Rosettes are fried, not baked. A patterned iron is heated in oil, dipped in a thin batter, and returned to the oil until the shell sets and slides free — a few seconds of contact for something that comes out like lace. They need a rosette iron, and beyond that, a thermometer and some patience.
Ingredients
Makes approximately 20 pastries.
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- Vegetable oil, for deep frying
- Sugar, to finish
Method
- Combine all the ingredients and beat until smooth.
- Pour the batter into a bowl wider than the rosette iron.
- Heat the oil to 360°F, and heat the iron in the oil at the same time.
- Lift the iron out and let the excess oil drip off.
- Dip it in the batter, then hold it over the oil for a moment to set the batter a little.
- Deep-fry until golden, around 1 minute.
- Loosen the rosette from the iron with a fork and drain on paper towels.
- Reheat the iron before frying the next one.
- Dip the finished rosettes in sugar.
The bread test
If you have no thermometer, drop a cube of white bread into the hot oil. If it turns golden brown in about a minute, the oil is at the right temperature.
Two things that go wrong
The batter slides off if the iron is too cool, and sticks if the iron is too hot — which is why the iron goes back into the oil between every rosette. And the iron must be dipped only to the top edge of the pattern. Batter over the rim will lock the rosette on and it will not release.