Elephant Ears – Not Just for the Fair Anymore!

Sep
6

Post by community member:

Deep fried bread, cinnamon and sugar, mmmm! Our county fair was a couple weeks ago and I wasn’t able to go — I really missed the elephant ear that is always my last stop on the way out of the gate to eat walking to the car. And you know, I smelled them every time I drove past. Laying in bed the other night, I had a brain flash — Cindy, you can make an elephant ear, you’ve made everything else that you thought you could only buy!

So I did! There are many variations to making an elephant ear I found as I was searching around. But being me, I took the basic approach. This recipe is just a single loaf of Grandmother bread using milk instead of water and adding some grease (I used my home rendered lard).

How to make Elephant Ears:

1 1/2 cups milk, warmed to approximately 110 degrees
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup lard (oil or butter will work)
4 cups flour

Pan large enough to fry your dough (I used my 10″ cast iron fry pan)
1 inch of oil in the pan, heated to 375 degrees

Make your dough as you normally would for bread. Warm the milk; add sugar, yeast and salt; let sit for 5 minutes. Add the lard and stir around, it won’t completely melt, but that’s okay! Add in your flour a bit at a time, using what you need to. Put out onto a floured board or counter and knead until soft and pliable. Put into a greased bowl and cover, letting sit until doubled in size.

Divide dough into 10 pieces. They will be a little bigger than a golf ball.

Now roll out thin, thin, thin — like making a tortilla. (I wonder if a tortilla press would work here?)

I found the easiest way to do this was to shape into a circle with my hand,

then roll out with the rolling pin, NOT using flour on the board. It will help the edges stick down enough, but with the grease in the dough it won’t stick, stick to the board. It doesn’t matter what state your “circle” looks like.

When you peel the dough up, it will return to a circle (or thereabouts!). Put into hot oil. Fry each side for about 15 – 20 seconds until lightly brown. If the oil gets low, add back up to the 1 inch mark and allow it to come back up to temperature.

Put out onto paper towel to drain. Look at this texture! It. Is. The. Fair’s. Elephant. Ear!

Now, load it up with cinnamon sugar — both sides!

Or, because we’re not at the fair here, we’re in our very own kitchen making this goodness, load it up with some homemade jam!

Or, if you’re a real rebel, use some honey!

Now a note: I tried using a pan to keep these warm. While it worked short term, 10 minutes or so, it doesn’t work for any longer than that. It loses its’ crispiness and resembles a pancake — which is still good, don’t get me wrong, but it didn’t hold the crispiness of the elephant ear I was craving.

Go ahead, make your own — you don’t have to wait for the fair to come back to town! Get the handy print link and save it your recipe box — Elephant Ears.

You can also find Cindy at
Chippewa Creek ~ Our Life Simplified.

Interested in contributing a guest post to the Farm Bell blog? Read information here for Farm Bell blog submissions.

Want to subscribe to the Farm Bell blog? Go here.




Comments

  1. roseh says:

    Oh Cindy! I had one of these topped with cheese at a fish fair in the UK about 15 years ago – I’ve never seen them again and no-one else seems to have heard of them here :o) I’m gonna HAVE to make some of these!

  2. CindyP says:

    Rose, I never thought of cheese! Oh my goodness, this could become a wrap..you know get some good stuff on the inside! LOL!

  3. KentuckyFarmGirl says:

    You know I’m going to have to try these right?? and eat a bunch of them, right?? Thanks for the recipe but not the pounds it will add!! I’m trying the cinnamon and sugar one first!

  4. SherryLeighRowell says:

    My husband will be in elephant ear heaven when I serve him a few of these. I think I’ll surprise him one day this week with a plate full sprinkled with confectioner sugar. Thanks for sharing your inspiration and your recipe!

  5. Launi says:

    Oooooh…I’m thinking with cream cheese and blueberry jam. Oh, my. Catch you later–gotta make some. :}

  6. brookdale says:

    Love these! We call ’em “dough boys”. At our campground in the summer, a bunch of us always get together and make these. One of the families has a propane deep fat fryer to cook them in.
    I will admit we usually use the store bought frozen bread dough…just easier when you’re camping in the wilderness. We put maple syrup on them, or cinnamon/sugar, or jam, or whatever people bring to add to the feast.
    Looking forward to them again this summer!

Add Your Thoughts



Search Farm Bell Recipes

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Filter by Categories
All Recipes
Appetizers & Snacks
Bagels
Bean Soups
Beans
Beans, Grains & Rice
Beef
Beverages
Biscuits
Blog
Boiling Water Bath
Bread Machine
Breads
Breakfast
Brownies
Budget
BWB Condiments
BWB Fruits
BWB Jams, Jellies, Butters & Preserves
BWB Marmalades & Conserves
BWB Other
BWB Pickles & Pickled Stuff
BWB Salsas
BWB Sauces
BWB Tomatoes & Combos
BWB Vegetables
Cakes
Candy
Canning
Casserole
Casserole
Casserole
Cereals
Cheese
Cheesecakes
Chilis
Chowders
Cobblers
Coffee Cake
Cold Remedies
Condiments
Cookery 101
Cookies & Bars
Cream Soups
Crisps
Crock Pot
Crowd-Size
Crusts
Cupcakes
Cure & Smoke
Dairy
Dehydrating
Desserts
Diabetic
Dips
Doughnuts
Dressings
Egg Dishes
Eggs
Entertaining
Fat-Free
Featured
Fermenting
Fillings
Fish
Food Photography
Freezing
Frostings & Icings
Frozen
Fruit Breads
Fruit Cakes
Fruit Salads
Fruits
Gift Basket Goodies
Giveaways
Gluten-Free
Goat Cheeses
Gourmet
Gravies
Griddles
Grill-Outdoor Cooking
Hard Cheeses
Herbs & Spices
Holiday
Homemade Cheese
How To
Ice Creams
Ingredients
Ingredients & Mixes
Jell-O
Jell-O Salads
Kid-Friendly
Kitchen Gadgets
Kosher
Lactose-Free
Lamb
Leftovers
Lettuce & Greens
Low-Carb
Low-Fat
Low-Sodium
Main Dish
Marinades
Meat Salads
Meet the Cook
Muffins
Non-Dairy
Old-Fashioned
One Dish Meal
Other Breads
Other Breakfast
Other Condiments
Other Dairy
Other Desserts
Other Main Dish
Other Salads
Other Side Dishes
Other Soups & Stews
Other Special Diets
Pasta
Pasta
Pasta Salads
Pastries
PC Beef
PC Chicken
PC Meats
PC Other
PC Poultry
PC Soups & Stews
PC Veggies
Pets
Pickling
Pies
Pizza
Pizza Crusts
Pork
Potato Salads
Potatoes
Potluck
Poultry
Presentation
Preserving
Pressure Canning
Pressure Cooker
Puddings & Custards
Recipe Requests
Relishes & Chutneys
Rolls
Rubs
Salads
Salads
Salsas
Sandwiches
Sauces
Scones
Seafood
Side Dishes
Soft Cheeses
Soups & Stews
Sourdough
Special Diets
Special Occasions
Steam Juicer
Stocks
Stuffings
Substitutions
Syrups
Tarts
Tips & Tricks
Tortillas & Pitas
Using FBR
Vegan
Vegetable Breads
Vegetable Salads
Vegetables
Vegetarian
Wild Game
Yeast Breads


If you would like to help support the overhead costs of this website, you may donate. Thank you!





Thanks for being part of our community!