Pancove or Romanian Donuts Recipe

In Romania, grandmothers are such skilled cooks, that the few simple dishes that they know how to make are more delicious than what any restaurant chef has to offer. They also seem to make them with the most joy and sincere love.

Not only are they willing to grant their grandchildren’s every culinary wish, but they are also the most hospitable hosts, even to complete strangers. This is the way we like to remember them: as loving, caring and generous. And when they are gone, the only thing we can do is to carry their craft on and to keep their traditions alive for as long as we can.

One dessert of my grandmother’s that I absolutely used to love and I am sure many others know is a sort of donut called pancovă or scoruşă, depending on the geographical area where it is made. It is an unsophisticated dessert: not containing any extravagant ingredients, but it is delicious nonetheless.

Few desserts are so simple yet so good!

In order to make it, you will need the following: 2 eggs, 500 ml of milk, 3 tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate, 1 teabag of vanilla sugar, the zest from 1 lemon, 5 full tablespoons of sour cream, flour, frying oil and powdered sugar for icing.

What you have to do is mix the milk, the sugar and the vanilla sugar in a bowl until the sugar melts. Then, add the eggs, the sour cream and the rest of the ingredients. At the end, add as much flour as you need in order to obtain a dough that is hard enough.

You sprinkle some oil on the table and spread the dough on it with the rolling pin until it reaches an adequate size: 4 cm in width. Then you cut the dough into lozenges, make a hole in their center with a knife and pull one of their ends through it.  Then you fry them in heated oil and sprinkle them with the powdered sugar.

They are most delicious if they are served warm, but they are very good when they are cold as well.

Enjoy!

Sources: http://www.bucataras.ro/retete/scoruse-sau-minciunele-53624.html