Jalebi

Jalebis are small, bright yellow, web-shaped cakes similar to funnel cakes. They are popular celebration and street cakes in Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and India. Soaking them in saffron syrup and then drying them gives the cakes a crispy outer shell. They are made with maida flour (a finely milled wheat flour) and Bengal gram flour (a flour milled from chickpeas), both of which can be found at Indian groceries. If you can't find them, use cake or pastry flour. If you can find fresh yeast, use it instead of the dry yeast; that is the traditional method and it adds to the flavor.

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon plus 2/3 cup water
• 1 1/2 cups maida flour
• 2 teaspoons Bengal gram flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ghee, melted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 4 drops yellow food coloring
• 2 cups ghee for frying, melted
• 1 3/4 cups lime-saffron syrup

Preparation: 

To make the batter
Dissolve the yeast in 1 tablespoon of the water and let sit for just 10 minutes, and no longer. In a large bowl, combine the maida flour and Bengal gram flour. Add the yeast, melted ghee, sugar, lemon juice, yellow food coloring, and remaining 2/3 cup water and mix until there are no more lumps.

To fry the jalebis
Melt enough ghee in a heavy-bottomed pot to fill it 1 inch deep. Line plates with paper towels for draining the fried cakes. Pour the lime-saffron syrup into a saucepan over low heat, to keep it warm. Fit a pastry bag with a small writing tip, and pour the batter into the bag.

Squeeze 2-inch round whorls of batter into the hot ghee, working closely from the center out. Fry until golden brown on the bottom, then flip to fry on the other side until it's golden brown. Remove the jalebis from the oil and set on paper towels to drain. Transfer the hot cakes to the lime-saffron syrup and let soak for a minute or two.

To serve
Serve the jalebis warm in small bowls with syrup. Or you can remove the jalebis from the syrup and set on a rack to dry for 3 to 4 hours, until the syrup has formed a hard shell.

Variation
Indian Spice Jalebi Add 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom to the batter and 3 whole cloves to the syrup.

Image and Recipe Credit: epicurious.com