Not your regular Pumpkin Fritters

This is originally a South African pumpkin fritter recipe. It is not that different from the way we do our fritter, however, the outcome is just as delicious. If you want to have some caramel glaze with that, you won’t be disappointed.

You will need:

1 cup mashed pumpkin or puree
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoon sugar
1/ 4 cup milk
1/ 2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/ 2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/ 4 teaspoon all spice
1/ 4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
Oil for deep-frying
Caramel glaze
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
3/ 4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup

Method:

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients: mashed pumpkin, flour, baking powder, sugar, milk, egg, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and all spice. Stir until everything has been fully combined.

In a saucepan pour vegetable oil, until it is at least 3 inches (or about 5 centimetres) high (too little will result in flatter balls), and place on medium heat until oil is 350 degrees. The dough is going to be sticky and light, if you can, use your hands to grab a little bit of mixture at time and drop in the oil or use a spoon to spoon up the batter, and drop it in the oil. Do not overcrowd the pan. Do so in batches. Fry for about 2-3 minutes until it is golden brown. Use a slotted spoon or something like that to take it out of the oil. I usually place them on napkins right away to soak up some of the excess oil. If desired, you can roll the finished product in cinnamon sugar or use the caramel glaze.

Caramel Glaze. Add water, sugar and corn syrup in a medium saucepan. Combine everything with a stir. Heat over medium high heat for about 5-10 minutes, depending on your stove. Swirl the pan if you feel the sides are getting browned too quickly. Do not stir the caramel, it will cause crystallization. Wipe down any splatters with a brush from the sides of the pan as the sugar is caramelizing – make sure you get a brown colour. It does make a difference in taste.

Lower the heat on the saucepan, and gently add the cream and butter, there will be splatters so be careful. Finally stir the mixture into a smooth consistency. Remove from the heat and let it cool.

Serve with fritters.