Where I’m from in the PA burbs, I grew up going to various county fairs, carnivals, you name it. Rides, games, and, most importantly – funnel cake. If you’ve never had funnel cake, it’s basically pancake batter that’s drizzled into scalding hot oil so you end up with a greasy, crispy delight. The funnel cake itself isn’t super sweet, but it’s covered in powdered sugar and is delicious. Now obviously, deep fried pancake batter is going to cost you some WW points and calories. 33 WW points for one funnel cake, to be specific. So I lightened it up and made this Air Fryer Funnel Cake which is just 2 points.
Lightening up funnel cake
There are a few things I did to turn this typically over-the-top dessert into something you can enjoy regularly.
First, I swapped ingredients in the base, based it off my greek yogurt pancake recipe, which yields a higher-protein batter. I also omitted a lot of sugar, since these end up dusted with powdered sugar anyway.
Next, I changed the way they’re cooked. Instead of deep frying with tons of oil, which also means tons of fat, these are air fried. By making these in the air fryer, a little cooking spray is all it takes to yield a crispy, golden brown exterior. You get the same soft, crunchy result, without all of the grease.
Making air fryer funnel cake
Making this treat isn’t complicated, so it’s something you can whip up pretty quickly. Mix your dry ingredients in one bowl, wet in another, and combine them to form a smooth batter. The batter should be a bit thicker than a regular pancake batter, because you’ll want to pipe it onto your air fryer tray. You can use a piping bag or just cut the tip off a plastic bag!
First things first – prep your air fryer tray! I cannot stress this enough. You need a well-prepped tray to ensure you don’t end up with a sticky, goopy mess. I use an oven-style air fryer which has parchment paper liners which made this a breeze. Otherwise, you can just spray your tray liberally with cooking spray to prevent any sticking.
Next, mix your flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in one bowl. Set aside and mix egg, vanilla, greek yogurt, and milk together in another bowl. Combine the two until you have a uniform batter. If for some reason your batter is a bit thin, offset with more flour. Pour batter into a piping bag or plastic bag and cut the tip. Pipe into 12 funnel cakes. I made them into swirls, but you can do something more freeform and similar to a typical funnel cake! Air fry until golden brown. Dust with powdered sugar, add some sprinkles and whipped cream, and ENJOY!
Air Fryer Funnel Cake
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt nonfat
- 1/4 cup milk any milk works
- 1 large whole egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- cooking spray
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Prepare air fryer tray/basket by spraying well, using a parchment paper liner if available. Set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine greek yogurt, milk, egg, vanilla and stir to combine fully.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, salt. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until you have a uniform batter. It should be thicker than a pancake batter and able to be piped and keep its shape. If too runny, add more flour 1 tbsp at a time.
- Pour batter into a piping bag or a plastic sandwich bag with the tip cut off and pipe 12 funnel cakes. You can do any shape you want (I opted for swirls).
- Spray tops of funnel cakes well with cooking spray and air fry at 370F for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Dust with powdered sugar and any additional toppings and enjoy!
Notes
- 2 WW SP/ 1 funnel cake
- 4 WW SP/ 2 funnel cakes
- 2 WW SP/ 1 funnel cake
- 4 WW SP/ 2 funnel cakes
- 2 WW SP/ 1 funnel cake
- 5 WW SP/ 2 funnel cakes
5 thoughts on “Air Fryer Funnel Cake”
I look forward to trying this recipe out
Thanks For Sharing this amazing recipe. My family loved it. I will be sharing this recipe with my friends. Hope the will like it.
How can someone make 12 funnel cakes with this recipe? It barely made 2.
I piped it into 12 little cakes about the size of a cookie, but you can make them larger of course!
It wasn’t terrible, but it tasted more like a pancake with powdered sugar on it, than a funnel cake. It seemed a bit heavy for a funnel cake.