Valentine's Day Buñuelos

Buñuelos are a tradition in our family. Our mom remembers how her grandmother chacha (our great grandma) would make them for the family on New Years, but never before. She would wait all year for a chance to begin the new one with a flaky bite. Here's a photograph of abuela chacha, sans Buñuelo.

Once our grandma started making them for my mom, and later us, she relaxed the rules a little bit and let the kids partake in "test batches" on special occasions. We would gather round the pan and watch as the dough crisped up in the oil. 

The Buñuelo became an object of lore among us kids, as the communal aspect of our anticipation and eventual enjoyment lingered well beyond the day of the test. The taste of cinnamon will always remind me of the joy we shared over them.

When we went grain-free, they became one of the food memories that we missed the most as a family. Fortunately, we quickly discovered that Vero's almond flour tortillas worked really well as a substitute for the traditional Buñuelo dough. Here's a quick and fun recipe to share the love with your Valentine!