Beaver's Tails

First off, this recipe is not called Beaver's Tails, it's called something else that I'm certain has never been spelled before. I had to find the name of a similar breakfast food to use, so just know that even though I'm calling this Beaver's Tails, this is an old family recipe called something else. Now that I've got that out of the way, I can tell you that this is a recipe that my great-grandmother used to make on the farm. She'd get up at four in the morning and start the dough, only an hour before everyone else would get up to milk the cows and go about their chores. Once the dough was ready, she'd make the Beaver's Tails, and everyone would eat. However, because she was feeding 23 (ish) people, and you never knew how much to make, she'd have a lot of leftover balls of dough. With the leftovers, she'd make rolls, which meant that from sunup to sundown she'd be in the kitchen making all sorts of bread.
*Yes, this is the same great-grandmother that threw 5 whole chickens, fresh from the coop, into the pot to make chicken soup.
**When someone asks you, "Do you know how to punch the dough?", that does not mean go Muhammad Ali style and knock out

the dough in five punches. I did not realize this soon enough. Now I am sharing my wisdom. Learn from my mistakes, or you too will hear the horrified look in your mother's eyes.

                                               


    Sometimes it's nice to have a small helper.

                                                                           


















Ingredients:
2 packages active dry yeast
2 1/2 cups warm water (105-115 degrees Fahrenheit)

1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon melted butter


7 cups flour
Enough oil to be an inch thick in the frying pan

Maple syrup, cinnamon sugar, or any other pancake/French Toast/doughnut toppings

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in warm water in warmed bowl. Add salt, butter, and flour. Attach bowl and dough hook to mixer. Mix until well blended, about 1 minute. Knead for 2 minutes. Dough will be sticky.
Place in a greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down and divide in half. Separate into balls about 3 inches in diameter onto
sprayed cookie sheets. Should make about balls. Cover, let rise in warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Heat oil over high heat. Pull dough until flat, and place 2-3 in hot oil at a time. When edges are brown, flip. Only needs a couple of seconds on each side. Put on baking sheet covered with paper towel. Have any toppings ready to go. Best hot.

We had to invite family over to enjoy it with us.
And who can resist that cute face???




~Q.Q.