Faworki, aka Angel Wings-Poland #67

Faworki, aka Angel Wings-Poland #67

I'm not sure why this is listed as a cake but everyone wants me to try them anyway. The Faworki are a light, delicate fritter, shaped into angel wings/bow ties for Polish Fat Thursday. They are easy to make but are time consuming because you need to rest and knead the dough.

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 T. confectioners' sugar
pinch sea salt
1 T. butter, melted
4 egg yolks
3 T. vodka
4 T. sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 T. grated lemon zest
4 c. vegetable oil for frying
confectioner's sugar for serving

1. Add the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.  Mix briefly to combine.
2. Add the melted butter, egg yolks, vodka, sour cream, vanilla and lemon zest. Mix to combine.  It should all come together to form a thick batter.
3. Scrape the dough onto a floured surface and bring it together into a ball.  Wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate 30-60 minutes.  
4. Sprinkle flour onto a clean board, knead the dough for 5-10 minutes.  If it is too sticky, you may need to add a little more flour. You do not need to be gentle with a the dough.  Cut the dough in  half and cover half with cling wrap. Set aside.
5. Sprinkle a little more flour onto the board and roll out the dough as thinly as possible, paper thin. Lift the dough occasionally to make sure it isn't sticking to the board.   Add more flour as necessary. You can also use a pasta machine to get the dough thin.
6. Take a sharp knife and cut the dough into 1inch thick strips.  Cut each strip in half again to form two shorter pieces.  Make a 1 inch slit down the middle of each strip with a knife.  Taking one piece of dough at a time, pull one end of the dough through the slit you have made in the center.  Pull gently until you have a twist in the middle.  Repeat with all the strips.  Roll out the remaining dough and repeat.
7. In a large, wide pan, heat the oil to 350F. Prepare a tray lined with kitchen towel to drain the twists.  Fry the strips, around 3-4 at a time, taking care not to overcrowd the pan, for 15 seconds.  Use a fork or a spoon to flip the twists over to cook them on the other side for 15 seconds, until they are light golden brown.  They will puff up a little.
8. Drain the pastry twists on paper towels.  Arrange on a large platter and dust liberally with confectioner's sugar and serve.

Results: These are very easy to make. Refrigerating and kneading account for most of the time. I don't think I made the wings right. I looked on line but mine didn't look like the pics. Once you sprinkle sugar on them no one can tell anyway. They fry very quickly! Have everything ready because you have to work very fast. They are really good freshly made and as my tasters said they were gone quickly. However, on day 2 not so much. So, make sure you have people at the ready to eat them on day 1.
Bottom Line: If I make these again I won't bother with the wing shape. I think I will just make strips for dipping in nutella or a sweet icing.

Please share this blog with all the Faworkis, aka angels, in your life and even those who aren't, yet. Thanks