Pumpkin Buñuelos (Pumpkin Fritters)
These soft, golden pumpkin fritters are a delicious traditional treat. They can be made quickly with baking powder or the traditional way with yeast for extra fluffiness.
Pumpkin fritters always meant a busy, flour-dusted kitchen and the warm smell of cinnamon floating through the house. My grandmother Lely would mash the pumpkin and mix the batter while I hovered nearby, eager to help.
I was sometimes allowed to help with the mixing, although that usually ended with splatters of pumpkin batter on the table, the floor, and occasionally even on Lely herself. After a few of those enthusiastic attempts, it was quietly decided that I was better suited to the “finishing touches.”
My official job became carefully rolling the fritters in the sugar and cinnamon.
But there was one small problem — I could never resist dipping my fingers into the sugar and cinnamon mixture while waiting for the next batch. Before long the bowl would mysteriously be half empty, and Lely would have to top it up again and again.
To this day I’m still not entirely sure which job caused more chaos: letting me mix the batter… or putting me in charge of the sugar.
Either way, the fritters always disappeared just as quickly as the sugar bowl.
Ingredients
250 g cooked pumpkin (roasted or boiled)
200 g plain flour
2 eggs
60 g sugar
Zest of 1 orange
1 pinch salt
Choose one raising option.
Quick version.
15 g baking powder.
Traditional version.
12 g fresh yeast (or 4 g dry yeast).
2–3 tablespoons warm water or milk
Oil for frying
For coating.
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
1
Mash the cooked pumpkin until smooth and place in a bowl.
2
Add:
Eggs.
Sugar.
Orange zest.
Pinch of salt.
Mix well.
3
Version 1 – Quick Pumpkin Buñuelos (Baking Powder).
Mix 200 g flour with the baking powder.
Add to the pumpkin mixture and stir until smooth.
Let the batter rest for 10 minutes.
Heat oil over medium heat.
Using two spoons, drop small portions of batter into the hot oil.
Fry until golden brown and puffed up, turning if necessary.
Drain on kitchen paper.
4
Version 2 – Traditional Yeasted Pumpkin Buñuelos.
Dissolve the yeast in warm water or milk and leave for 5–10 minutes.
Add the flour and yeast mixture to the pumpkin mixture.
Mix to form a soft, sticky batter.
Cover and leave in a warm place for about 1 hour, until slightly risen.
Fry spoonfuls of batter in hot oil until golden and fluffy.
Drain on kitchen paper.
5
Finishing touches;
Mix sugar and cinnamon together and roll the warm fritters in the mixture.
Serve warm.
6
Lely tip
The yeast version is lighter and more traditional, while the baking powder version is quicker and perfect for everyday cooking.
7
Lely always said the secret to good buñuelos was patience with the oil. If the oil was too hot, the fritters would brown too quickly on the outside and stay heavy inside. If it was too cool, they would soak up oil. Her trick was simple: drop a tiny bit of batter into the oil first. If it rose slowly to the top and started to puff, the oil was ready.
8
Letting the batter to rest for a few minutes before frying helps the fritters become lighter and softer.
9
And most importantly — according to Lely — always roll them in sugar while they are still warm, so the cinnamon sugar sticks properly.
