Oliebollen Recipe
Oliebollen is a slightly sweet fried pastry made in Belgium and Holland during Christmas period. Olie means oil, bol means ball, and -en is, I guess, the plural suffix. In this case, oliebollen means oil balls.
Oliebollen is not made with a dough that can be shaped by hand like a standart yeast dough, but with a dough that can be poured in the oil with a spoon. Raisins, currants, chopped apple or candied fruit or a few of these can be used together to give flavor to the sweet dough. For example, I used raisins and apples. You can decide according to your taste.
Oliebollen is a dessert that is sold on the streets during Christmas and is known to many people who have had the opportunity to be in Belgium or Netherlands during the Christmas period before. Especially in this period when foreign travels have not been possible for a long time, if you miss your travels to European countries, Christmas markets, Christmas drinks, food and desserts during the Christmas period, you can create the Christmas market atmosphere by making the oliebollen recipe at home and eating them on the balconyshivering.
There are two points to pay attention when making oliebollen. The first is that the dough is not at a consistency to be shaped with hand like a traditional yeast dough, but almost fluid. The dough should be in a consistency that can be poured with a spoon. This consistency will make them look more spongy.
The second and most important is the frying stage. Since the dough contains egg and milk, it brownes very quickly compared to standard dough fries. By the way, Berliner has the same feature. If you are deceived by their colour and remove them from the oil early, the inside will remain doughy. To avoid this mistake, do not make oliebols in large bites. Even if you use a tablespoon while shaping, do not fill the spoon completely, half a spoon will be enough. If you want to be even more assured and if it is not a problem to spend more time for frying, you can make smaller oliebols with a teaspoon. Make sure your oil is hot when starting to cook, but the heat setting should not be too high while frying. I roast this kind of dough on the 5th level of a 9-stage electric stove. Fry the dough bites by turning them often, very often, really often. In this way, the heat will continue to cook the dough without burning the outside and finding the opportunity to move towards the inside and the inside will be cooked beautifully.
Enjoy the recipe...
Ingredients
- 1 cup of warm milk,
- 2 eggs,
- 1/2 cup sugar,
- 2.5 cups flour,
- 1 pack of instant yeast,
- 1 cup of raisins,
- 1/2 apple, chopped finely,
- Oil for frying,
- Powdered sugar for topping.
Preparation
- Whisk milk, yeast and sugar in a deep bowl,
- Add the eggs and beat them,
- Add the flour gradually and mix until you have a fluid dough,
- Add the raisins and apples and mix them,
- Cover the dough and let it rest for 1 hour,
- Stir again after the dough rises,
- Heat oil in a sauce pan to a depth enough for deep frying,
- Take a small piece of dough with a spoon and scrape it into the oil with another spoon,
- Put a few more pieces enough to fit in the pan and cook by turning them upside down frequently until the color is very dark,
- Drain them from the oil and take into a strainer,
- Fry the remaining dough in the same way,
- Serve hot, warm or cold by sprinkling powdered sugar on top.
Bon Appetit...