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1
Make the Spiced Water
15 Mins
Simmering, about 100°C (212°F)
Put 150 ml of water in a small saucepan with a cinnamon stick, 2 cloves and the anise seeds. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes so the spices give up their flavour. Strain out the spices and measure out 120 ml for the dough, letting it cool until lukewarm — it must be warm, not hot, when it meets the dough.
Do not skip the straining: whole anise seeds in the dough make hard little bits that catch in the teeth.
Done when: A fragrant, amber-tinted water, lukewarm to the touch.
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2
Mix and Knead the Dough
15 Mins
Room temperature
Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Rub in the softened butter with your fingertips until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Make a well in the centre and add the beaten eggs, 15 ml of the lemon juice, the aguardiente and 120 ml of the lukewarm spiced water. Mix with a wooden spoon, then turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
Add the spiced water a little at a time — flour absorbs differently on humid days, and you may not need all of it.
Done when: A smooth, elastic dough that springs back when poked.
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3
Rest the Dough
30 Mins
Room temperature
Cover the dough with a clean cloth or plastic wrap and leave it to rest for 30 minutes. Use this time to make the panela syrup (next step) so nothing waits.
The rest relaxes the gluten, which is what lets you roll the dough paper-thin without it springing back.
Done when: Dough relaxed and easy to roll.
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4
Make the Panela Syrup
15 Mins
Simmering, about 100°C (212°F)
While the dough rests, put the grated panela, the 360 ml of water, the cinnamon sticks, cloves, orange peel and the remaining 15 ml of lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring until the panela dissolves, then simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until the syrup coats the back of a spoon. Strain out the spices and peel and keep the syrup warm.
Do not let the syrup boil hard — it can catch and turn bitter, and over-reduced syrup sets like toffee when it cools.
Done when: Syrup coats the back of a spoon and drips in a slow ribbon.
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5
Roll, Cut and Shape the Rings
15 Mins
Room temperature
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to about 3 mm thick. Cut it into strips about 15 cm long and 3 cm wide. Make small diagonal cuts along both long edges of each strip, like a fringe, then bring the two ends together and pinch firmly to form a ring, fringe facing out. You should get about 24 rings.
Pinch the join well — a weak join springs open in the hot oil. Keep the strips thin and even; thick centres stay doughy while the edges brown.
Done when: About 24 thin, even rings with fringed edges, firmly joined.
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6
Fry Until Golden and Serve
20 Mins
Oil at 175–180°C (350–355°F)
Heat the oil in a deep pot to 175–180°C (350–355°F). Fry 4 or 5 rings at a time for 1 to 2 minutes per side, until deep golden and crisp, turning once with tongs. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Let the oil come back to temperature between batches. Serve the rings warm on a plate, drowned in the warm panela syrup.
Pristinos go from golden to burnt in seconds, so stay at the pot and fry in small batches. Serve them warm — they soften as they cool.
Done when: Deep golden, crisp rings that shatter lightly when bitten.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the pristinos warm and crisp, drowned in the spiced panela syrup — thin anise dough, fried golden, with the warm sweetness of unrefined cane sugar.
Ecuador
30m
