lose the weight, though, I'm frying up some cupcakes!
automne_aki at 4:28PM on 01/13/10
I wondered how long the cupcake craze would last. A business reporter suggested the craze was on the way out (judged by sales), but I think the frying of cupcakes must be the acme, and from now on I assume it is down hill.
Seasons at 8:05PM on 01/13/10
Hey again!
To respond to a couple of questions -
@jbird: they don't have a long shelf life. Think of them as you would think of freshly fried doughnuts. Best served pretty soon after frying, but probably not as good as the next day. If you wanted to do prep in advance, you could probably spear the cupcakes on sticks and store them in an airtight container or tightly wrapped plastic wrap in your freezer and leave them there a few days in advance, but I'd fry them at most a couple hours before serving.
@seasons: But then again, deep fried candy bars felt like a craze from several years ago, and I don't see a lack of Snickers in my local grocer or drugstore...
cakespy at 9:05PM on 01/13/10
Deep-fried cupcakes were a huge hit at our local county fair...extremely yummy! Now I can try making these at home. Terrific! :)
skyeyes at 9:17PM on 01/13/10
This sounds wonderful and very unhealthy. However, there's a guy in Texas that is deep frying thick slices of bacon and serving em with cream gravy and biscuits. He deep fries after he batters the bacon. (chicken fried bacon)
At my age, the blood flowing smoothly in my veins is important! Dave
old chef at 9:51AM on 01/14/10
Nice -- the first thing that I thought when I saw the heading was, "What, is this some sort of Paula Deen thing?" Funny that you address it in the beginning of your post :)
ArkyTrojan at 3:42PM on 01/15/10
GROSS!
miss monsoon at 10:29AM on 01/18/10