I LOVE the fair and fried food. Imagine my disappointment when I was diagnosed with allergies and pretty much had to say goodbye to all fried food at our county fair at least. The Minnesota state fair does have a gluten free guide and some options but there isn't any information about my other allergens and what food vendor has time to really look over labels ever so carefully during business hours at the state fair if I were to just go up to the truck and ask? So I just skip it, as painful as it is sometimes! I have found a way to fight back to being told "no delicious fresh fried foods for you" and I think I have won the fight with these mini corn dogs! My family does a "junk food" Christmas each year involving the deep fat fryer and all our fried favorites....but without allergens! Now instead of waiting once a year for corn dogs, I like to make a HUGE batch of them and then freeze them immediately. These usually last my family about 7-8 months. When I was pregnant with Oliver and craving them though they lasted a lot less! There are gluten free corn dogs you can buy, but last time I checked Applegate Farms have eggs in theirs and while I can have Ian's turkey corn dogs they are expensive and I must say, not as tasty as mine! Ians turkey corn dogs are sold online for about $6 for an 8 ounce box or about 16 pieces. That's 37-38 cents per corn dog! Ouch! So here are some things you will need to make my version and how to do it!
Things you will need:
-a good deep fat fryer and it's spoon (I love my fry daddy but it is smaller and only holds 5 or 6 at a time. I have used ones with wire baskets before and they DO NOT work for this! These corn dogs have a raw batter and sink all the way down before popping up to the top so unless you want them stuck to the bottom of the basket, use a fryer that has a nonstick coating.)
-lots of paper towels (better just keep the roll handy)
-5-6 dinner plates
-2-3 gallon sized Ziploc freezer bags
-a good deep fat fryer and it's spoon (I love my fry daddy but it is smaller and only holds 5 or 6 at a time. I have used ones with wire baskets before and they DO NOT work for this! These corn dogs have a raw batter and sink all the way down before popping up to the top so unless you want them stuck to the bottom of the basket, use a fryer that has a nonstick coating.)
-lots of paper towels (better just keep the roll handy)
-5-6 dinner plates
-2-3 gallon sized Ziploc freezer bags
Corn Dog Recipe
-3 cups or almost 1 package Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pancake Mix
-3 cups or almost 1 package Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pancake Mix
-1 bottle (48 oz) canola oil (you will only use about half)
-2 "eggs" of Ener-G Egg Replacer
-1.5 cups of almond milk plus some extra for thinning out the batter
-about 1 cup of corn meal
-30-34 gluten free hot dogs with no msg (msg can be soy derived so best to stay away from it), cut into 4 pieces each so 120-136 mini hot dogs
Pour your canola oil into your fryer per your fryer's directions. Get your oil heating before you mix the batter because it takes a while to get it as hot as you need it!
Prepare your dinner plates with 3 layers of paper towels each.
The base of this recipe is right from the Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pancake Mix package. Mix together 3 cups pancake mix, 1.5 cups almond milk, 2 Ener-G eggs already mixed together per package directions in a separate bowl, 2 tablespoons canola oil and about 1 cup of corn meal (sorry I didn't measure it so I'm not sure the exact amount I used.) Rice milk will work for those of you with tree nut allergies! Mix well. Then add more almond milk as needed to create a thinner batter for dipping hot dogs. You need the batter to completely cover the hot dog, so that you can't really see it inside. If its too thin you will end up losing the batter in the fryer and you will just have crisp dogs. You don't want it too thick though either or the batter doesn't seem to fully cook on the inside. I use a fork to push the hot dogs around in the batter and then scoop them out (scoop not stab!) I always have to scrape the excess batter hanging from my fork on the side of the bowl before dropping it into the fryer. You may have to play around with the thickness you like best. Use the remaining pancake mix to thicken again if you make it too thin!
Alright time to start frying! Drop a little plain batter in the fryer to make sure its hot enough. Put 5 or 6 mini hot dogs in the batter. Coat them evenly with batter using a fork. Scoop hot dogs out one at a time, scraping away any excess batter on the side of the bowl. Then drop them one by one into the fryer. So no more than 5 or 6 in the fryer at a time. Fry until they are a golden brown. It's best if you can use the fryer spoon to move them around while they cook. This will help you get the most even brown color. If you can't or don't stir them they will have one side a little lighter from floating on top of the oil. Once they have browned remove with fryer spoon and place on plate with paper towels. Continue this process until you have a full plate. Don't let them sit on top of each other and keep a little space between each one. Once the plate is full set it aside to cool (or eat immediately!) Once they are cool to the touch replace the paper towels for a second round of grease collecting. Once they have completely cooled you can place them in a ziploc freezer bag, label, and place in the freezer to enjoy later. Repeat this process until you have all the hot dogs done. Takes me an hour or two start to finish. To reheat, take them straight from the freezer. You can microwave them, about 30-40 seconds each side but the batter will be a bit soggy and your fingers greasy. It's better if you can heat them in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. They usually come out fairly crisp and not so soggy. Let's check our price though now to make sure that I'm gaining more than just a taste benefit!
Cost:
$3.89 pancake mix at Vitacost
$0.09 for two "eggs" at Vitacost
$0.83 almond milk
$1.19 for half a bottle of canola oil
$0.35 corn meal
$3.27 for 3 packages of 10ct Jennie-O turkey hot dogs or $9.30 for 30 Bar-S jumbo beef hot dogs sold in 8ct packs at Walmart for $2.48 per pack
Total for turkey corn dogs: $9.62/120 corn dogs is 8 cents each!
Total for beef corn dogs: $15.65/120 corn dogs mix 13 cents each!
Excuse the mess but here's my final product 136 corn dogs later!
Disclaimer: It is always important to read labels because brands frequently change their ingredients. These ingredients and brands work for my family but some may be processed in the same facility as wheat, soy, dairy and/or eggs and therefore depending on your severity may or may not work for your family.
Excuse the mess but here's my final product 136 corn dogs later!
Disclaimer: It is always important to read labels because brands frequently change their ingredients. These ingredients and brands work for my family but some may be processed in the same facility as wheat, soy, dairy and/or eggs and therefore depending on your severity may or may not work for your family.
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