Name: Beignets in Air Fryer
Prep time: 31 min
Cook time: 14 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: Air Fryer
Ingredients: 1 Cup Self Rising Flour; 1 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt; 2 tbsp Light Brown Sugar; 2 tsp Vanilla; 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter; 1 cup Powdered Sugar

If you’ve ever been to New Orleans, you’ve probably heard about, seen, or eaten at the famous Café du Monde. It’s an iconic cafe known for their chicory coffee, cafe au laits, and most importantly, their beignets.

It’s not hard to see why they’re so beloved by many, beignets are a delicious treat usually enjoyed with coffee and a friend.

While there are many different ways to make and enjoy a beignet, I’ll be showing you the quick and easy way that’ll save you hours of time, and ingredients.

Don’t worry if you’re not pro-baker, or can’t seem to find your way around a spatula in the kitchen, this recipe has been simplified so even the most intimidated kitchen-goers can make something delicious from scratch!

What is a Beignet?

A beignet is traditionally a deep fried pastry topped with powdered sugar and typically made with pâte à choux, but can be made with other types of flours and is most popular in French culture, though it has become popular in America when the French brought it over.

What You’ll Need

1 Cup Self Rising Flour
1 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
2 tbsp Light Brown Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla
2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 cup Powdered Sugar

Ingredient Notes

Self Rising Flour-

As with any bread recipe, the most important thing you can do to make your dish taste amazing is making sure you’re using quality flour.

One of the best flour brands on the market is King Arthur, use their self rising flour for this recipe. This is one area you don’t want to compromise!

Greek Yogurt-

Using greek yogurt will add moisture to your beignets so they aren’t so dry.

Light Brown Sugar-

Using brown sugar in this recipe will not only serve to make your beignets more golden and appealing, but also aids in giving them a more rich flavor. While typical beignet recipes use white sugar instead of brown, I chose to add brown sugar to make it healthier. It’s just as sweet, but with less calories!

Vanilla-

Vanilla! One of the best additions to every single baked good on the planet, and this one’s no exception. This will simply add a nice flavor to the beignets.

Unsalted Butter-

Using unsalted butter instead of salted butter will help keep from making your beignets taste too salty, since there’s already salt in the dough. Brushing the dough with butter before frying will also add a nice flavor to your beignets and help them achieve a crisp, golden crust.

Powdered Sugar-

Powdered sugar is pretty much the star of this dish, aside from the actual beignet itself. Sugar and bread – what could be better?

How To Make It

Step 1: Get Your Ingredients Ready

Get out all of your ingredients and portion everything out.

Step 2: Combine Your Ingredients

Combine your yogurt, brown sugar, and vanilla into a medium sized bowl and mix well. I like to use a whisk as it makes it easier to evenly mix everything.

Step 3: Combine Flour Into Your Mixture

Once you have everything combined, add your flour and mix until most of it has come together and everything sticks.

Step 4: Knead Your Dough

Pour out your dough onto a floured surface, and knead the dough a few times until everything comes together and is one form.

Step 5: Roll Out Your Dough And Fold

Using a rolling pin, roll out your dough into a ½ thick rectangle. Now, fold one of the long ends a ½ of the way in, and fold the other end over top of that. This is known as a book fold. Once again using your rolling pin, roll out the dough in a rectangular shape about ½ inch thick.

Step 6: Cut Your Dough And Let It Rest

Cut your dough into 8 pieces, dust with a little more flour, and place a clean kitchen towel over the dough. Let rest for 15 minutes.

Step 7: Melt Your Butter

Once your dough is done resting, melt your butter in a microwave safe bowl, and brush it on the tops of your beignets.

Step 8: Place Your Dough Into The Air Fryer

Place the beignets butter side down in the air fryer and brush the tops with more butter. Depending on the size air fryer you have, not all of your beignets may fit. In that case fit as many as you can without crowding the basket, and finish the second batch once the first is done cooking.

Step 9: Cook Your Beignets

Fry at 350℉ for 14 minutes, flipping halfway.

Step 10: Toss Your Beignets In Sugar And Enjoy!

Once your beignets are done grab a paper bag, ziploc bag, or any bag you can find and put a cup of powdered sugar in.

Toss your beignets in while they’re still hot and toss to generously coat.

Once you’re done, take them out of the bag and plate them up. Enjoy!

Other Alternative Ingredients

How to Make this Gluten-Free

Simply substitute the flour in this recipe for a gluten free self-rising flour. I like King Arthur Self Rising flour, you can find it on Amazon. You can also make this yourself by using 1 cup gluten free 1:1 ratio flour, 1 ½ tsp baking powder, and ¼ tsp salt.

How to Make this Keto-Friendly

To make this recipe keto friendly you’ll want to substitute a few ingredients. For the flour, you can substitute with almond flour.

They will probably taste different than a traditional beignet, but they will still be good. Substitute the brown sugar for brands like Truvia that sell calorie free sweetener, and they actually sell brown sugar that’s good for keto.

Like Truvia, there are brands that sell keto versions of powdered sugar, you can look online to find a grocer near you that has it in stock.

Biscuit Dough Instead of Flour

Using biscuit dough to make these beignets is actually easier than this recipe, all you have to do is get your biscuit dough, you can make it or buy it premade- though it’ll be easier and taste just as good if you buy it- brush with butter and throw them in the air fryer! Follow this recipe for times and instructions for cooking.

How to Make this Vegan

It’s very easy to turn this recipe into a vegan one, all you have to do is replace the greek yogurt with a vegan yogurt, and nearly every grocery store sells it.

For the unsalted butter, you can either use a vegan unsalted butter found in your grocery store as well, or just use olive oil spray to coat the tops of the beignets.

Does This Recipe Contain Mold Inhibitors?

You may be asking what a mold inhibitor is, and it’s not as confusing as you think. A mold inhibitor is a natural preservative found in food that helps control the growth of mold and prolongs foods shelf life.

This recipe does not contain any, but you don’t need to add this as beignets should typically be eaten fresh, and if you’re choosing to store them, the growth of mold will be inhibited from the temperature of your freezer or fridge.

FAQS

Can I Use Batter Instead?

Beignets are traditionally made with dough, and rightfully so. I would not try and make this a batter as batters are typically very wet, and will consequently create a very dense and maybe even undercooked beignet.

Is It Okay to Use Wet Dough In An Air Fryer?

Yes! As long as the dough is able to form a shape and doesn’t drip, it’s okay to use in your fryer.

How Do I Make My Beignets Airy?

Letting your beignets rest for 15-20 minutes before you place them in the fryer will help the dough to rise a little bit, giving you that characteristically puffy beignet.

Keep in mind though that because this recipe is quick by using self rising flour, the flour itself doesn’t have yeast in it and therefore won’t get as high of a rise in your dough, making your beignets not as fluffy as they could be if you had made this recipe by using yeast and proofing your dough – which takes hours.

Different Ingredient Combinations

Nutella- add this to your beignet by placing it in the middle of one of your cut dough pieces and fold over all the edges, pinching to seal it. Cook per instructions.
Dark chocolate espresso sauce- get the recipe for this delicious dipping sauce here!https://heartofabaker.com/mardi-gras-beignets-chocolate-espresso-sauce/
Custard- like the nutella, adding custard filling in your beignets brings a whole new flavor to the game! Try this custard recipe here: https://cookinglsl.com/homemade-custard-recipe-pastry-cream/

Apple Beignets

If you’re looking to add a little flair to your beignets, a winning combination is apple beignets. They are a little more tedious, and time consuming, but it’ll be worth it.

Making apple beignets will require different ingredients, and a different process than this recipe so refer to this great air fryer recipe to make your apple beignets!

Can You Make This Ahead Of Time?

Absolutely. As soon as you’re finished mixing and forming your dough, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to 6 months, or the fridge for up to a week. Wrapping it in the shape of a disc will help it thaw faster.

What To Serve With This Dish

This recipe would begin to look a little untrustworthy if I didn’t mention beignets most trusted companion- coffee!
Ice cream
Various dipping sauces like honey, chocolate, and even coffee! Check above for a recipe link to a great chocolate dipping sauce!

General Tips And Tricks

When measuring out your flour, scoop with the measuring cup, don’t spoon the flour in!
Dust your hands and the rolling pin with flour when rolling it out to prevent the rolling pin from sticking to the flour.
Don’t roll your dough out too thin- your beignets won’t rise as much.

Cooking Times By Air Fryer Model

Model	Cooking time	Temperature
Ninja Foodi	12 minutes	380 ℉
Philips Airfryer XXL (HD9630)	27 minutes	365 ℉
Nuwave Bravo XL Grill	12-14 minutes	365 ℉
Power XL 2&3 Qt Vortex	17 minutes	390 ℉
Cuisinart	12 minutes	390 ℉
Cosori	14 minutes	350 ℉
Breville Smart Oven	22 minutes	440 ℉

Storage

I don’t recommend saving these after you’ve cooked them as they will be stale and dry if you try to reheat them, the same goes for freezing. If you want to save them, I suggest storing them in the fridge or freezer before you cook them so they’re fresh when you do want to eat them. Read above to find out storage times.

Cooking Time

Cooking times may vary slightly based on the air fryer so be sure to check on your fritters halfway through cook time to ensure they’re cooked properly.

Beignets in Air Fryer

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 31 minutes

Cook Time: 14 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Learn how to make the perfect air fryer beignets with this comprehensive guide! This is the perfect recipe if you’re looking to make a quick and easy treat that’s healthier than traditional beignets which are typically fried in oil, but by using an air fryer you're cutting out the fat and calories.

Read above to see how to swap out any of these ingredients to create something new with our recommended ingredient combinations above, make this dish gluten free, vegan, or keto-friendly.

When you’re finished making this recipe, comment down below how it turned out, we’d love to hear from you! This recipe yields 12 medium sized beignets.

Ingredients

1 Cup Self Rising Flour
1 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
2 tbsp Light Brown Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla
2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 cup Powdered Sugar