Tagged: Filhos

Festa Food – Filhos da Festa – Portuguese Fried Dough

Festa food recipes continue this month with these Filhos da Festa. This popular dessert is a favorite at every festa. Some people call them “Malasadas” some call them “Filhos”. Call them any name you want. Enjoy the recipe.

Ingredients:

9 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 and ½ teaspoon salt

6 eggs

1 stick butter or margarine (8 tbsp)

1 teaspoon lemon or orange extract

2 cups milk

¼ cup fresh orange juice

oil for frying (corn oil or vegetable oil works best)

granulated sugar

cinnamon for dusting (optional)

 Ingredients to make the starter yeast:

3 tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon sugar

2 packages of dry yeast or 1 small cube yeast (0.6 oz, 17g)

½ cup warm water

 First step:

Mix the ingredients in the starter yeast and set aside until bubbles form.

Second step:

Put the milk and butter in a pan on low until butter is melted

In a large bowl, mix eggs, salt, sugar, lemon zest, and orange juice. Beat with electric mixer for 2 minutes.

Add the milk and butter and mix for 30 seconds. Add yeast mix and flour and knead well until the dough is elastic and smooth.

Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.

Doughfolarerise

Punch down the dough, cover and let it rise until doubled.

folarprep6

Your dough will look light, airy and elasticy .

bread dough

In a deep fryer heat the oil to 375 degrees. Using your hands lightly greased with olive oil, stretch pieces of the dough into thin strips of desired sizes of about 3 by 4 inches.

dsc05661

Fry until golden brown.

Drain on paper towels. Dust with granulated sugar while still warm. Note: You can also dust with a mixture of sugar and cinnamon.

A Portuguese Fried Dough Lesson: Filhos, Malassadas and Sonhos

sonhos-2
Sonhos – Fried Choux Pastry Recipe

Sonhos (Dreams) are fried pastry. They are made of basic choux paste dough which uses no yeast, or baking powder. The dough is dropped by tablespoons into hot oil and then fried in round doughnut shapes. They are rolled in a dusting of sugar and cinnamon.

Filhos

Filhós- Fried Dough Recipe


The terms “Filhóses” and “Malasadas” are sometimes used interchangeably, and sometimes one refers to doughnuts while the other refers to fried dough as photo above, without a hole in the center.

Filhós, is a fried pasty made of risen flour dough and always referred to as Filhós in the mainland of Portugal. However some of the Islands of Azores and Madeira also call them Filhós. It may get confusing, but it seems that what you call them depends on what region of Portugal your family is from and where you live now.

Malasadas are typically “Portuguese donuts”, a ball of fried yeast dough without a hole in the middle like regular donuts. After frying, they are rolled in confectioners sugar and sometimes filled with cream. This is an example of the famous Malasadas from Leonards Bakery in  Honolulu, Hawaii which is famous for their Malasadas. There are many shops throughout Hawaii that feature them as well. This tradition was brought to Hawaii from the Portuguese immigrants from Madeira, Portugal.

malasadas

coscoroes
Coscoroes – Fried Pastry Recipe

Coscorões are fried dough often referred  to as Angel wings, and similar to filhos. However, no yeast or other leavening agents are used to make the dough. They are usually made during the Christmas season.