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It’s summertime, and that means outdoor fairs, festivals, and carnivals are popping up in just about every town throughout the Midwest. My favorite part about a summer fair is the food, especially the sweet and crispy Funnel Cakes, served piping hot with a thick dusting of powdered sugar. Americana at its finest!
Funnel cakes are basically glorified pancakes, poured through a smaller vessel, into a deep fryer instead of onto a skillet. The results are positively magical: hot and crispy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside, maybe a thick dusting of powdered sugar or enough toppings to call it an ice cream sundae.
But if you can’t make it to the fair this year, bring the funnel cakes into your kitchen. They are easy enough to make and you’ll be rewarded by smiles big enough to win the Blue Ribbon.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Vegetable oil: To fry funnel cakes, use a neutral-flavored oil with a high smoke point such as vegetable oil, canola oil, or grapeseed oil.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a large saucepan, deep fryer, or electric skillet, heat oil to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a second bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, water, and vanilla. Whisk in flour mixture until smooth.
- Pour ½ cup batter into a plastic bag or piping bag. Holding the bag several inches above the oil, snip the corner and move the funnel in a spiral motion until all the batter is released. (Or, use a measuring cup with a spout and pour the batter out).
- Fry until golden brown on the first side, about 2 minutes, then flip and continue frying until golden brown on the second side, about 2 minutes longer.
- Drain on paper towels.
- Dust with powdered sugar. Repeat with remaining batter.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes about 4 cups batter, enough to make 8 funnel cakes from ½ cup batter each.
- Storage: Funnel Cakes are best enjoyed the day they are made. Store leftovers covered at room temperature for a day or two. For best results, reheat in the oven, toaster oven, or air fryer.
Recipe FAQs
Most folks think that funnel cakes come from the Pennsylvania Dutch, a group of German immigrants, because a version of funnel cakes appear in a German cookbook in 1879. Because sugar was a commodity, they were most likely made for holidays and harvest festivals.
While a funnel cake is a type of fritter, using fried batter, an elephant ear is a fried dough that is pounded flat. Both are fabulous and time-tested festival foods.
If you don’t have a funnel on hand, you can use a spouted measuring cup, a squeeze bottle with a wider tip, or even a small pitcher to pour out the funnel cake batter. You can even use a zip top plastic bag with a corner cut out for drizzling batter. Where there’s a will, there’s a way!
More State Fair favorites
Sweets
Cream Puffs
Sandwich Recipes
Pork Tenderloin Sandwich
Mexican Recipes
Mexican Street Corn (Elote)
Appetizer Recipes
Fried Cheese Curds
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Funnel Cakes
Ingredients
- 2 quarts vegetable oil for frying (see note 1)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, deep fryer, or electric skillet, heat oil to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, water, and vanilla. Whisk in flour mixture until smooth.
- Pour ½ cup batter into a plastic bag or piping bag. Holding the bag several inches above the oil, snip the corner and move the funnel in a spiral motion until all the batter is released. (Or, use a measuring cup with a spout and pour the batter out).
- Fry until golden brown on the first side, about 2 minutes, then flip and continue frying until golden brown on the second side, about 2 minutes longer. Drain on paper towels and dust with powdered sugar. Repeat with remaining batter.
Notes
- Vegetable oil: To fry funnel cakes, use a neutral-flavored oil with a high smoke point such as vegetable oil, canola oil, or grapeseed oil.
- Yield: This recipe makes about 4 cups batter, enough to make 8 funnel cakes from ½ cup batter each.
- Storage: Funnel Cakes are best enjoyed the day they are made. Store leftovers covered at room temperature for a day or two. For best results, reheat in the oven, toaster oven, or air fryer.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
I tried these this morning. I added enough to make the batter liquid enough to flow easily through my funnel. I sprinkled with powdered sugar and the fluffy, crispy badder was delicious!
I don’t see water listed in the ingredients list but you say add water with eggs, milk and vanilla? Can’t wait to try these!
This sounds like an interesting cake. I shall give it a try today. Let’s head for the supermarket now for ingredients.