Churros

1 cup water
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 cup all purpose flour
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

- In a small dish, mix 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Set aside

- In a 3-quart saucepan, bring the water, brown sugar, salt, and butter to a good boil. Remove from the heat and add the flour all at once. Mix until well blended, this might take some muscle!

- In a separate bowl, mix the eggs and vanilla together, then add to the flour mixture. Stir until well blended.

- Fit a piping bag with a large star tip, and scoop the dough into the bag

- Preheat 1-1/2 inches of vegetable oil in a 10-12" frying pan to 375 degrees F. Make sure it's hot enough or else you'll end up with soggy churros, but it's also important that the the oil doesn't get too cool or the outsides will get too crisp before the insides fully cook.

- Once the oil is hot enough, squeeze some dough into the oil (about 4 inches long) and use a scissor to release the dough from the tip. It's helpful to have a helper for this part

- Cook 4 churros at a time, for about 1 minute on each side, or until they're golden brown in color.

- Use a slotted spoon to remove the churros from the oil, and place immediately on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb the excess oil

- While still warm, roll each churro into cinnamon sugar mixture until well coated (This is another job for another friend if you have one handy)

- Serve immediately to hungry friends! You can serve these with some melted chocolate sauce if you wish.

Recipes yields about 20 churros

Cooking Mexican