With a sweet taste coupled with that Crescent City flare, baked beignets make for a simple yet succulent dessert treat that is sure to satisfy all dessert cravings.

Southern food is known for its extravagance in its flavors, but is also commonly associated with two words: deep fried. While deep frying makes for crispy crackling taste, it is also packed with things like trans fats and saturated fats, making it very unhealthy and high in calories.

Happily however, baking these New Orleans fritters makes for a good of a taste while offering better nutrition too. With low preparation time and tons of fun, beignets are a southern style desert treat that anyone can make with ease.

This recipe was adapted from eatliverun.com, along with my own strawberry sauce.

Beignets

Serves: 18

Total cook time: 1 hour

1/4 cup warm water

1 packet active dry yeast

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup butter

1 egg

3/4 cup buttermilk

6 strawberries, sliced

Begin by combining the yeast, water and a few pinches of sugar and mix thoroughly. Once mixed, set aside. Next, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, baking powder, sugar and salt and combine. Take the egg buttermilk and whisk in a separate bowl until uniform. Combine all mixtures into the dry ingredients, adding in the butter as well. For best results, mix with an electric mix and combine until a dough forms.

Take a baking sheet and line with olive oil. Take clumps of the dough and flatten on a cutting board to roughly the size of a post-it note. Use a knife to cut clumps into rectangles equivalent to the size of a palm. Place completed rectangles on baking sheet and place in oven at 400 F for 10 to 12 minutes. When the rectangles have risen and are a golden brown color, they are ready.

Pull out of oven, and set aside to cool. Sprinkle powdered sugar on all beignets while cooling.

For the Strawberry sauce, take five to six strawberries and blend until a paste is formed. Take a spoon and cover the tops of beignets with the sauce.

For an easy to make dessert treat that are big on flavor, beignets are the dessert for you. Combining their southern roots with modern cooking methods and strawberry sauce, these fritters make for the perfect end to a great meal. Be careful not to have too many though.

Cody Powell-McClintick can be reached at [email protected]