Resting time: 2 to 4 hours
Cooking time: A few minutes per frying batch

What's the difference between the oreillettes made in Provence and those made in Languedoc? It's a subtle difference: here there's no sugar in the dough and a little rum is used as flavoring.

In the past, housewives stretched the dough out on their lap; today they use a rolling pin or even a pasta roller since the dough should be paper thin. This ancient method gave oreillettes the name of "lap doughnuts" that is found in old books.

(1) Depending on the recipe, you may find yeast listed as an ingredient. Some grandmothers have told us that it is yeast that differentiates bugnes from oreillettes. Since oreillettes, unlike bugnes, are flat, they containing no leavening. However, in Languedoc there is a recipe with raised dough that uses half a packet of yeast.

You can store these fritters for 3-4 days in a cloth to prevent them from drying out. 

1.  Melt the butter.
2. Place the flour in a bowl and form a well in the centre. Add all the other ingredients, except the icing sugar and oil. Mix well and knead the dough energetically. The dough should be soft, not sticky and should come away from the sides of the bowl. If it is too dry, add a spoonful or two of cold water. If it is too sticky, add a little flour.
3. Divide the dough into 4 pieces.
4. Let the dough rest at least 2 hours in the fridges between two cloths, or in a bowl covered with plastic wrap so that the dough does not form a crust.
5. Remove the dough from the fridge and let stand for 10 minutes to come to room temperature.
6. On a floured surface, roll each piece of dough out thinly with a rolling pin. You could also use a pasta roller to obtain very thin strips.
7. Cut into triangles or rectangles with a cookie cutter or knife.

Cooking and finishing

1. Heat the oil in a large pan.
2. Place the oreillettes into the hot oil. Brown on both sides, being careful not to overcrowd the pan so that they cook evenly.
3. Once they are nicely golden, remove with a skimmer and place on paper towels.
4. Wait until cool and well drained before dusting with icing sugar on both sides.