Makes 40 small beignets

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tbsp butter, melted
• 3 1/2 cups bread flour
• oil for frying
• 1 cup Nutella (or jam, or any kind of filling you prefer)
• powdered sugar for dusting

Method

1. In a small bowl, combine the water and sugar. Add the yeast and let it sit until slightly frothy.
2. In a medium sized bowl, beat the egg. Trickle in the salt, milk and butter and continue whisking. Also add in the yeast mixture.
3. Next, add in the flour- in two batches. I start out with a whisk and then switch to a spoon.
4. Once the dough becomes difficult to work with, place on a floured surface and knead until it forms a ball. Add more flour if necessary.
5. Oil a medium/ large bowl. Place the ball of dough in the bowl and brush the surface of the dough with oil. Cover with cling film and let alone for 2-3 hours or until it has doubled (or tripled) in size.
6. Heat around 2 cups of vegetable oil in a 9 inch skillet or pan.
7. Uncover the dough and place on a floured surface. Roll to 1/4 inch thick and cut into 1-2 inch squares. Another option is using a cookie cutter to make circle shapes.
8. The oil should be around 160 C or 350 F- you can test this by placing a small piece of dough. If it floats up and the oil begins to bubble, it’s hot enough.
9. Fry 4-5 squares at a time- around 1 minute on each side or until golden brown. Then flip and fry on the other side. Make sure the oil doesn’t get too hot.
10. Remove the beignets from the oil and place on a paper-towel.
11. To fill them, pour the Nutella in a piping bag with a 1/4 inch nozzle attached. Make a hole on one side of the beignet, insert the nozzle in the hole and press gently. Don’t over fill with Nutella. You can also slice the beignet in half and spread it instead of piping.
12. Dust with powdered sugar and serve immediately- while they are still warm.