Sopaipilla Quesitos Recipes

REAL SOPAPILLAS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt and shortening. Stir in water; mix until dough is smooth. Cover and let stand for 20 minutes.
• Roll out on floured board until 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into 3 inch squares. Heat oil in deep-fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Fry until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels and serve hot.

SOPAPILLAS AT HOME

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the shortening, and use your hands to integrate it well with the flour.
• Pour the hot water into the bowl, little by little. Work the dough with your fingers, mixing the dry ingredients with the water until you form a dough.
• On your table or countertop, knead the dough for about 4-5 minutes until it is smooth. Form a ball with the dough and place it back in the bowl.
• Cover the dough with a plastic or kitchen napkin and let it rest for at least 20 minutes. This resting time helps the gluten to develop and make it easy for you to roll out the dough and form the sopapillas.
• After the resting time, slightly knead the dough again and then form it back into a ball. Flatten the ball a little bit, then cut it into 4 pieces using a knife or a pastry cutter.
• Pour the oil into a large pot and turn the heat to medium-low. The oil should reach an average temperature of 350ºF.
• Roll the 4 pieces of dough to form smaller balls. Place one on your working surface and set the other 3 pieces aside, covered with plastic wrap. Form a round disk with the dough using a rolling pin. The disc should be about 6 inches in diameter, and ⅛ to ¼ of an inch in thickness.
• Once you form the disc, cut it into four pieces. These pieces will look like triangles. Carefully place each one into the hot oil. Make sure you do not overcrowd the pot. Once the dough triangles are in the oil, they will inflate almost immediately. Continue cooking until the bottoms of the sopapillas are medium golden, then turn them to cook on the other side until light brown and crispy. The sopapillas will take a total of about 4-5 minutes to cook completely.
• Remove the sopaipillas from the oil using a slotted spatula, and place them on a plate covered with paper towels (to absorb any excess oil) Follow steps 6-8 to continue forming and cooking the remaining sopapillas.
• To serve the sopaipillas, dust them with the confectioner's sugar and ground cinnamon, and then drizzle them with honey (or Piloncillo syrup, if you have any).

SOPAIPILLAS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until a loose ball forms (dough will be crumbly)., On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for 3 minutes or until smooth. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Roll out into a 12x10-in. rectangle. Cut into 12 squares with a knife or cut into 12 circles using a round biscuit cutter. , In a deep-fat fryer, heat 2 in. oil to 375°. Fry sopaipillas for 1-2 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels; keep warm. If desired, serve with honey and/or dust with confectioners' sugar.

SOPAIPILLA QUESITOS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Grease cookie sheet with shortening or spray with cooking spray.
• In small bowl, beat Filling ingredients until smooth. Set aside.
• Unroll pie crust onto floured work surface. Roll out crust with rolling pin; cut into 4-inch squares. Place about 2 tablespoons filling in center of each pie crust square. Fold crust over filling to form triangle; press edges with fork to seal. Place on cookie sheet.
• In small shallow dish, beat egg white and water. In another small shallow dish, mix 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Brush crust triangles with Egg Wash; roll in Cinnamon-Sugar Coating. (The sugar coating is to taste, but ideally a quesito has a nice sugary crust that crunches when one takes a bite.) Return to cookie sheet.
• Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in 1-quart saucepan, combine Orange Glaze ingredients. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat.
• Remove quesitos from oven. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Brush moderate amount of glaze over each quesito. Cool 10 minutes before serving.

CHILEAN-STYLE SOPAIPILLAS

Steps:

• Peel, seed, and cut the zapallo into chunks. Place in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until zapallo is soft and easily pierced with a fork, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain and allow to cool slightly.
• Mix the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a mixing bowl, and set aside. Stir together the squash and melted butter. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture until blended. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until soft and satiny, adding a little more flour if necessary. Cover dough with a towel and allow to rest 15 minutes.
• Roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick, and cut into 3 inch diameter circles. Poke each circle a few times with a fork to make holes and prevent rising.
• Pour vegetable oil into a large, deep skillet and heat over medium-high heat until hot, 385 degrees F (195 degrees C). Place several of the dough circles into hot oil; cook until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Cook remainder of dough circles in batches.

SOPAPILLAS

Steps:

• Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
• Cut shortening in until mixture is a rough texture.
• Gradually add warm water.
• Mix to form dough.
• Knead until smooth.
• Cover and let stand for 20 minutes (this will make it easier to roll out).
• Start oil heating (desired temp is 375° - 400°).
• On a lightly floured board, roll dough thin (between 1/4 and 1/8 inch).
• Cut into 3 inch squares.
• Fry a few at a time, turning when golden and puffed up.
• Drain on paper towels.
• Serve immediately.