New Mexico Sopaipillas

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons lard or shortening
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 6 cups vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 cup honey, for serving

Before you cook

• Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together in a large bowl.
• Cut the lard into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
• Stir in the warm water to form a soft dough, then knead it for 3 minutes until smooth.
• Cover the dough and rest it for 30 minutes.

Steps

1. Heat the frying oil in a deep pot to 400 degrees F, at least 2 inches deep.
2. Divide the dough in half and keep one half covered.
3. Roll the first half out on a lightly floured counter into a rectangle about an eighth of an inch thick.
4. Cut the sheet into 3-inch squares with a knife or pizza wheel.
5. Slide two squares into the oil and hold them under the surface with a slotted spoon for 5 seconds so they puff.
6. Fry for 45 seconds, until the underside is golden and the sopaipilla is fully inflated.
7. Turn the sopaipillas and fry 40 seconds more.
8. Lift them onto a rack to drain and repeat with the remaining squares, keeping the oil at 400 degrees F.
9. Serve the sopaipillas hot in a napkin-lined basket with honey for tearing open and pouring inside.