Homemade Berry Fritters

Try homemade berry fritters the next time a doughnut craving hits! Based off of the popular apple fritters, this summery fried berry fritter combines a soft yeasted dough, blueberries, and a creamy strawberry glaze made from real strawberries.

Here are the basic steps:

1. Make the dough.
2. Knead the dough.
3. Let the dough rise for 1-2 hours.
4. Roll out the dough. It should be about ½ inch thick.
5. Shape into fritters. This step includes folding the dough over fresh blueberries, then slicing the dough into strips and dividing into 12 pieces.
6. Let the shaped fritters rest. Meanwhile, heat the oil.
7. Fry the fritters for 1-2 minutes on each side.

After that, dunk the fritters into a creamy strawberry glaze. Truly one of the best parts in these breakfast treats!

Let’s talk about the dough. This is a rich, buttery dough that requires yeast for its rise.

Here are the ingredients needed:

1. Yeast: Start with quality yeast. Like usual, I use Platinum Yeast from Red Star. It’s an instant yeast that builds a stronger, taller, more voluminous dough.
2. Sugar: Sugar feeds the yeast and adds flavor to the fritters.
3. Whole Milk: Liquid activates the yeast.
4. Butter: Butter adds flavor. Melt it, then let it slightly cool before using.
5. Eggs: 2 eggs make this a delicious brioche-style fritter.
6. Flour: Flour is the entire structure of the berry fritters. The dough is a little sticky and you’ll be tempted to add more flour as you mix it together, but resist that temptation! You want a soft dough.
7. Salt, Vanilla Extract, & Nutmeg: Each add wonderful flavor. Nutmeg is a VERY common ingredient in most doughnut recipes!

I recommend frying the fritters in vegetable oil. Make sure you use a large heavy-bottomed pot and only fry the fritters for about 1-2 minutes on each side. It’s important that you do not over-fill the pot. Only fill it with about 2-3 inches of oil.

Don’t forget the finishing touch! Most of the berry flavor comes from the fresh strawberry glaze, so don’t skip it. Instead of strawberries, you can use raspberries or blackberries.

Homemade Berry Fritters

This sweet summery fried fritter combines a soft yeasted dough, blueberries, and a creamy strawberry glaze made from real strawberries.

Yield 12 large fritters

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Ingredients

• 1 cup whole milk (warmed to about 110°F)
• 1 tablespoon Platinum Yeast
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 2 large eggs
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and slightly cooled)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 4 cups all-purpose flour (plus more as needed)
• 1 1/2 cups (250g) fresh berries such as blueberries, chopped strawberries, or blackberries*
• 1 to 2 quarts vegetable oil (enough to fill 1/3 of pot)

Strawberry Glaze

• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1 cup chopped strawberries (about 5 large strawberries)
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (or half-and-half, or whole milk)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

• Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm milk, yeast, and 1 tablespoon of sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or paddle attachment. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
• Add the remaining 7 tablespoons of sugar, eggs, butter, vanilla extract, salt, nutmeg, and 1 cup flour. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add the remaining flour. Beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. If needed, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Don’t add too much flour, though. You want a slightly sticky dough. *If you do not own a mixer, you can mix this dough with a large wooden spoon or rubber spatula. It will take a bit of arm muscle!*
• Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 2 minutes or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 2 minutes.
• Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1-2 hours or until double in size.
• Shape the dough: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface and with lightly floured hands, flatten the dough into a long oval about 1/2 inch thick. You can use a rolling pin if needed, but your hands should be able to stretch it out just fine. Spread blueberries onto half of the dough, as pictured above. Fold the dough over the blueberries, then seal the edges. Using your hands, work the dough into an even log, making sure the edges are totally sealed. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into about 12 even strips, then cut 4-5 perpendicular strips to make a cross pattern of sorts. This is NOT an exact process, so don’t stress. You really just need a bunch of small pieces of blueberry-filled dough! Divide the cut-up dough into 12 even pieces. Mold each into a round shape and try to “enclose” the blueberries inside the dough as much as you can. (They’ll fall out of the fritters otherwise.) Place the shaped fritters on a lined baking sheet, then cover and allow to rest as you heat the oil. They will rise a bit as they rest.
• Place a cooling rack on a large baking sheet. Set aside.
• Pour oil into a large heavy-bottomed pot set over medium heat. Using a candy thermometer, heat the oil to 350°F (177°C). This will take several minutes. Add 2 fritters at a time and fry for 1-2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Wear kitchen gloves if oil is splashing. Carefully remove with a metal spatula or metal slotted spoon. Place fritters onto prepared rack. Repeat with remaining fritters, then turn off the heat.* Some blueberries may come loose in the oil. Discard those since they’ll taste burnt.
• Let the fritters cool for a few minutes as you prepare the glaze.
• Strawberry Glaze: Place confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl. Set aside. Purée the strawberries in a food processor. Scrape down the sides if needed. If they aren’t pureeing into a liquid, add 1 Tablespoon of the heavy cream, half-and-half, or milk you are using in the glaze. Once liquefied, pour over confectioners’ sugar, then add the cream/milk, and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth. If needed, add more cream/milk to thin out or more confectioners’ sugar to thicken.
• Dunk each fritter into glaze. Place back onto prepared rack for excess glaze to drip down. The glaze will eventually set on the fritters after about 20-30 minutes.
• Fritters are best enjoyed the same day. Cover and store leftovers at room temperature for 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave.

Notes

Freezing Instructions: You can freeze the fried fritters (unglazed). Allow them to cool completely, then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature, then reheat as desired and top with glaze.

Overnight Instructions: Complete dough through step 3. Instead of allowing to rise in a warm environment in step 4, place the covered dough into the refrigerator overnight (8-12 hours). The next morning, remove from the refrigerator and allow to rise in a warm environment until doubled. The dough will lightly rise in the refrigerator overnight, so the rise the next morning won’t be too long. After rising, continue with step 5.

Berries: Go light on the blueberries in the dough– 1 and 1/2 cups is plenty. If you use too many, they’ll just fall out of the frying fritters and burn. You can also use blackberries or chopped strawberries. I recommend fresh blueberries because they aren’t as juicy. Frozen berries or juicier berries make this dough a mess! Instead of strawberries for the glaze, you can use fresh or frozen (thawed) raspberries or blackberries. Blueberries aren’t ideal for the glaze because they don’t purée as well.

Leftover Oil: Do not pour used oil down the sink drain. Allow to cool, then pour into an empty container and discard in the trash.

 

Recipe by Sally’s Baking Addiction.

Sally McKenney is a professional food photographer, cookbook author, and baker. She has written, photographed, and published more than 1,000 from-scratch recipes and written three cookbooks. Her thorough step-by-step tutorials give millions of followers the knowledge and confidence to bake from scratch.