Sopaipillas are a much-loved Mexican dessert, the simplicity and flavor have made them very popular. They are little pockets sprinkled with powdered sugar and drizzled honey.
For those who like a little background about dishes from around the world, this fried pastry is like a quick bread or donut that is served in many Spanish heritage areas of the Americas. It is referred to as sopaipilla, sopapilla, sopaipa, or cachanga in different places. The word sopaipa entered the Spanish language from the Mozarabic language of Al-Andalus, where it was known as Xopaipa and meant oil-soaked bread. It is very popular in New Mexico and in Tex-Mex restaurants in Texas and Oklahoma, USA.
In this 9:28-minute video by Rockin Robin Cooks the chef shows us how to make these from scratch. Robin is a delightful, calm and knowledgeable person, with an clear and concise teaching manner so you can master this dish quickly and feel confident that you will produce delicious sopaipillas.
INGREDIENTS
1 cup of flour
1 teaspoon of sunflower seed oil or other vegetable oil
¾ teaspoon of baking powder
3 ounces of warm water
½ teaspoon of salt
Honey of your choice
Powdered sugar
NOTE: you will need more vegetable oil to deep-fry them in
DIRECTIONS
Combine flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl.
Stir and blend well so it is even throughout.
Add a teaspoon of oil to the warm water.
Add water and oil mixture to the flour mixture about a tablespoon at a time and mix after every spoonful.
Dough will be a bit sticky, so you can use your hand at this stage to feel the consistency.
Time to knead the dough so sprinkle flour on the surface of the counter.
Push and turn the wad of dough constantly, kneading until it is no longer so sticky, but soft instead.
Put ball of dough back in the bowl to rest, cover with damp paper towel and let sit for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, put 1.5—2 inches of oil into saucepan. Oil needs to be deep enough so the sopaipillas float.
Let oil temperature reach 375F (190C) before you drop dough pieces in one at a time.
Time to roll out the dough to make sopaipillas. Sprinkle surface with flour again and get rolling pin out.
Cut the dough in half since it is easier to roll out a smaller portion of it.
It should be ¼ of an inch thick – if it starts to stick lift it and put more flour down and start again.
Once rolled out, cut into triangles (traditional), rectangles, squares, circles, hearts.
Take them on a plate to the stove and fry them by dropping them one at a time into the oil. Each one will sink and then rise to the surface. Scoop oil over the top so it puffs up like a pillow and as it turns golden brown turn it over, so it cooks on the other side too. Drop another one in and repeat – check the heat (with a thermometer if you please) and turn it up if necessary, to keep it at around 375F.
Remove the sopaipillas and leave them to cool on a paper towel covered rack or tray. Put some powdered sugar into a strainer and tap it over the sopaipillas to dust them. You can also sprinkle a sugar and cinnamon combo over them.
Pick up a sopaipilla and tear off a corner. Drizzle honey inside the pocket.
If you prefer savory flavors, you can fill them instead with cream cheese and beans, or beef and lettuce.
Here at Bee Mission, we vote for oozing raw honey drizzled inside and out!
If you enjoyed Rockin Robin's recipe and teaching style, please go to her YouTube channel and show her some love by liking her video, subscribing or signing up for her newsletter for more great recipes.
Enjoy!