The other day after discussing something completely life-changing I ate at our state fair on Instagram, and then declaring my love for fair food, people started requesting a Homemade Funnel Cake recipe. I quickly hopped on the blog to grab our recipe to send them and couldn’t find it anywhere. I thought I was going crazy. I texted my blog partner at the time, Kate, to see if she had maybe removed the funnel cake recipe I remembered her once posting. That’s when I found out the hard truth. Not only had Kate never shared a funnel cake recipe, ever (I imagined that apparently?!). She’d also NEVER EATEN A FUNNEL CAKE. Like, what? I don’t understand. I’m confused. And I’m sad. All at the same time. It made me think about how many other people there are in the world that haven’t had the experience of biting into those warm, fluffy, fried chunks of sugar-coated dough and this is something that needs to be rectified immediately.
So if you’ve never eaten a funnel cake, or you have and you need to enjoy them in your own home and not at a sweltering hot fair prepared in a trailer by some high school kid, this post is for you. Funnel cake. At home. SO easy. Funnel cake is basically a sweet batter that you pour directly into hot oil. It’s like a big messy doughnut with nooks and crannies for toppings to settle into. They must be eat fresh and hot, and with your hands!
Ingredients and Equipment Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
Ingredients
- Milk
- Eggs
- Vanilla
- Granulated sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Oil for frying – Peanut or canola work well.
- Toppings – As desired. Powdered sugar is must for me. Cinnamon-sugar is great, maple syrup and bacon crumbles is a surprisingly delicious combo, and things like fruit jam, chocolate sauce, fruit and whipped cream, or any combination of those work, too. You really can’t go wrong here.
Helpful Equipment
While these things aren’t required, they’ll definitely make things easier for you.
- Batter dispenser – You can simply pour the batter in the oil using a spouted container, but I love a batter dispenser for easy, even, pouring. I also often use this Tovolo Pancake Pen, too. All of these help create the “funnel” in funnel cake.
- Compact deep fryer – Now, I don’t deep fry very often. I’m not like Paula Dean who has a deep fryer built into her kitchen. It’s an occasional thing for us and always something extra fun like funnel cake or doughnuts! We sometimes fry things for a fun game-day or party, or homemade doughnuts or Brazilian treats on special holidays. You can certainly just use a heavy pot for frying but I have to say I LOVE having a little deep fryer. It looks like the one I have is no longer being made, but there are lots of good options out there if it’s something you want to add to your kitchen.
How to Make Homemade Funnel Cakes
- Heat up some oil in a deep fryer or heavy pot.
- When your oil reaches temperature, just pour some batter in a nice steady stream. I make a circle shape and then drizzle it all over the place. There is literally no technique here. A small child could do this if “this” didn’t involve, ya know, boiling hot oil.
- It puffs right up in just a few seconds and you can pull it out and immediately shower it with powdered sugar or whatever else your heart desires.
- Then add toppings. We love the classic powdered sugar, but cinnamon-sugar is another favorite. We drizzled some Chocolate-Raspberry Jam over one and it was pretty spectacular. Other favorites I’ve tried are maple syrup and crumbled bacon, and sauteed apples with whipped cream and caramel. I mean, what’s not great poured over hot fried dough??
Storing and Other Tips
- Funnel cakes are best eaten hot out of the fryer!
- Shortcut Option- I just have to say, this Krusteaz Funnel Cake Mix is actually fantastic. I bought it at a restaurant supply store, but looks like it’s on Amazon if you’re interested in making funnel cake for like, 80 people. You just mix it with water and it’s delicious. Awesome flavor, awesome texture, just not super easy to find and only comes in bulk!
Frequently Asked Questions
These are really designed to be eater right out of the fryer. You could mix up the batter and keep it in the fridge for a few hours before frying if needed, though.
Your oil was likely not hot enough. Use a candy or deep fry thermometer to make sure your oil is at 375°F!
Absolutely. Just put your batter in a pitcher or other container with a pour spout and carefully pour it into the hot oil.
Homemade Funnel Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- peanut or canola oil for frying
Topping ideas
- powdered sugar
- cinnamon-sugar
- maple syrup and bacon crumbles
- fruit jam
- chocolate sauce
- chopped fruit and whipped cream.
Instructions
- Heat oil to 375℉. You'll need at least about 3-4 inches of oil, which will vary in amount depending on the size of pot or deep fryer you are using.
- Place all ingredients in a blender and blend, OR combine dry ingredients in a bowl and wet ingredients in a glass measuring bowl and slowly add wet to dry while whisking to avoid lumps. Mix until smooth.
- When oil reaches temperature, drizzle batter in a steady stream directly into the oil. Make a circle pattern and then just drizzle it all over. Fry until golden brown on bottom and then give it a quick flip. When both sides are lightly golden, remove from oil using long heavy tongs or fork and either dredge immediately in cinnamon-sugar or dust with powdered sugar and other desired toppings. Serve immediately!
Notes
- Funnel cakes are best eaten hot out of the fryer!
- Shortcut Option- I just have to say, this Krusteaz Funnel Cake Mix is actually fantastic. I bought it at a restaurant supply store, but looks like it’s on Amazon if you’re interested in making funnel cake for like, 80 people. You just mix it with water and it’s delicious. Awesome flavor, awesome texture, just not super easy to find and only comes in bulk!
Questions & Reviews
Maybe we are all developing some kind of carnival food dementia, but I remember you posting a recipe too. It was a few years ago, my son had friends over so I whipped upmambatch right then. Sooo good. I’m sure these will be equally as good and on our menu this weekend
Oh my gosh, okay- right?? Are we crazy??
I first tasted a funnel cake when I was 27 years old. (I’m very behind with food since I grew up in a Laotian culture. Hah, I first tried apple sauce when I was 14!) I went to a little village of shops with a friend and she bought me one to try. It tasted awe-some! Very yummy! Thanks for the recipe!
Ditto on the funnel cake post. When I saw it in my reader, I was like, “Didn’t they already post this? Maybe it’s a variation?”
So we’re all going crazy together?
Tonight is “free dessert Friday” and we’re having dinner with friends… sadly, not at my house. I’m just a little more than bummed to not be busting out funnel cakes tonight, but… there will be other opportunities! This is especially important as the fairs around here DON’T HAVE FUNNEL CAKES!!! Whaaaaaaa?!? The last one I went to I went *for* the funnel cakes, and the truck never showed. Stinks living in the middle of nowhere sometimes I tell ya…
How many does this recipe make?
I am happy to hear I am not the only one who fries things on the patio. While I enjoy fried food, the smell of boiling oil makes me gag. I swear the smell seeps into my walls and gets stuck in my hair…and since I wash my hair 1x a week, I can’t have that ??
Yum! I’ve been wanting to make this at home for ages, and now I have an awesome recipe to use!
Paige
this looks delish- just in time for fall and the county fair!
How many would you say this recipe makes?
So I totally forgot to keep track because we just kept eating and eating them! I’m going to say 8-ish full plate-sized ones?
This looks amazing! Also, I remember a funnel cake post…?
I’m laying here looking at this recipe and totally just interrupted my husband mid-story with an excited yell of, “I’m making funnel cakes!!!” Holy crap, I’m excited! Like, this is happening tomorrow. Bless you.
Hahaha, this is awesome.