Nov 10, 2007

Sopapillas

It's really just a little taste of New Mexico. There is a restaurant in town that serves something they call sopapillas. They're actually pan-fried tortillas that have been dusted with cinnamon and sugar. I wanted the pillowy goodness that is the sopa of countless meals in New Mexico. Slathered with honey, dipped into salsa, used to scoop up beans, the sopapilla I am used to is a deep-fried hollow piece of bread dough. Mom made them once, from a mix. We always got them at restaurants, though, and in Albuquerque, you have a lot of restaurants that serve sopapillas. Here in TN? No. At least, not that I've been able to find or afford. So they don't exist here. Until today. Today, I used the recipe for Sopaipillas de Levadura from a cookbook the local utility company sells.

My little taste of New Mexico. Notes at the end.

Yield: 4 dozen medium sopaipillas        Total Frying Time: 15-20 minutes
Temperature: Medium-High Freeze Well

1 package active dry yeast 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup warm water 1 teaspoon baking powder
(105°-115°F) 1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/4 cups scalded milk, cooled 1 tablespoon shortening
4 cups flour Shortening

1. Dissolve yeast in water and add to milk.
2. Combine dry ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl and cut in
shortening.
3. Make a well in center of dry ingredients. Add liquid to dry
ingredients and work into a dough.
4. Knead dough for 10 minutes, or until smooth; cover, and set
aside.
5. Heat 2 inches of shortening in a heavy pan at medium-high heat.
6. Roll dough to a 1/8 ingh thickness on a lightly floured board. Cut
dough into 4-inch squares and fry until golden on both sides, turning
once. (If the shortening is sufficiently hot, the sopaipillas will
puff and become hollow shortly after being placed in the shortening.)
7. Drain sopaipillas on absorbent towels.

NOTE: Sopaipillas may be served as a bread with any New Mexican menu. They may be served with honey, dusted with a sugar-cinnamon mixture and served as a dessert, or may be filled.
Sopapillas
I just copied the recipe. I followed it to the letter. Now for the notes? I was the only one eating these. I should have cut the recipe in 1/2. As is, I put 1/2 the dough in the freezer, tightly sealed in plastic wrap and a bag. We'll see how it does. The measurement of 1/8 in the thickness is not a random number. Thicker, and you'll have an underdone sopa. Thinner and you run the risk of losing the puff.
This recipe doesn't talk about rise. The dough does rise. The longer you let it sit, the puffier it gets. Punch it down and roll it out. You'll notice puffier pieces when you fry it up, to the point where it may pop a hole in the sopa. However, the 10 minutes or so it takes to get the shortening up to temp is long enough for a rise for this dough.
Let your yeast dissolve for about 5 minutes or so. Don't just dump it on in.
Scalding milk: Some will say this step is unnecessary. I find it to be completely necessary. The milk was thicker, the natural sugars in the milk came through more (I tasted it), and it wasn't just milk. It had been changed. SO SCALD IT. Heat it over the burner in a small pan, medium heat, until a handy thermometer reads 180. Stir frequently. Take it off the burner. That's it. No big deal. And it really does sweeten the milk.
Kneading: USE FLOUR. The dough is sticky, but you won't need much. I had a handful on the mat when I dumped it out of the bowl to knead it. That's about 1/2 cup. I had about 3 tablespoons left over. Do not overflour while kneading. Do not overknead.
I did not use a mixer. This was mixed by hand. With my hands. I wonder how it would do as a twisted dough so you didn't have to turn it over yourself. It's a distinct possibility and may be doable with the frozen dough.


So I now have sopas.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

There is a great new restaurant in Franklin Tennessee Called Sopapillas- A TAste of New Mexico. You should try it out. They have awesome food and real Sopapillas. Good luck.