Santa Fe Sopapillas with Vanilla Bean Honey and Chili papaya Compote

To celebrate Cinco De Quatro and Cinco De mayo, we want to finish the meal with a southwestern Classic dessert made famous in New Mexico. Many people think of fried dough as a staple at carnivals and festivals. Variations show up in different cultures, such as the Portuguese Malassadas. Heck, the All American Doughnut is fried dough. What makes Santa Fe Sopapillas unique is their puffiness, shape, and texture.

Churros are another famous Mexican Fried dough. But, they are too heavy for this meal. Santa Fe Sopapillas are light fluffy dough bites that puff up from the heat of frying, traditionally served simply drizzled with honey. Sopapillas are reminiscent of Indian poori since they are a light, thin, puffed dough. But, drizzled with honey , chocolate, cinnamon sugar, or a creme de leche they are out of this world.

This transcendent dessert is famous in Santa Fe. Which seems appropriate, being just a 3 hour drive from Roswell. No wonder they seemed other worldly. The whole area looks like it could be on another planet. The drive from Albuquerque to Santa Fe to Roswell exposes a panoply of dessert landscapes. Red rocks give way to rocky mountain majesty. Sparse cactus sit minutes from pine crusted cliff-sides that could be in the Northeast or northwest coasts. Temperatures can range from freezing to sweating in a matter of minutes as altitudes rise and drop in a ceaseless undulation of change. The rising and falling of tent shaped rock formations reminds one of other worlds or a simple sopapilla.

Santa Fe Sopapillas, like beer are not just for breakfast

There are different versions of sopapillas. This one is sweet and a little richer. Some just use water instead of milk. Some are sweet. Others are neutral. You could omit the sugar and honey and make a savory version as well. Experiment. A neutral version makes a great foil for chili. They are plain enough to be paired with a wide variety of products. Enjoy! And may the 4th be with you!

Santa Fe Sopapillas with Vanilla Bean Honey and Chili papaya Compote

cheffd

Print Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

resting time 30 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine Mexican, Santa Fe, Southwestern

Servings 24 Small sopapillas

Ingredients

  

• 4 cups AP flour
• 2 Tbsp Baking Powder
• 2 Tbsp Sugar
• 2 tsp Kosher Salt
• 2 Tbsp Honey
• 1 1/2 cup Milk
• 2 Tbsp Coconut oil
• Neutral oil to fry in (canola or similar) (at least 2 inches deep in a large heavy pot)
• Powdered sugar to sprinkle
• For Topping:
• 1.5 cups Honey
• 1 oz tequila
• 1 tsp lime juice
• 1/2 pod vanilla bean scraped
• 1/2 stick cinnamon
• For Papaya:
• 2 cup Peeled, seeded, and diced papaya
• 1 large Mango, Peeled, seed removed, and diced
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup Turbinado Sugar
• 1 each cinnamon stick
• 1 Tbsp Orange zest
• 1/2 cup Sweet white wine
• 2 each mini chilis or the flesh of 1 large jalapeno
• Ice cream or sorbet (Optional)
• Berries and/or mint for garnish

Instructions

 

• make the sopapilla dough: Mix the dry ingredients. Melt the coconut oil. Make a well in the dry ingredients and put the wet ingredients in. Fold to incorporate. Then knead, either by hand or with a dough hook on a mixer. Sprinkle the dough with flour. Then allow to rest for 30 minutes.
• make the honey drizzle: put all ingredients in a pot over high heat, bring to a simmer. Then drop heat back to medium low and allow to steep 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and put in a squeeze bottle or bowl. Allow to cool.
• Make the compote: Put all ingredients except papaya and mango in a pot. Whisk together over high heat. Bring to a boil and reduce the liquid by 50%. Strain and cool the liquid. Then, toss the fruit in the liquid. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Heat frying oil in a heavy pot or fryer to 375 degrees. Do not overheat. You can hold the temp lower until you are ready to fry, then turn it up to save time.
• Flour a surface and roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick. Cut into approximately 3 inch pieces.
• Fry the dough until golden brown. Flip them 1/2 way through to cook evenly. The high heat of the oil should make them puff up. Remove from oil onto paper towels to absorb extra oil.
• Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Plate the sopapillas. Drizzle with vanilla honey and serve with the fruit compote. If desired, you can serve with ice cream or sorbet. A colorful fruit garnish is also nice.

Notes

The temperature for frying and the thickness of the dough are important for these. If they are thin enough and the oil is at a high temperature, they will puff up like a pouri.

When choosing an oil to fry in, pick something with a high smoke point since this recipe calls for a higher heat than normal. Most frying is done between 300 and 350. Canola, soy, safflower, or corn oil all have smoke points over 400.

The infused honey can be made days in advance.

 

Keyword Chili, Chili Papaya Compote, cinco de mayo, Cinco de quatro, Coole Swan, creme brule, custard, Irish, French, dessert, honey, Mexico, New Mexico, Papaya, Santa Fe, Sopapilla, Vanilla Bean