Welcome back to my puff puff series with this coffee lime puff puff recipe. I feel like I need to introduce this recipe by saying it will not be for everyone. Why? Puff puff for a lot of people is meant to be sweet and only sweet. Even though some folks add pepper to it, the primary category puff puff falls under is sweet.
The leaning of this recipe is bitter-sweet, no pun intended with that one. If you understand flavour profiles, you would know there are eight elements to it. These are;
- Umami.
- Temperature.
- Sweet.
- Bitter.
- Salty.
- Sour.
- Texture.
- Spicy.
I will try to explore all eight for different reasons in my series. Today we are on the bitter spectrum of the profile. Nigerians are not new to this particular flavour profile as we consume quite a number of bitter items. In speaking to a few people, the bitter taste is perceived to equate health. The more bitter an item is, the more likely people are to think it’s healthy. This flavour is reflected in our food, drinks and some “snacks.” A few examples include; agbo, bitter kola, bitters(drinks), ofe onugbu soup, garden egg, stout, utazi to name a few.
In exploring this recipe, I wanted to add a few elements to the bitter taste so it comes across a little more complex and not one-dimensional. I personally find that citrus works well with coffee. It’s sometimes a weird pairing and you may need to balance it better but it works.
RECIPE FOR COFFEE LIME PUFF PUFF
Ingredients
1/2 cup All Purpose Flour ( + 1 Tablespoon Flour)
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1 Tablespoon Coffee
1/4 Cup Warm Water
1.5 Teaspoon Sugar
1/8 Cup Light Plain Yoghurt
Oil for deep frying
Glaze
1 Small Lime (Juiced)
1 Teaspoon Coffee
1/2 Teaspoon Ginger Powder
4 Teaspoons Icing Sugar
1/4 Cup Water
Method
In a bowl, mix your flour, baking powder and sugar.
In a separate cup, mix your coffee with the warm water and stir till dissolved.
Pour your mix into the flour and then add your yoghurt and mix till smooth.
Heat up your oil and on low to medium heat, scoop your mix into the oil in little balls and fry till golden brown.
Take out and drain the oil.
For your glaze, squeeze your lime juice and mix with the coffee, water, ginger and icing sugar.
Pour your mix in a pan and place on low heat and stir till a thick glaze is formed.
Take off the heat and toss your coffee lime mix with the puff puff and serve hot.
NB: You can also skip the glaze and just have the coffee puff puff on its own with a cup of coffee for an extra dose of yummy goodness.
