Ricotta Fritters with berry sauce

Like a cross between a lemony cheese Danish, a doughnut, and a cruller, but made with a batter you can mix in 5 minutes

Clockwise from tip left: fritter batter, frying, using a spider to take out of fryer, with raspberry sauce, with powdered sugar (this batch made without xanthan gum)

I was teasing ladyfingers on Instagram for today’s post which was supposed to be tiramisu, but the recipe isn’t exactly how I want it, so it’ll have to wait. It’s one of the few desserts that makes me weak in the knees and I am powerless when I have bowlfuls of it in front of me. It’s a two-day process, and one can only eat so much custard and ladyfingers; I’m currently a bit green around the gills.. But I’ll say this: as everyone knows, there’s a million variations of this famous dessert, and once I went to the source, I found some interesting differences between the dish made here—even amongst Italians!—and what is traditionally made in Italy. After many many trials, I have to say I’m in the traditional Italian camp that doesn’t incorporate whipped cream into the custard.

Also, I came up with a fool-proof ladyfinger recipe that I think you’ll love; I forgot how good those little powdered sugar-coated fingers are, and they bake in 7 minutes flat.

More soon on this recipe.

The good new is these ricotta fritters! They are wonderfully cheese-Danish-y from a generous amount of ricotta mixed with a little sugar and a lot of lemon zest. They quickly mix up, and fry in 5-6 minutes and are perfect with a little berry sauce (recipe follows).

I used xanthan in these which does help with dough structure a bit—but I’ve made them without (see photo above with just the powdered sugar). There’s only a slight difference, and not worth buying it if you don’t have any.

RECIPE

Yields fourteen 30-gram/1-ounce round fritters

Fritter batter

• 100g / 1/2 C + 3 Tbs GF flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 tsp xanthan gum, optional

• 225g / 8 ounces ricotta, whole milk

• 3 Tbs sugar

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 2 eggs, large

• zest from 1 lemon

• oil for frying, enough to fill pot 1-inch deep, such as avocado or safflower

Pour oil into medium-sized pot, 1-inch deep. I used a small pot and it required a 500ml/16.9 fluid ounce bottle.

Heat to between 360ºf and 375ºf; don’t let it go past 380ºf. If you don’t have a thermometer, heat the oil over medium heat and you’ll test a small amount of dough before frying a batch. Have a tea towel or paper bag ready to drain them on, and a slotted spoon or spider to retrieve them. I used a 1-ounce scoop for dropping them into the oil, or you can use a large spoon to drop irregular sized spoonfuls into the oil.

Whisk the flour with baking powder and xanthan (if using). Set aside.

Whisk together all of the other ingredients, and add the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. The mixture will be very thick.

Check the temperature of the oil; if you don’t have a thermometer, drop just a dab of batter into the oil. It should sizzle, but not turn dark too quickly. If it doesn't sizzle, increase the heat a little and try again. The ideal temperature is 365ºf-375ºf.

Drop as many into the oil as will comfortably fit. I used a small pot, and cooked four at a time so that I had space to turn them over. Cook for 2 minutes on one side, flip the fritter over, and cook another 2 minutes. They take around 5 to 6 minutes in all, depending on size and oil temperature. Keep turning them over so they brown evenly.

Remove from pot and let cool on tea towel or paper bag. Break one open to make sure you are cooking them long enough. Keep making batches until the batter is used up, monitoring the temperature of the oil and slightly increasing or decreasing heat as needed.

Serve immediately with powdered sugar or berry sauce.

Berry sauce

• 1 pint / 175g / 6 ounces berries such as raspberries or blackberries or a mixture

• 2 Tbs sugar

• juice of half a lemon

In a small bowl, mash the berries with the sugar and lemon juice with the back of a fork to desired texture. The sugar will draw out more of the juice as the sauce sits. Refrigerate until ready to use. Mix before serving.

Store in a covered container in the refrigerator where it will keep for up to 5 days.