Cinnamon Sugar Funnel Cake with Peaches and Raspberries

Some things are better left a mystery.  It’s best not to know how many grams of fat are in a really good Pina Colada.  When drinks come with umbrellas and a side of fruit… all bets are way way off.

 It’s best not to know how many miles you’ve run when your knees are sweaty, your breath is just about gone, and you’re dog tired.  It’s the knowing that will have you talking your run-brain into stopping after the next tenth of a mile.  Maybe that’s just me. 

It’s best not to know how many people hate-follow you on Instagram photos because… how is that even a thing that people have time to do!? Good grief.  

It was best to be oblivious to the fact that we can make funnel cake… yes, the fried state fair delicacy… right in our very homes.  But now that we know, it feels like out duty to not unknown… and thus, eat a whole heck of a lot of funnel cake. 

It’s just that things get a little out of hand once you know you can make things like funnel cake and Beer Battered Onion Rings and Homemade Ranch Sauce right in your kitchen… in your very own kitchen… and you don’t even have to be wearing pants (although you should for hot oil safety… seriously).  

I should also mention that making homemade funnel is pretty dang easy.  There’s one part where we get nervous and hold our breaths a bit… but other than that, too easy.  We’re in real trouble now. 

Flour is whisked together with baking powder, salt, and brown sugar.  Eggs, a whole and a yolk.  This will be the base of our pourable, pancake-like batter.  

Also important is our powdered sugar topping, laced with cinnamon.  

I added beaten yolks and vanilla extract to a well in the center of the dry ingredients.  

Next, a steady stream of milk.  We’ll need between 1 1/2 and 2 cups depending on how heavy a flour measurer you are.  I used just over 1 1/2 cups.  Whisked into the batter until no lumps remain.  

The batter will be on the juuuuust thick side of pourable pancake batter.  

If you have a funnel cake batter dispenser, well… look at you!  

I used a disposable Ateco pastry bag and a Ateco 804 tip.  And if you’re wondering… yes, I made a mess.  It was totally worth it.  

I poured the smooth batter into a large liquid measuring cup and placed the tip-fitted pastry bag in a pint glass for stability while filling.  

Before we go down the road of pouring thin batter into a vessel with a hole at the bottom, it’s a good idea to check the temperature of your fry oil… and don’t even try to make this recipe without a fry thermometer… and make sure that you have a pan ready with paper towels for cooling.  Things get crazy once the funneling gets underway.  

I poured in enough batter for about one funnel cake, about 1/3-1/2 cup.  A bit of batter will come out of the tip, but that’s just fine.  This is where things get messy.  

I gently lifted the bag from the pint glass, placed my finger over the top to keep the batter from escaping, and headed over to the small sauce-pan with the hot oil.  I took my finger off the tip and let the batter meet the oil in a half-haphazard swirling motion.  Very technical.  

I used a small saucepan, like this one, to fry one funnel cake at a time.  I found that this was the best way to control the funnel cake shape.  It was defined by the pan.  

Fried and dusted liberally with cinnamon powdered sugar.  I like funnel cake topped with jam or fresh fruit.   Peach and raspberries are always tremendous.  

And… now you know.  You’ll never go to a state fair again, except for the pie baking contests and fried butter.  Is that still happening? 

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