Pi Day 2012 is quickly coming to a close as I rush to get this post published! I was recently talking to my dear ol’ Dad about ideas for upcoming blog topics and he mentioned the fried pies he had growing up in the South. He said they were one of his favorite treats my Granny Jeannette made for him. Then when I looked on the calendar and saw that 3.14 was merely week away, I thought it only appropriate that I try my hand at these delectable fried pies.

As with anything, there are several ways to make this recipe. My dad, in amazingly true form, recited made-from-scratch instructions from memory – which I totally appreciate, but I’m pressed for time this week. So, with ingredients I already had on hand, I made this semi-homemade (shout out to Sandra Lee!) version using frozen peaches and refrigerated biscuit dough.

Here’s how I did it:

Fried Peach Pies
makes 16 pies

1 lb. bag of frozen peaches (or any fruit of your choosing)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 can of refrigerator biscuit dough

Vegetable oil
Powdered sugar

1. Thaw the peaches according to package instructions. Drain excess liquid and chop into bite size pieces. In a bowl, mix peaches, sugar, apple pie spice, ground ginger, and cornstarch together until combined.

2. Bust open the biscuit dough and cut each dough disc in half. Roll out the dough, on a floured surface, using a rolling pin until it’s a quarter inch thick.

3. Using a slotted spoon, scoop a couple of tablespoons of the peach mixture onto the dough. Dampen the edges with water, fold over, and seal with the tines of a fork.

4. Fry in oil that is 350 degrees until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes a side. Drain on some paper towels, then sprinkle with powdered sugar. Enjoy them hot or cold!

Hope you had a lovely Happy Pi Day, y’all!

I dedicate my first recipe post to my mom, with gratitude. My earliest memory of eating fried dough was when I was about 4 years old, living in Hawaii. My mom and I would head to a small farmer’s market at Ewa (pronouced “eh-va”) Beach early on Friday mornings. While she did load up on fresh, Filipino vegetables I think we really went for the cinnamon doughnut twists. I am my mother’s daughter and I definitely inherited my sweet tooth from her. And those fresh, hot doughnuts? Oh my heaven. They were delectable then and still bring me nostalgic joy today.

In honor of my childhood weekends on the sunny island of Oahu, I decided to make a fried dough recipe with a Hawaiian spin.

Here are the players. Well, except the vanilla. The recipe didn’t call for it, but it snuck into the picture anyway. Honestly, I don’t think it would do any harm to add a little bit in. I shall try that next time.

So, these aren’t the doughnuts I first remember eating with my mom all these years ago. While perusing the amazingly delicious Doughnuts cookbook by Lara Ferroni, I came across Malasadas – a “yeast doughnut that originated in Portugal and became popular in Hawaii.” Inspired, I decided to give this recipe a whirl. I made a few changes, though.

I decided to make twists as apposed to the squares in the original recipe. This wasn’t easy and the end result didn’t look too much like twists, so when I make this again I’m stickin’ to the squares. Even though they were misshapen, they were scrumptious! They kind of reminded me of those sweet King’s Hawaiian rolls, which I just love.

Try it out! Here’s the recipe:

2 tbsp. lukewarm water
1 tbsp. (11 grams) yeast
1/2 cup superfine sugar, divided
3 large eggs
2 tbsp. vegetable shortening
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/4 tsp. salt
3 to 4 cups bread flour
vegetable oil for frying

1. Place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle with the yeast and 1 teaspoon of the sugar. Stir and set aside until foamy, about 5 minutes.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs until thick. add the yeast mixture, shortening, remaining sugar, milk, half-and-half, and salt. Mix until just combined.

3. Switch to the dough hook attachment and add the flour 1/2 cup at a time, until the mixture forms a soft dough that pulls away from the edges of the bowl. The dough will be moist, but not too sticky.

4. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm spot until it doubles in volume, about 1 hour. Flip the dough over, cover, and let rise another hour until is doubles again.

5. Heat a heavy-bottomed pot with at least 2 inches of oil until a deep-fat thermometer reads 350?F.

6. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to 1/2-inch thick, then with a pizza cutter or knife cut it into 1/2-inch strips. Take two strips and twist them together. Cut twists in half for a more manageable size.

7. With a metal spatula, carefully place in the oil. Fry until golden, 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon. Drain briefly on a paper towel. Drizzle with pineapple glaze (recipe follows). Serve immediately.

Pineapple Glaze
recipe adapted from Doughnuts

1-1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted to remove any lumps
3 to 4 tbsp. pineapple juice
2 tbsp. chopped dried pineapple (optional)

1. Place the sugar in a medium bowl and slowly stir in the pineapple juice, a little at a time, to make a smooth pourable glaze.

2. Add in chopped dried pineapple and stir to incorporate.

3. Drizzle over the freshly fried doughnuts.

And here’s how mine turned out…
This one’s for you, mom!