Ecuadorian Pristiños

Ecuadorian-Vegan Fried Pastries

I am finally sharing my most beloved and simple Ecuadorian recipe for these deep fried pastries, they are usually made in the capital Quito and mostly for Christmas and/or any other religious event; as it turns out their name comes from the word Pestiño, which by the way I accidentally found it when I miss-spelled pristiño to read about their history, the original word is born in in the Southern region of Spain AndaLucia and it is also a Christmas tradition…I must say I am not overly impressed considering the close connection Spain and Quito have.

Why is this my most beloved recipe? because it is about the second, aside from empanadas, Ecuadorian treat that my grandmother used to gather us in her big brick oven room; I remember she used to have all the dough ready and cut into pieces for us the little ones to keep rolling, are you feeling the connection this has with my mom making me paint while watching cooking channel?? (if you read my Alfajores blog you will understand) HAHA a wise way to use up all of our energy; and when I say she kept us rolling I mean it! she probably made about 15-20lbs (yes you read it right 20) of dough and kept frying, we are also a big family. She, originally used lard and eggs which made them more doughy and very tasty (of course) but I noticed that not using eggs, switching to flax and using coconut oil are definitely not as good as hers because you know grandmothers’ hands but they are G-O-O-D because let’s be honest how often can we go wrong with something deep dried.

If you have some recipes that have been past from great grandparent and/or grandparents you know that there was no specifics about ingredient amounts and that’s exactly how I got it the first time I asked my mom to pass on the recipe she said a little bit of butter and a little lemon juice OOOOOKAY, the first few times I made them they were very crunchy and I loved them but having them a bit more doughy like this last time definitely brings more memories and makes me feel closer to home. So if you want to try something new for Christmas to share with your family or friends go fry up a storm because people eat about 3-4 each.

Pristiños

Vegan

Makes: 14 pieces

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 6 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp organic cane sugar
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup lukewarm water
• 2 tsp flax gel
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil, softened
• Vegetable oil to deep fry
HONEY
• 1 small cone of black sugar*
• 2 cups of water
• 3-4 sticks of cinammon

Instructions:

1. For the honey is best if prepared the day before as it becomes more honey like textures with some rest; simply put all of the honey ingredients and a small sauce pan, bring to a simmer and bring the heat down to medium low and continue to simmer for 3 hours while it slowly bubbles and it’s been reduced to about half
2. To prepare the flax gel mix 1 tbsp of flax meal (simply ground flax seeds) with 3 Tbsp of water and let rest until needed; also, mix together lemon juice and water
3. Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl and then add coconut oil, flax gel and half of the water/lemon mixture and start mixing by hand then add the rest of the water mixture, knead for approximately 8 minutes, the dough should no longer be sticking to your hands and should be shiny and well moisture; let rest for 10
4. Start heating up your oil at medium low, you want the temperature to be 360F before you deep any pastry in it
5. Bring the dough out on a surface (no need to flour, is an easy dough to work with) start by forming the dough in a thick baguette shape (approx. 14 inches) and then cut 14 equal pieces (keep them covered while you work on each piece) now, with each piece you thin out in a snake shape (approx. 8 inches), like when you used to play with playdough, stick together each end and flattened the circle (like in the photo) and finally make 3 small diagonal cuts by the edges, don’t go too inwards as this could cause to break during frying sue to expansion
6. Fry them between 6-7 minutes turning the halfway, you want them to be medium gold before you bring them out
7. To serve you can drizzle over some honey, dip if it’s only you eating them HA! Or everyone gets a dish to make their own dipping…enjoy!

* You can find it in Latin American stores often called by “Piloncillo” like the one in the photo