Loukoumades
1988, Nicosia. The family’s new restaurant in Kofinou is demolished to make way for the motorway. The daily life of my parents and all of us changes dramatically. For a short while, my mother works at one of the local dairies. My father, however, who was always full of ideas and never gave up, decides to convert a bus into a mobile loukoumades stand. And so, before I even turned thirteen, I remember following my mother to Nicosia and later to Faneromeni in Larnaca, with the “loukoumades bus.” I will never forget the queues that formed in front of the bus on Epiphany Day. Everyone wanted to buy loukoumades and throw them to the… kallikantzaroi. And of course, my mother’s recipe was a huge success. Crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, her loukoumades were in such demand that even the next day they were still like sponge cake!
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INGREDIENTS
(FOR 60–70 LOUKOUMADES)
- 1 kg strong flour (rustic)
- 1 teaspoon (8 g) salt
- 2 sachets (20 g) vanilla
- 3 teaspoons (11 g) dry yeast
- 5 – 5½ cups (1250–1375 ml) lukewarm water
For the syrup
- 3½ cups (875 ml) water
- 1 kg sugar
- 1 small cinnamon stick
- 2–3 cloves
- ¼ cup (60 ml) rosewater
METHOD
We first prepare the syrup:
- In a saucepan, add the water and sugar and place over heat. Once the sugar dissolves, add the cinnamon, cloves and rosewater and let the syrup come to a boil.
- Lower the heat and simmer for only 3–4 minutes. We do not want it too thick, otherwise it will not soak into the loukoumades.
- Set aside to cool.
For the batter:
- Place the flour in a large bowl and add the salt and vanilla. Mix, then add the yeast. Continue mixing and gradually pour in the water, while vigorously beating with your fingers and palms until a fluffy batter forms and small bubbles begin to appear on the surface. Be careful—the batter should be neither stiff nor too runny. Cover the bowl with a towel, place a blanket over it, and leave it in a warm place for 1–1½ hours, until it rises and doubles in volume. When bubbles form all over the surface, the mixture is ready. Pour oil into a cup (my mother uses water). This is where we dip the teaspoon used to shape the loukoumades.
- Add plenty of oil to a wide pan and heat well. Lower the heat (if it’s too high, the loukoumades will burn on the outside and remain raw inside). With your left palm, take some batter, close your fingers, and with a teaspoon dipped in the oil, cut off the protruding batter and drop it into the hot oil, pushing it off the spoon with your thumb.
- Repeat until the pan is filled with loukoumades. From time to time, dip the spoon back into the oil—it helps prevent the batter from sticking. Once all the loukoumades are in, increase the heat slightly.
- Turn the loukoumades with a slotted spoon until golden. Press them gently so they are fully submerged in the oil. Remove them to a colander and immediately place them into the cold syrup. Press them so they are well coated, then transfer them back to the colander to drain excess syrup.
- Instead of syrup, loukoumades can also be served with honey, ganache, walnuts, or other nuts.
