Vegan Crunchy Corn Dogs

Lately, my husband has gotten somewhat obsessed with corn dogs. They weren't my favorite thing to make, since I had trouble getting the batter to stick in my first couple of attempts, but he really loved the light crispy cornbread that surrounded (or partially surrounded) the hot dogs. I tried rolling the dogs in flour first, and I tried scoring them first, but I realized that I needed to create a thicker batter to get it to stick to the slick surface of the hot dogs, and I finally figured it out.

These were also rolled in crushed tortilla chips for extra crunch, but are optional. I deep fried them, but they can also be baked- they just won't have as pretty of a shape.

Baked Corn Dogs

I used to stick the skewers in after I fried them, but putting them in before you batter them will save you a lot of mess on your hands! Use bamboo skewers if you can find them (I used the kind typically used for caramel apples).

(Makes 18 appetizer sized corn dogs)

Ingredients:

18 bamboo skewers

1 9-pack vegan hot dogs (I used Ive's)

1 C. crushed tortilla chips (optional)

Dry:

1 C. yellow corn meal

1 C. all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

Wet:

1 C. soy milk

1/4 C. canola oil

1/4 C. brown sugar

1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

Spinz:

Heat oil for deep frying. Make sure the vessel you're using will be big enough to fit the skewered hot dogs. If you're planning to bake them, heat the oven to 400 F degrees and oil a baking sheet.

Whisk together dry ingredients into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry and mix until combined. The batter should be thick like frosting.

Cut the hot dogs in half. Skewer the hot dogs until they are about 3/4 of the way through. Holding the hot dog by the skewer (right side up), spoon the batter to "frost" the hot dog, spinning it around with your fingers. Make sure that there aren't any exposed areas, and the batter does not have to be too thick because it will puff up when cooked. Roll them in the crushed tortilla chips, if you are using them.

If frying, place your first corn dog (skewer and all) into the hot oil (about 350-375 degrees). Go and "frost" your next hot dog. By the time your next one is ready to fry, the prior one should be floating, golden, and ready to remove and drain on a paper towel. Once done with frying, you can keep them warm in an oven at 150 - 200 degrees until ready to serve.

If you're baking, put them quickly onto your baking pan and right into your preheated oven. Bake for about 10-15 minutes, or until golden. They'll look a bit flatter, but still crunchy and tasty. The tortilla chips will help the crunchiness with this method.