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Homemade Elephant Ears Recipe is the crispy, cinnamon-sugar-dusted state fair pastry that disappears off the platter every time Maddie smells them frying. A simple yeast-free dough rolled paper thin and shallow-fried in peanut oil makes these golden, craggy, and shatteringly crisp in 19 minutes start to finish. If you love our other no-fuss snack recipes, these fair pastries are your next obsession.
Eight pantry ingredients, one Dutch oven of hot oil, and zero proofing time make this the easiest fair pastry you can pull off at home.
Elephant Ears Recipe Quick Look
- 🕐 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🍴 Cook Time: 4 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 19 minutes
- 🍽 Serving: 8 elephant ears
- ⚡ Calories: 280kcal each
- 🌶 Flavor Profile: Sweet, buttery, cinnamon-sugar-dusted with shatteringly crisp craggy edges and a tender chewy center (state fair pastry, fair food classic at home).
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our no-fuss party snacks.
Quick Answer
An elephant ear is a crispy, cinnamon-sugar-dusted fried pastry shaped to look like the wide, flat ear of an elephant. It’s a staple at state fairs, carnivals, and amusement parks, made from a simple yeast-free dough rolled paper thin and shallow-fried in hot oil until golden and craggy. Some regions call them palmiers (in puff pastry form) or beaver tails (in the Canadian style), but the American state-fair version is just flour, milk, butter, and cinnamon sugar.
Jump to:
- Elephant Ears Recipe Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Elephant Ears Recipe
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Elephant Ears Recipe FAQs
- Other Recommended Copycat Recipes
- Homemade Elephant Ears Recipe
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Skipping yeast saves an hour. Baking powder gives the dough lift, so there is no proofing window – mix to fry in under 20 minutes total.
- Warm milk activates the gluten gently. 110F milk relaxes the flour so the dough rolls paper-thin without springing back, which is exactly what you want for crispy ears.
- Peanut oil at 350F nails the texture. High smoke point + neutral flavor means golden crisp exteriors and tender insides in 1-2 minutes per side – any higher and they burn before they puff.
- Cinnamon sugar goes on while warm. The residual heat melts the sugar slightly so it locks onto every craggy edge instead of falling off.
- Roll thin, fry fast. 1/8-inch thickness or thinner is non-negotiable – thicker and you get doughnuts, not elephant ears.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- State fair taste at home. Crispy, craggy, cinnamon-sugar-dusted – identical to the boardwalk version without the line.
- 19 minutes, no yeast. Baking powder dough means no proofing, no waiting, no schedule planning.
- Pantry ingredients. Flour, milk, butter, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt – everything is already in your kitchen.
- Kid-friendly. Rolling out the dough is the perfect job for little hands – Maddie loves making the circles.
- Customizable. Drizzle with chocolate, add Nutella, dust with powdered sugar, top with apple pie filling – one base, infinite spins.
Key Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: 3 1/4 cups. The dough backbone. Bleached or unbleached – either works fine.
- Whole milk: 1 1/2 cups warmed to 110F. Warm milk relaxes the gluten so the dough rolls thin without springing back.
- Granulated sugar: 5 tablespoons total – 1 tablespoon in the dough, 4 tablespoons in the cinnamon-sugar coating.
- Unsalted butter: 2 tablespoons softened and worked into the flour for richness and flake.
- Baking powder: 1 teaspoon. The yeast-free lift that gives the ears their craggy puff.
- Ground cinnamon: 1 tablespoon mixed with the sugar for the iconic coating.
- Peanut oil: for shallow-frying. High smoke point + neutral flavor = golden crisp without burning.
- Fine sea salt: 1 teaspoon to balance the sweetness.
See the recipe card below for exact quantities and the full ingredient list.
Variations and Substitutions
One base recipe, infinite spins. Pick the variation that matches your fair-pastry vibe.
- Apple pie elephant ears: top warm ears with canned apple pie filling and a drizzle of caramel for a fall fair version.
- Nutella + bananas: spread warm ears with Nutella and add sliced bananas for a chocolate-hazelnut twist.
- Powdered sugar dust: skip the cinnamon sugar and dust with powdered sugar + a squeeze of lemon for a French beignet vibe.
- Maple glaze: drizzle warm ears with a thin maple-glaze (maple syrup + powdered sugar) for a breakfast pastry spin.
- Pumpkin spice: swap the cinnamon for 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice for fall festivals.
- Savory version: skip the sugar coating, dust with smoked paprika + garlic powder + Parmesan for a savory snack chip.
How to Make Elephant Ears Recipe
- Warm the milk to 110F in the microwave (15-30 sec intervals).
- Mix the flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and warm milk, stir to a slightly sticky dough.
- Heat 2-3 inches of peanut oil in a Dutch oven or deep skillet to 350F while the dough rests 15 minutes.
- Mix the remaining 4 tablespoons sugar with the cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Dust a clean work surface with flour. Divide the dough into 8 portions, roll each into a thin 1/8-inch circle.
- Place finished circles between sheets of parchment paper until ready to fry.
- Once oil reaches 350F, carefully drop in one elephant ear at a time. Fry 1-2 minutes per side until golden brown.
- Drain on a paper-towel-lined plate, then transfer to a wire rack. Dust generously with cinnamon sugar while still warm. Serve immediately.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
Five small moves that separate state-fair-perfect Homemade Elephant Ears from doughy ones.
- Roll PAPER THIN. 1/8 inch or thinner is the difference between elephant ears and doughnuts. Thicker = chewy puffy bread; thinner = shatteringly crisp.
- Use a thermometer for the oil. 350F exactly – cold oil makes greasy ears, hot oil burns them before they puff. A clip-on candy thermometer is worth $8.
- Fry one at a time. Crowding the oil drops the temperature 30-40F and gives you soggy results. Patience pays.
- Cinnamon sugar goes on WARM. The residual heat melts the sugar onto every craggy edge. Wait until cool and it falls off.
- Eat them fresh. Elephant ears are best within 30 minutes of frying – they lose their crisp quickly. Make them as a serve-now treat, not a meal-prep.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Serve straight from the wire rack while still warm – a generous dust of cinnamon sugar is all they need.
- Drizzle with melted chocolate, caramel, or maple syrup for a state-fair-meets-dessert moment.
- Pair with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of strawberry sauce for the boardwalk a-la-mode treatment.
- Pack a few squares of our Sweet Chex Mix alongside for a full fair-snack platter.
- Set up a topping bar with Nutella, sliced bananas, strawberry sauce, and whipped cream for a DIY dessert party.
Make these Homemade Elephant Ears this weekend – 19 minutes start to finish, no yeast, no waiting. Tag us on Instagram @ThisSillyGirlsKitchen when you do; we love seeing your cinnamon-sugar-dusted state-fair stacks.
Elephant Ears Recipe FAQs
Elephant ears are American state fair pastries – round, thin, cinnamon-sugar dusted, made from a yeast-free baking powder dough. Beaver tails are the Canadian cousin – oval-shaped, also fried but typically yeasted, and topped with various sweet toppings beyond just cinnamon sugar. Same crispy spirit, different shape and dough.
Not really – they are best eaten within 30 minutes of frying. They lose their signature crisp quickly. You CAN roll out and shape the dough circles ahead, layer between parchment, and refrigerate up to 6 hours. Fry just before serving.
Three culprits: oil temperature too low (must be 350F exactly, use a thermometer), frying too many at once (drops the oil temp), or rolling the dough too thick (1/8 inch maximum). Hot oil + one at a time + paper thin = shatteringly crisp.
You can – puff pastry elephant ears are called palmiers and have a different texture (layered and flaky instead of craggy and crisp). For the true state fair experience, this baking-powder dough recipe is closer to the real deal.
Peanut oil is ideal – high smoke point (450F), neutral flavor, and clean crisp results. Vegetable, canola, or refined sunflower oil also work. Avoid olive oil (smoke point too low) and animal fats (flavor too strong).
If you have leftovers (rare), store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days. They will soften – to re-crisp, pop them in a 350F oven for 2-3 minutes, then re-dust with fresh cinnamon sugar.
Other Recommended Copycat Recipes
If you made these Homemade Elephant Ears, leave a star rating and a comment below. We love hearing how your family liked them. Tag us on Instagram @ThisSillyGirlsKitchen so we can see your cinnamon-sugar-dusted stacks.
Need a quick frozen-to-table win? Try our Air Fryer Frozen Corn Dogs – 10 minutes at 370F, no thawing, crispy golden coating with juicy center.
Need a quick family dinner? Try our The Best Sheet Pan Pizza Recipe – homemade fennel-garlic Italian sausage on a crispy-edged Sicilian-style crust. 12 squares in 35 minutes.
Want a soft holiday cookie that stays pillowy for days? Try our Easy Cream Cheese Cookies Recipe (Cinnamon Sugar) – 24 cookies, 7 pantry ingredients, melt-in-your-mouth texture.
Need a classic cookie for the tray? Try our Soft Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (Old Fashioned), 30 chewy brown sugar cookies with rolled oats and plump raisins in 40 minutes.
Homemade Elephant Ears Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 5 tablespoons granulated sugar divided
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- peanut oil for frying
Instructions
- Place the milk in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 15-30 second intervals until warmed, 110°F. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and slowly stream in the milk while stirring until a slightly sticky dough forms. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for 10 minutes.1 ½ cups whole milk
- While the dough is resting, start heating 2-3 inches of oil in a large skillet with deep sides or a dutch oven.1 ½ cups whole milk
- Stir together the remaining 4 tablespoons of sugar and the cinnamon in a small bowl, set aside.1 ½ cups whole milk
- Dust a clean work surface with flour. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions, and roll the dough in the flour so it is lightly coated. Roll it out into a rough ¼ inch thick circle. Repeat with the remaining dough balls.
- Place the finished rolled-out circles between parchment paper until ready to fry.
- Once the oil reaches 350°F, carefully place one elephant ear at a time into the hot oil. Fry for 1-2 minutes on each side until lightly golden brown.
- Place the elephant ear on a paper-towel-lined plate to absorb any excess oil. Place on a wire rack over a sheet tray. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on top immediately and repeat with the remaining elephant ears.
Video
Notes
- You can use any oil for frying, peanut is our favorite.
- Easily double this recipe to serve more to guests or save for later.
- Other toppings can be used, see above for some ideas.
- You can use frozen bread dough for this recipe instead of making your own, again see above on how to do that.
- Make sure that you let them drain on a paper towel-lined plate before coating.
- They can be frozen, see above on how to freeze.
Nutrition
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