Picarones: Peruvian Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato Donuts

"This form of the buñuelo was created by African slaves in Lima during the Vice Royalty of Peru, who adapted the dough to include squash and, sometimes, sweet potato. They are a common street snack around Peru and are drizzled in miel de chancaca, a syrup made from unrefined cane sugar."

- Chef Virgilio Martínez

We are back in the kitchen to share another exciting recipe and we think you're going to love it. Today, we're making picarones - Peruvian butternut squash and sweet potato donuts.

This recipe gives off autumn vibes that make you want to grow your own squash and sweet potatoes (if you don't already), and get a real knife.

We like it so much, we made you a free printable recipe with pictures to try at home. You can find it at the bottom.

If you like this recipe, you're going to love southern benne seed biscuits, Yukon Gold & sweet potato gratin, homemade cinnamon pound cake, iced animal crackers, Bahian stew, Argentine pizza, and salsa in the molcajete.

Learn more about cooking with kids.

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This delicious picarones recipe comes from The Latin American Cookbook by Chef Virgilio Martínez and we're excited to be able to share it with you today.

What are Picarones?

As discussed in The Latin American Cookbook, picarones are a form of buñuelos, round or disc-shaped fritters originally introduced by the Spanish, that were modified by African slaves to include squash and on occasion sweet potato. They are drizzled in a delicious syrup known as miel de chancaca.

What is Miel de Chancaca?

Chef Virgilio Martínez states in The Latin American Cookbook:

"Similar to panela, chancaca often refers to the sweet syrup made from the unrefined cane sugar in Peru, Chile, and Bolivia. It is often flavored with cinnamon and orange peels and is most often drizzled over fried sweets like picarones or sopaipillas."

- Chef Virgilio Martínez

Like this recipe? Try these deep-fried drop biscuits.

Picarones: Peruvian Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato Donuts

Ingredients

• Sweet Potato
• Butternut Squash
• Anise Seeds
• Yeast
• Stevia
• Water
• All-Purpose Einkorn Flour
• Oil
• Swerve Brown Sugar Replacement, Panela Sugar, or Light Muscovado
• Cinnamon
• Orange
• Plantain
• Cloves
• Fig Leaf

1. Prep the Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato for Kids

Wash your hands with soap and water.

Depending on the child, you may want to assist with peeling and cutting the butternut squash and sweet potato prior to giving them to your child to cut into cubes.

The butternut squash in particular requires some strength to cut through. You can see I hacked at it a little before deciding to go get a real knife to finish the job.

Afterward, I removed the seeds from the squash, weighed the squash and sweet potato, and then each child took some of the pieces over to their cutting boards.

You can also buy the squash cubed if you prefer.

2. Cut the Squash and Sweet Potato into Cubes

Kids can also explore the cookbook as they finish up the prep work.

3. Transfer the Squash & Sweet Potato Cubes to the Dutch Oven

Add water to the dutch oven or large pot. Transfer the squash and sweet potato cubes to the dutch oven. Add the anise seeds to the pot using a measuring spoon.

4. Cook for 15-20 Minutes

Turn the stove on medium heat. Cover the pot and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until the squash and sweet potato are tender.

While the squash and potato are cooking you can move on to the next step.

5. Weigh the Yeast Using a Kitchen Scale

Kids can practice using the tare button to zero the scale and then weigh the yeast needed for the picarones.

6. Add Stevia to the Bowl with Yeast

Add water to the bowl and mix with a spoon. Let it sit for 15 minutes.

7. Make Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Purée

Turn off the stove. Pour the contents of the large pot into a colander. You may need to assist with this step.

You can save the water for your garden or compost and if you are using a blender for this recipe you will save some water for making the purée.

Use your blender or a potato masher to create a purée out of the cooked butternut squash and sweet potato cubes.

If you use a blender as we did, add a small amount of water to the blender.

Afterward, transfer the purée to a large bowl.

The butternut squash and sweet potato flavored with anise seeds are delicious enough to eat on their own. Knowing that we're going to transform them into picarones is pretty exciting at this point.

8. Add the Yeast Mixture to the Purée

Mix everything together with a spoon.

9. Add the Flour and Knead

Slowly add the flour to the bowl while kneading by hand. Knead the dough for about 15 minutes or until it is soft and uniform.

The kids love working with dough. They noted that this is a sticky dough compared to the dough formed when making thumbprint cookies, kolach, bannocks, and cabbage pie.

They each came up with their own hypothesis about how they thought the stickiness of the dough would affect the final outcome of the recipe.

Looking for a free printable resource for exploring the scientific method with kids? My friend Julie over at Nature Inspired Learning has free printable scientific method worksheets for you to download and use with your science activities. Head on over to download your free printable pack.

10. Let the Dough Rest for 2 Hours

Wash your hands. Cover the dough with a towel and place in a warm spot in your kitchen. Let it rest for 2 hours.

11. Make the Miel de Chancaca

While the dough is doing its thing, you can make the delicious miel de chancaca that will be drizzled on top of these delicious picarones.

Peel the plantain. Cut the orange in half and slice the plantain as desired.

Place the brown sugar or panela sugar along with the cinnamon, orange halves, plantain, and cloves in a pan. If you have a fig leaf, add that as well.

Add water until the ingredients are submerged and cook uncovered over medium heat for around 35 minutes, or until it is thick.

Wondering what to do with your orange peel? This recipe for candied lemon peel from Anja at Our Gabled Home tastes great with orange peels and can be adapted to work with the peels from this picarones recipe.

You can also add peels to your compost.

For savory use of cinnamon and oranges, try braised oxtails.

12. Strain the Miel de Chancaca and Keep Warm

Turn off the stove. Once the miel de chancaca is warm, you can strain it into a reusable container. There will be plenty of this delicious syrup to save for your leftover picarones.

Once your dough is done resting, it will look similar to this.

13. Add the Oil to a Dutch Oven or Large Pot

Make sure the pot is no more than two-thirds full. Heat the pot over high heat until the temperature reaches 375 degrees Fahrenheit or 190 degrees Celsius.

You can use the kitchen thermometer to show kids how the temperature increases with time and model how to avoid touching or splashing the oil while deep-frying the picarones.

14. Form Rings with the Dough and Place Them in the Pot

Fry the picarones in batches for 5 minutes. Spoon oil on top of them while they are cooking to ensure that they cook evenly.

You can add a bit of extra flour if needed to assist with the shaping of the dough.

15. Remove them from the Oil With a Fine Mesh Strainer or Tongs

Place the picarones on a towel to absorb the excess oil.

The kids say the first batch came out looking like an alphabet. We had a good time talking about the letters, symbols, and secret messages we could make with the dough.

As you can see, our shaping skills are improving with each batch.

These picarones are staying together nicely while they cook. There aren't any clumps of dough in the oil that need to be removed between batches, which is nice.

Warm and chewy on the inside with some nice texture on the outside.

16. Serve Picarones Hot with Miel de Chancaca Drizzled on Top

Don't forget to turn off the stove. We ended up with 12 large picarones.

These are large enough to cut in half and share or eat as leftovers with the extra miel de chancaca.

Summary for Picarones: Peruvian Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato Donuts

These picarones are the perfect dessert to enjoy in autumn as you learn about fall harvest activities and explore Latin American cuisine.

I am so delighted that our first experience making donuts together includes these Peruvian butternut squash and sweet potato donuts. We've been eyeing this recipe for awhile.

The texture and taste of the squash and sweet potato donut along with the sweet flavor of the miel de chancaca made for such a satisfying ending to our Latin American cooking experience.

If you're looking for a Peruvian snack or dessert recipe that taps into the joy of a fall harvest, then picarones are for you.

Free Picarones Recipe for Pre-Readers and Up

Grab your free printable recipe cards above. Kids can gather ingredients using the ingredient list, gather their equipment with the tools list, and prepare the meal using the step-by-step recipe cards, with assistance as needed.

The cards are easy to use, include pictures, and encourage confidence and independence in the kitchen. They also make an excellent addition to your Montessori continent box for South America.