The typical pumpkin fritters acquire a very special presentation in Valencian lands. They are prepared in the form of a donut and are light, fluffy and with that appetizing pumpkin flavor that identifies them. This recipe for Valencian pumpkin fritters, or bunyols de carabassa, is usually widely consumed at Fallas festivities. It is common to find them in street stalls in the company of a good bowl of dipping chocolate.
If you have the pleasure of visiting the Valencian Community, you cannot miss the opportunity to try them and, if you want to bring them home, in this article we are going to tell you how to make Valencian pumpkin fritters so that you can enjoy them whenever you want and pamper your loved ones with an easy and traditional dessert.
Ingredients to make Valencian pumpkin fritters:
- 300 grams of pumpkin clean and without skin.
- 400 grams of wheat flour.
- 25 grams of fresh baker’s yeast.
- 1 glass of pumpkin cooking water.
- 1 liter of olive or sunflower oil for frying.
- 2 tablespoons of white sugar.
How to make Valencian pumpkin fritters:
Cook the pumpkin covering it with water and let it boil until it softens. If you make the small pieces it will take much less time, but you should have it for about half an hour. Go puncturing the pieces to see if they are tender. Once cooked, reserve the cooking water, crush the pumpkin with a fork.
Once the broth from cooking the pumpkin is lukewarm, use it to dilute the fresh yeast, it should not be too hot, but not cold either, since the heat of the broth will be effective in activating the yeast.
Also add the flour and stir to mix until completely combined. Little by little, ingredients will be added to the dough and it will take on more body to be able to handle it more easily.
Go adding the pumpkin in portions and stirring until all the ingredients are fully integrated. Its appearance should not be of a liquid mass and, if so, add more flour little by little; she will ask you herself. It does not have to be a compact or hard dough, but on the contrary, it must be somewhat sticky.
Add the sugar and continue stirring. You can knead, if you want, with your hands, but you will see that the dough sticks slightly between your fingers, once everything is integrated, the dough is ready.
It is the moment in which you must leave the dough to rest for an hour so that it rises and doubles its volume, so cover the container with plastic wrap and take it to a warm place without drafts, such as the oven or microwave.
As we said, the dough will double its volume and will be more malleable to continue working with it. Now, it’s time to have some skill to try to ensure that our traditional pumpkin fritters have that characteristic central hole. Meanwhile put oil in a pan and heat over high heat.
Take a small portion of dough and stick your thumb in the center to mark the hole while carefully depositing the dough into the hot oil, you will see that the first ones never come out perfect, but they will form little by little. Prepare a dish or plate with absorbent paper to deposit the fritters that are already fried.
Tip: never put too many fritters in the oil so they don’t stick to each other.
You can store the Valencian pumpkin fritters in a container for 4 days and no more, since they are fresh and do not have any type of preservative. Serve your loved ones with a cup of freshly made chocolate and add sugar to your fritters on top if you wish.
