Sometimes, all we need for a pick-me-up is a sweet treat, and Spanish desserts are the perfect remedy.
Rosquillas de anís, a classic Spanish delight, gained popularity for its simplicity and delightful flavor.
Explore this article to learn more about these light, aromatic, glazed Spanish donuts and how you can make them from scratch, complete with tips on storing, serving, and customizing the recipe.
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Background of the Dish
The Spanish rosquillas de anís are the original versions of the now world-wide famous donuts, as they date back to the 1800s.
Their creation is closely tied to the church, as they were often served in convents and prepared by nuns.
Nowadays, if you walk down the streets of any small town in Andalusia during Easter, you’ll catch the scent of anise drifting from any church.
Alternatively, you can make them at home and savor the aroma in your kitchen right now.
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Things You’ll Need for Rosquillas de Anís
To prepare one of the best Spanish desserts you will need flour, eggs, butter, water, sugar, vegetable oil for frying, and anise extract as the main ingredients.
Similar to other traditional Spanish desserts, for the equipment you only need a large pot or a fryer to cook the rosquillas de anís in.
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 3 cups (360gr) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (120gr) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (200gr) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon anise extract
- 1 lemon zest
For Frying
- Vegetable oil for frying
For the Glaze (Optional, replaceable with just sugar):
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon anise extract
How to Make Rosquillas de Anís- Step by Step Guide
- For the first step in this Spanish rosquillas recipe, simply grab a bowl and whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Using another bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- After that, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then, mix in the anise extract and lemon zest. You could use a teaspoon of anise powder or a dash of anise-flavored liquor instead of the extract.
- Now, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing gently until a soft dough forms. Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- In the final minutes of resting, heat vegetable oil in a deep fryer or a heavy-bottomed pan to 350°F (175°C).
- Then, take portions of the chilled dough for the Spanish donuts and shape them into small rings, about 2 inches in diameter.
- For the cooking step on this rosquillas recipe, fry them in batches until golden brown, flipping them to ensure even cooking. This should take about 4 minutes per batch.
- After that, remove the rosquillas de anís using a slotted spoon and place them on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess oil.
- In a bowl, mix the powdered sugar, water, and anise extract to create the glaze. Dip each rosquilla into the glaze, ensuring it’s coated all around. Allow any excess glaze to drip off. Place the glazed rosquillas de anís on a wire rack to set. You could replace this step by coating them with any type of sugar on top.
- The rosquillas fritas de anis are now ready. Serve them warm or cold and enjoy them with a nice cup of tea, hot chocolate, cafe con leche, or coffee.
Substitution of Ingredients
Thankfully, this easy Spanish donuts recipe only requires a few basic ingredients, and still you can make some substitutions to them.
For example, you can prepare these rosquillas de anís with gluten-free flour, or others like almond flour, coconut flour, and whole wheat flour, but in some cases, you would have to add a bit more water until you reach the perfect soft dough.
What makes this a staple Spanish easter celebration food is the anise flavoring (which you can use powdered anise or anise liquor for too), but you could go on a different route and use vanilla extract, almond extract, or orange zest.
Similar to other popular best Spanish desserts, for example, the churros, you can coat these rosquillas de anís with powdered sugar, white sugar, or cinnamon sugar instead of a glaze.
Tips on Serving Rosquillas de Anís
The rosquillas de anís are a mesmerizing type of Spanish easter food, commonly enjoyed as a dessert, but on some occasions for breakfast or as an afternoon snack.
Still, they are so delicious that nowadays they go beyond the Spanish easter traditions, and you can enjoy them all year round, with your favorite cup of tea, Spanish hot chocolate or coffee.
Besides that, you could change the toppings for these rosquillas de anís, for example, add a chocolate sauce or caramel sauce drizzle, add Easter-themed sprinkles, drizzle them with honey or maple syrup, etc.
If you are looking for more Spanish food for Easter to prepare, then we have other famous Spanish desserts for you to see like the Borrachuelos de Málaga.
Feel free to check our delicious pestinos recipe, the famous torrijas, and the fantastic buñuelos de viento.
How to Store Rosquillas de Anís
Similar to other Spanish traditional desserts, the fresher that you can serve them the better.
However, you can store them for later, especially if you have leftovers.
If you only need to store the rosquillas de anís for a couple of days (one or two), then place them on a plate or container, cover them with plastic wrap, and store them at room temperature.
To store your rosquillas de anís for a week, follow the same covering process but store them in your fridge, far from other food to avoid cross-contamination.
Now, if you want to store them for 2 months and be able to enjoy them whenever you are craving Spanish desserts, then you can place them in an airtight freezer-safe container and store them in the fridge.
To thaw, remove them from the freezer and place them at room temperature for a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
Reheat them in a low oven for a few minutes to restore their freshness.
Recipe Card: Rosquillas de Anís
Spanish Rosquillas de Anís Recipe
Sometimes, all we need for a pick-me-up is a sweet treat, and Spanish dessert recipes are the perfect remedy.
Rosquillas de anís, a classic Spanish delight, gained popularity for its simplicity and delightful flavor.
Explore this article to learn more about these light, aromatic, glazed Spanish donuts and how you can make them from scratch, complete with tips on storing, serving, and customizing the recipe.
Ingredients
- 3 cups (360gr) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (120gr) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (200gr) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon anise extract
- 1 lemon zest
For Frying:
- Vegetable oil for frying
For the Glaze (Optional, replaceable with just sugar):
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon anise extract
Instructions
- To start with this Spanish donuts recipe, grab a bowl and whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In another bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the anise extract) and lemon zest.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until a soft dough forms. Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- During the last minutes, heat vegetable oil in a deep fryer or a heavy-bottomed pan to 350°F (175°C).
- Take portions of the chilled dough and shape them into small rings, about 2 inches in diameter.
- Fry the rosquillas anis in batches until golden brown, flipping them to ensure even cooking. This should take about 4 minutes per batch.
- Remove the rosquillas using a slotted spoon and place them on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess oil.
- In a bowl, mix the powdered sugar, water, and anise extract to create the glaze. Dip each rosquilla into the glaze, ensuring it's coated all around. Allow any excess glaze to drip off. Place the glazed rosquillas on a wire rack to set.
- Serve and enjoy these traditional Spanish Rosquillas de Anís.
Notes
Just like other easy Spanish desserts, instead of using a glaze you can cover the rosquillas with powdered sugar, white sugar, or cinnamon sugar, simply be sure to do it while they are hot so that the coating sticks to it.
Anise is one of the most traditional flavorings for Spanish easter meals, but you could replace it with vanilla extract, almond extract, or orange zest instead.
The cooling step is key in this recipe so that you don't end up with dense rosquillas cookies: resting the dough will allow it to be fluffy on the inside.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 395Total Fat 9.3gSaturated Fat 4.5gCholesterol 153mgSodium 1315mgCarbohydrates 73.3gFiber 1.6gSugar 37.7gProtein 8.8g
Hola, I’m Paulina! Together with my team, we are passionate about Southern Spain. Here we share all you need to know for great times in Southern Spain with the best places to visit, stay and, of course, the best food to eat.
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