Inspired by the Nigerian puff puff recipe, these banana beignets are the perfect blend between the African dish and the Caribbean dish.
Recipe video:
Throughout the years I have been exposed to various other cuisines from around the world, African food is one of them. African cuisine is very similar to Caribbean cuisine, one of the many similarities are these banana beignets.
In the Caribbean, beignets are made in many different ways including with bananas. Although, they are many ways to make beignets, I thought I would share with you guys how I made them.
These beignets are very much similar to the Nigerian Puff Puff. However, in the Caribbean, mostly French Caribbean, we tend to add spices, lime zest and a splash of rum to our batter.
Usually these are served in January and on Mardi Gras, but since I’m a rule breaker I decided to make this recipe in June. If you are like me and you want to break the rules as well then you should try this recipe.
Before I get into the recipe, I would like to share some tips & tricks with you guys.
TIPS & TRICKS:
- Spices: I used ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon and ground allspice. These spices will ensure that you have some rich beignets.
- Resting time: It is important to leave the dough rest for a minium of 40 minutes, so that it can double in size. Just like the puffs puffs.
- Zest and rum: I don’t typically use rum when I am making these on a regular basis, but if it’s for a special event I will definitely use rum. Lime zest gives these beignets a nice aromatic scent.
I hope you enjoy the recipe.
Now, let’s get into it.
Caribbean Style Banana Beignets
Ingredients
- 1 Ripe banana
- 2 cups Vegetable oil (or more)
- 1 & 1/2 cup All-purpose flour sifted
- 1/2 cup Warm water
- 1/3 cup Granulated sugar
- 1 & 1/4 tsp Active dry yeast
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp Ground or fresh nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp Ground or fresh cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Almond essence
- 1/4 tsp Ground or fresh allspice
- 1/4 tsp Ground or fresh ginger
- Lime zest
Instructions
Yeast mixture:
- Mix in the yeast to the warm water. Let it sit for about 5 minutes.
Banana mixture:
- In a mixing bowl, mash the bananas then stir in the spices, vanilla extract, almond essence, lime zest and sugar. Mix everything together well.
- Sift in the flour and salt.
- Gradually stir in the yeast mixture.
Resting the dough:
- Cover the dough once it's mixed well together with foil paper and a kitchen towel. Let it rest in a cool place for 40 minutes to an hour.
Cooking the beignets:
- In a medium sauce pan, add the oil and let it heat up over medium heat.
- You can use your hands to scoop up the batter or a spoon. Make sure not to add too many at a time.
- When the beignets rise to the top then it's time to turn them over.
- Once they are golden brown on each side, place on a plate with napkins to absorb the excess oil.
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