Funnel Cake

You know that fried cake of goodness dusted in powdered sugar you always begged your parents for when you went to the city carnival? Well guess what? It literally only takes 5 minutes to make and is totally fun!

1 egg
2/3 cup milk
3 TBSP sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

In a small skillet, heat 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil over medium heat until hot. You can test the temperature by chucking a pinch of flour into the hot oil. If it sizzles right away without smoking, it's ready. Beat egg and milk until smooth, then add all other ingredients and beat until smooth.

Now, unless you ACTUALLY have a funnel, scoop the batter in a quart or gallon sized freezer bag, snip off a corner and squeeze it into the hot oil in any pattern you want. You probably want to keep in condensed though, because if you don't, when you try to flip it, it will fall apart. When I was a kid, we made designs or wrote our names with the batter as it fell into the oil. Hey! It's kid friendly!

Cook for about 1 minute and then flip to the other side. Carefully remove when it has turned golden brown. Pat the oil off with a paper towel (or else when you bite it, oil will squeeze into your mouth. I'm not kidding.) Sprinkle with powdered sugar and/or strawberry/raspberry jam. Jam adds a nice hint of fruit.

YIELD: About 3 large cakes