As You Wish: Andagi for BrendaC

Yesterday, in a lengthy conversation thread, one of my facebook friends said to me, "as you wish. . ."  This friend is several years younger than me and was one of those cute little boys who would say all kinds of crazy things to upperclassmen girls to get in good with them.  I'm sure you have had someone in your life who fits that description.  Anyway, his line, "as you wish. . .", was pilfered from one of my all-time favorite movies, The Princess Bride.

I remember going to the theater in Oregon to see the movie.  I had it on VHS tape (showing my age), and I have it on dvd now!  If another format comes out, I will need to get it on that too.  The humor and the lines are timeless.  A favorite part in the movie is at the beginning when Buttercup asks Wesley to do all sorts of tedious tasks, and he responds on multiple occasions with "as you wish".  Of course, this is his pickup line and begins the story of true love between Buttercup and Wesley.  Sigh.

Anyway, about a month ago, I received an email from a reader, BrendaC.  BrendaC grew up in Pepeekeo and has bragging rights to declare "once a viking, always a viking".  Right on, BrendaC!  BrendaC is on a quest to find an andagi recipe similar to the one her grandfather made.  She said the andagi from the Okinawa O-bon festival in Mililani comes the closest.  Unfortunately, I am not familiar with either version, but if any of you have such a recipe, please share it.

In the meantime, I can share my version.  I need to issue a disclaimer here.  I am unable to drop the batter using only my hands.  My gramma in Honolulu could do this, and I remember taking a tub of her andagi back to Seattle with me while I was in college.  By some miracle, I did not eat the whole tub on the plane ride from Honolulu to Seattle.  My friends were totally impressed with the roundness and how the andagi were lacking "tails".  Those of you who struggle with the plopping of the batter into the hot oil know exactly what I'm talking about.  Luckily, there are some people out there (BT?) who enjoy eating the crunchy tails!

I'm also unable to really tell if the inside of the andagi is cooked, so I cheat and poke each one with a toothpick.  If the toothpick comes out clean, the inside is cooked (just like when you bake a cake).   Be sure the frying oil is about 360 degrees.  While most foods are deep-fried at 375 degrees, the sugar content of these will cause browning to occur too quickly.  For those of you not familiar with andagi, there is no need to roll these in any type of sugar after frying.  And if by some odd chance you have super-human willpower and do not consume the entire batch in one sitting, andagi may be heated in a toaster oven (275 degrees) for about 5 minutes.

I'm sure Wesley didn't know how to use a computer or hook up a new Sony TV, but he sure knew what to say to get the girl.  Those silly little boys from my high school days could've learned a lot from Wesley! 

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Andagi

     3 c flour
     4 tsp baking powder
     1 tsp salt
     1 c sugar
     2 eggs
     1 c milk
     1 tbsp oil
     oil for frying

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.  Beat eggs, milk and 1 tbsp oil together.  Add to dry ingredients and mix lightly.  Do not overmix.  Heat 1" - 1 1/2" oil to 360 degrees.  When oil is ready, drop batter into hot oil (I use a #50 disher).  Fry until golden brown all over.  Note:  if you manage to make round andagi, they will turn over themselves!

Note to BrendaC:  I hope you find your grandfather's andagi recipe.  When you do, please share it with me!