Masa Churros with Hibiscus Sugar

Name: Masa Harina Churros with Hibiscus-Ginger Sugar
Yield: About 15 churros
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: ½ cup water; ½ cup whole milk or oat milk; ¼ cup cane sugar or granulated sugar; ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter; 1 cup Heirloom Corn Masa Harina; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional; 2 large eggs; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; Grapeseed or vegetable oil, for frying; 1 cup granulated sugar; 2 tablespoons hibiscus powder (from whole dried flowers, ground in a blender or food processor); 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger

March 21, 2023

The classic fried dessert gets a gluten-free makeover with the use of masa harina and a delicious hibiscus ginger sugar coating, thanks to Teresa Finney, who runs At Heart Panaderia, a microbakery out of Atlanta, Georgia that focuses on pan dulce.

If piping churro dough directly into hot oil worries you, here’s a trick: pipe the churros onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper that can fit into your freezer first. You can even pipe them into heart shapes. Then, chill the churros for 30 minutes, or until they’ve firmed up and you can easily pick them up with your hand, before easing them gently into the oil. Cinnamon sugar is quintessential for churros, but this hibiscus ginger sugar coating adds both tartness and spice.

Masa Harina Churros with Hibiscus-Ginger Sugar

Teresa Finney

Servings

About 15 churros

Cuisine

Mexican

Ingredients

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½ cup water
½ cup whole milk or oat milk
¼ cup cane sugar or granulated sugar
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup Heirloom Corn Masa Harina
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Grapeseed or vegetable oil, for frying

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1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons hibiscus powder (from whole dried flowers, ground in a blender or food processor)
1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, add all of the ingredients for the Hibiscus Ginger sugar coating and toss to combine. Set aside.
Add the water, milk, sugar and butter to a saucepan set over medium-high heat. After the butter has melted, remove from the heat and add in the masa harina, kosher salt and ground cinnamon if using. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a thick dough forms and there are no dry pockets of masa harina.
Transfer the dough to the bowl of a stand mixer and let it cool just slightly. Once slightly cooled, add in one egg and mix on medium speed. Add in the second egg, and then the vanilla extract and continue to mix until everything has been fully incorporated. The dough will be looser than before, but it will still be pipe-able. At this point, it’s time to get your frying oil ready. Add enough oil to a large pot, such as a Dutch oven, to cover about 3 inches up the sides and set the heat to medium-high. Set a cooling rack over a large baking sheet and set aside.
Transfer churro dough to a large pastry bag fitted with a closed star tip. If you’ll be piping heart-shaped churros: line a baking sheet that can fit in your freezer with parchment paper. Pipe hearts on the parchment and transfer to your freezer to firm up for about 30 minutes before frying. If you’ll be piping the churros directly into the frying oil: Once the oil reaches 375F on an instant-read thermometer, carefully pipe churros into the oil in batches, about 4 churros at a time so as to not lower the temperature of the oil too much. Use kitchen shears sprayed with a little bit of cooking spray to cut the churros from the pastry bag as you pipe.
Fry churros for about 3 minutes on one side, then flip and continue to fry an additional 2 - 2 ½ minutes until golden brown.
Transfer churros from the oil to the prepared baking sheet with the cooling rack. Once churros have dried bit from the oil, toss them in the Hibiscus Ginger Sugar coating and place back onto the baking sheet while you fry up the rest of the churros. Enjoy the churros while still warm, as they tend to lose their crunch after they’ve cooled down a lot.