Banana Beignets

In exactly ten days, it will be Carnaval here in Haiti. Dance, music and mostly letting go of the daily stress will all be part of the party that has actually already started.

With dozens and dozens of songs already released and the pre-carnival partying with marching bands and some floats, it is truly already Carnaval.

This season simply wouldn’t be the same without the little bites of pleasure illustrated above. Those of you who skim through the blog on a regular basis certainly recognize them. I am ready to bet you are actually wondering why I am writing yet another article about them, especially a third one.

To you I say, hey if they are that good, why not?

But worry not, I am actually bringing something new to the table. Just like our music bands record a new song each year for these festivities, this year, I am also sharing a new recipe to help you live the experience wherever you may be.

I may have told you about my very first beignet encounter in pre-k and shared the traditional Haitian beignet recipe, but I have yet to mention that there is another way of preparing them. The recipe below may actually be a bit closer to the beignets prepared elsewhere with fruits dipped in a batter.

It is still made with bananas, which are the secret to our local beignets, with the only difference that the fruit is cut into thick chunks instead of being mashed into puree.
I am not sure this recipe is as widespread as the first one. Until recently, I was convinced my grandmother was the only one to prepare her beignets this way. When I discovered that one of her sisters prefers the thick chunks of bananas as well, I dug a little and actually discovered a similar recipe in one of our local cookbooks.

I thus decided to go on that adventure and give that version another shot. I had always preferred the traditional version, and must confess, that even after trying my hand at this recipe, my opinion remains the same.

Don’t get me wrong, the beignets were good especially the next day after the dusted sugar had permeated the fried goodies, but since the bananas were not mashed, the taste was not as strong as I would have liked.

Don’t just take my word for it though. You now have two recipes to play with. In case you missed the first recipe just click here,and below is the new one.

As usual let me know which recipe you like best and Joyeux Carnaval!

Ingredients

  • 2-3 ripe bananas
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup of flour
  • 1/2 tsp of baking powder
  • 1 cup of milk
  • 2-3 tbsp of sugar
  • 1 pinch of baking soda
  • Nutmeg
  • Cinnamon
  • Vanilla
  • Hot oil
  • Sugar (for dusting)

Instructions

  1. Beat the eggs and incorporate them with the dry ingredients and milk to form a batter
  2. Add the bananas cut into thick chunks and mix well trying not to puree the fruits too much
  3. Add the sweet spices to your taste
  4. Fry them by dropping spoonfuls of the batter in some hot oil
  5. Sprinkle generously with some sugar and serve hot or cold.

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2 Comments

  • J’ai testé une version comme celle-ci il y a quelques jours parce que j’avais trouvé une recette différente de celle que j’utilise habituellement et qui n’a rien à voir avec notre recette haïtienne. Et comme j’avais des bananes (figues) j’en ai mis dans le reste de ma pâte.

    Mais ça fait tellement longtemps que je n’ai pas mangé les beignets haïtiens que je ne pense pas que je vais attendre le prochain carnaval pour en faire.

  • Martine Romain Megie

    Deja l’illustration si belle donne envie d’essayer cette version recette. A vos fourneaux. Joyeux Carnaval a tous.

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