Verwurrelt Gedanken (Deep-fried Carnival Pastry) is a traditional Luxembourgish recipe for a classic snack of a flour, butter, egg milk and sugar dough leavened with bicarbonate of soda and flavoured with lemon zest that's cut into strips and deep fried before serving. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Luxembourgish version of: Deep-fried Carnival Pastry (Verwurrelt Gedanken).
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Ingredients:
750g plain flour
2 eggs
120g butter, melted
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp sugar
120ml milk
freshly-grated zest of 1 lemon
Method:
Sift together the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and sugar into a bowl. Add the lemon zest and mix thoroughly to combine. Form a well in the centre, add the eggs, butter and milk to this. Beat together with a fork then work into the flour mix with your fingertips until the ingredients come together as a dough. Cover the bowl and set aside to rest for 60 minutes.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface then roll the pastry out and cut into thin strips about 12 cm long. Take three of these and braid them. Place on a floured board, cover with a clean cloth and set aside to rest for 15 minutes.
In the meantime, heat oil in a deep fryer to 180°C. Add the braided dough strips and fry for about 3 minutes, or until cooked through and golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on kitchen paper and dust with icing sugar. Serve warm.
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