"Man Catching Beignets!"

Ok, so I decided that desserts can be crafts too! I mean seriously! Food is an art form. I love the movie "The Princess and the Frog." One of my favorite lines is when Lottie says, "I'm gonna need about five hundred of your man-catching beignets for my ball tonight." It's the way she said "man catching beignets" I love quoting it... so I decided that I was going to make beignets! So, what are we waiting for? Let's get started!

I used Paula Dean's recipe on food network:


Here's what we'll need:

• 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 7 cups bread flour
• 1/4 cup shortening
• Nonstick spray
• Oil, for deep-frying
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions:

Mix water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.

In another bowl, beat the eggs, salt and evaporated milk together. Mix egg mixture with the yeast mixture. In a separate bowl, measure out the bread flour. Add 3 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and stir to combine. Add the shortening and continue to stir while adding the remaining flour. Remove dough from the bowl, place onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. (I just kneaded this in our Bosch). Spray a large bowl with nonstick spray. Put dough into the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a towel. Let rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oil in a deep-fryer to 350 degrees F. (I used a few inched of oil in a small pan. It worked just fine)

Add the confectioners' sugar to a paper or plastic bag and set aside.

Roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness and cut into 1-inch squares. (Make them as big or small as you want, but remember, They will puff up once you start the deep frying).

Deep-fry, flipping constantly, until they become a golden color. 

After beignets are fried, drain them for a few seconds on paper towels

 toss them into the bag of confectioners' sugar. Hold the bag closed and shake to coat evenly.

 And there you have it! Delicious beignets! 

My brother suggests pouring chocolate sauce on them. I've also been told they taste great with jam! 

This would be my suggestion for a yummy treat when watching "the Princess and the Frog!" Goes great with the theme! Enjoy!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/french-quarter-beignets-recipe/index.html

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Roses Made of Paper? I Think Yes!

Ok. So for the First craft, we're keeping it simple :)

I love roses. They're just sooo pretty. So I made paper roses for you guys. 

Here's what you need:

1. paper (construction paper, copy paper, newspaper... whatever you want to try!)

2. scissors

3. glue ( I used glue gun because it dries faster)

Start with your paper. Some people use normal paper, others use pages from books. I like the look of words on these roses, and didn't have any old books I wanted to tear up. What I did instead was to print some of my favorite words on both sides of a piece of paper. I used princess quotes :)

Now cut It into a scalloped circle. make it as big or small as you want... just don't make it too small!

Cut this circle in a spiral shape. Make sure to scallop this part too. None of this has to be perfect :)

flat 

My brother calls this "The Tree"

Now start at the end and start rolling the paper. It won't roll perfectly because it's circular.

Continue rolling until there's no paper left to roll... (pretty obvious I know)

Continue to hold it as you release your grip slightly. Let it unfurl until it looks just the way you want. Some people will tell you not to let go completely, but I do not think that it makes too much of a difference. It just makes a pretty full flower.

To keep the flower in place, glue it! put some glue on the bottom (and anywhere else you think you need it) and hold it where you want it until it dries. 

Once the glue has dried, you're done. There's all sorts of possible uses for these cute little things. Put it on a stick to look like "real" flowers. Make a bunch of them to put into a wreath. Below are a few I made with construction paper, some aren't glued together yet. 

Enjoy crafting!