A little over a fortnight ago I was bewitched by a certain volume of books. Not cookbooks, either. Nonfiction, actually. I have since neglected every duty in life and given myself completely over to this force. We’ve gone many a night without dinner, laundry is piled high, and my personal hygiene has begun to suffer. However, who can resist a doomed love story? Star-crossed lovers? The dreamiest, most selfless vampire in history?
Don’t you dare snicker!
Sure, I was where you were once. I used to cringe at every advertisement, roll my eyes in apathy at the teeny bopper posters, all the silly hype for some pubescent, and I was sure, poorly written high school romance.
I am no longer ashamed. Instead I dote on the novels with brazen abandon. I’m seriously considering hanging a poster of Robert Pattinson in our bedroom. I have been so engrossed in the tale that I’ve consumed each book in 24 hours. Of course, I had to take a fews days off in-between to ponder every detail, catch up on sleep, eat, bathe, etc.
What does this have to do with apple fritters? Well, nothing directly. I’m just waiting, rather impatiently, for the last book in the Twilight Series from the library. Until then, I thought it might be nice to surface from my obsession and live in the real world for a few days.
So, without further ado, I give you apple fritters.
APPLE FRITTERS
Loosely adapted from Thomas Keller’s Ad Hoc at Home
These would no doubt impress anyone. We had them for breakfast this morning. And like a stingy little kid on Halloween I over indulged. These are like funnel-cake doughnut hybrids, with a sliver of apple in the middle to put the health conscious at ease.
- 1 cup gluten-free flour mix (I use 2/3 cup brown rice flour, 3 tablespoons potato starch, 2 tablespoons tapioca starch)*
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 6 ounces sparkling water
- 2-3 crisp, sweet apples
- Canola or vegetable oil for frying
Whisk the first 5 ingredients together in a large bowl. Add the seltzer/sparking water and mix to achieve a smooth batter. Set aside.
Peel and core the apples, slice into 2″ long and 1/4″ thick strips, much like french fries. Add apples to batter and gently stir to cover.
Heat 1 1/2″ – 2″ of oil in a wide, shallow pan over medium heat. When a drop of water crackles in the oil it is ready, 2-3 minutes. Using two forks lift up 4-5 apple matchsticks from the batter, allowing the excess batter to drip back into the bowl. Gently lower the irregularly shaped wad into the hot oil. Let cook until crisp and lightly browned, flipping a few times throughout, about 5 minutes. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to drain and cool slightly. Repeat, cooking 2-3 batches at a time. Don’t crowd the pan.
Serve immediately with a generous sprinkling of confectioner’s sugar.
* Swap out all purpose flour if you’re not gluten-free
** Next time I will lightly dredge the fritters with a mix of regular sugar and a pinch of cinnamon before dusting with the powdered sugar. I thought they needed just a hint more sweetness.
LARA SHOLL 
Ooh! I’ll have to try these!!
Hi Denise, please do and let me know if you do anything different. Thanks for stopping by.
I’ll let your new obsession slide as long as your A never shows up with glitter on, and you never get my A hyped up about it.
Fritters have got to be one of the best inventions ever. It’s another one of those wonderful concoctions (like the Monte Cristo sandwich) that probably started when some guys were standing around a boiling vat of oil and leftover batter going, “You know what else we could put in there?” It’s also when beer batter was invented.
I can’t make any promises about not sneaking glitter into my A’s lotion. Not that he wears lotion or anything. As far as your A, misery loves company and I wouldn’t mind having her camaraderie in this saga.
We’ve used this same batter (sans the sugar and cinnamon) to fry up David’s crappy. Delicious with a little aioli!
What a treat!!! These were absolutely delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe!
Shannon, I’m so glad you tried them! I’ve been thinking lately that I should experiment using this batter for doughnuts. Thanks so much for dropping by and the lovely comment.