Earlier this year the whole family indulged in a bit (!!!!) of wheat based pizza from the Forge in Ballarat. Zeppoli, Italian doughnuts, were on the menu served with caramel sauce and salted caramel gelato - my daughter and I decided we needed to taste this wonderful sounding concoction. 

Our expectations were well and truly met, so much so that I simply had to try and make a gluten free version of this particularly moreish dessert. 

Needless to say my daughter was very, very happy to be on the taste testing panel.  

After googling Zeppoli recipes I realised there are a couple of different ways they can be made. I tried a couple of different versions but the family preferred these ones. 

You will need a deep fryer for this recipe.

This recipe was designed specifically to be made with Bakers' Magic gluten free flour. The finished baked product will not be the same if you use another gluten free flour and you will need to adjust the recipe, particularly if the flour you're using contains rice flour.

 

Ingredients

112 g Bakers' Magic Gluten free flour

2 tsp Psyllium husk

1 tsp Yeast

10 g Sugar

Pinch of Salt

150 g Warm water

 

Psyllium husk - Psyllium is used to make the dough easier to handle.  

 

 

Method

Simple Instructions 

1. Activate the yeast in the 150 g warm water containing 10 g sugar for approximately 5 minutes.

2. Blend the remaining dry ingredients.

3. Thoroughly mix together the dry ingredients and activated yeast. Let the dough sit for approximately 5 minutes.

4. Mix the dough again. 

5. Prove for approximately 15 - 30 mins.

6. Heat the oil in the deep fryer to 180 C. 

7. Divide the dough into quarters. (If you don't want to roll out the dough visit the Zeppoli Bites recipe). 

8. Roll out a piece of the dough between 2 sheets of lightly oiled baking paper to a thickness of approximately 2 mm. 

9. Cut the dough into strips approximately 3 cm x 7 cm.

10. Deep fry the dough strips (about 6 at a time) until golden brown.   

11. Serve warm/hot with a sauce and/or cream/ice-cream. 

More Detailed Instructions

Warm water is ~1/4 to 1/3 of boiling water with the remaining cold water (tap). Whether you use 1/4 or 1/3 will depend on how cold your tap water is. If the water is too hot it will kill the yeast.

Pre-incubate the yeast at room temperature for approximately 5 - 8 mins in 150 g of warm water containing the sugar. Stir the mixture to dissolve the sugar & disperse the yeast. This gives the yeast a readily available food source & they can "revive" in a relatively undisturbed environment. After the allocated time the surface of the yeast mixture should be slightly frothy. This indicates the yeast are viable. 

Stand Mixer

Place all ingredients into the mixing bowl (including pre-incubated yeast). 

Combine ingredients using the flat beater until a uniform consistency is achieved. You may need to stop the mixer and scrap down the sides. It will be a very stiff dough. 

Let the dough proof for approximately 15 - 30 mins in a warm moist environment.

Add oil to your deep fryer and turn it on to 180 C.

Divide the dough into quarters and roll out a piece between two pieces of baking paper to a thickness of ~2 mm. 

Lift off the top piece of baking paper. 

Gently cut the dough into strips approximately 3 cm x 7 - 8 cm. 

Pick up a dough strip and carefully put it into the deep fryer. Add in another 5 strips. The number of strips added will depend on the size of the deep fryer and the strips. 

Deep fry the strips on one side for approximately 2 mins. Carefully turn the strips over with a metal utensil and deep fry for another approximately 2 mins. Ensure the strips are golden brown before taking them out of the fryer. 

Carefully remove the strips from the fryer and put them on some adsorbent towel. Cover them and keep them somewhere warm while waiting for the other strips to cook. 

Ensure the deep fryer is at temperature before adding more strips.

Serve warm/hot with a delicious sauce and/or cream and/or ice-cream.  

Simply enjoy!