Carrot Corn Dogs

INGREDIENTS:

The carrots

• 6 - 8 peeled carrots, cut in half. 
• 1/4 cup coconut aminos
• 1 table spoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon of the following: garlic powder, salt, mustard powder, smoked paprika, turmeric
• 3 teaspoons liquid smoke
• tablespoon grape seed oil
• 2 tablespoons water

The batter

• 1 to 1 1/2  cups dairy free milk
• 2 flax eggs
• 1/3 cup pickle juice
• 3 tablespoons dijon or regular mustard 
• 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup corn meal
• 1 tablespoon sugar 
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

The carrots

1. Boil peeled carrots until they are soft enough to pierce with a fork, but be careful not to overcook them.
2. Remove from water and cool.
3. Mix the rest of the ingredIents in a large zip lock bag, then add the cooled carrots. 
4. Let the carrot marinate in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours. I normally prepare the carrots in the morning and they are ready by dinner. The longer they marinate, the more flavorful they will be. 

The batter

1. Mix the wet ingredients together in a small bowl starting with one cup of milk.
2. Whisk dry ingredients together in a larger bowl.
3. Add wet ingredients into the dry and mix well. If the mixture seems too thick, then add a little more milk. You the batter to be thick, but thin enough to easily dip the carrots into.
4. Once  the batter is all mixed up, pour some into a mason jar, tall glass, or pyrex measuring cup. This makes dipping the carrots easier than if you try dipping them in the bowl.
5. Remove carrots from marinade and poke a popsicle stick into the fattest end of the carrot. It helps if you first piece the end with a sharp knife. 
6. In a medium sauce pan, deep skillet, or deep frier, heat enough oil to fully cover the corn dogs. I suggest frying with grape seed oil or peanut oil. 
7. Once the oil is nice and hot, reduce the temp to medium/low.
8. Dip carrots in batter making sure they are completely covered. I dip each one right before it goes into the oil.
9. Add 1 to 2 corn dogs to the oil at a time. If you do more than one at a time they may stick together depending on the size of your pot or pan. 
10. Fry each corn dog for a few minutes, using tongs to grasp the popsicle stick so you can turn them several times until they begin to get golden brown all over (unless you are using a deep frier with a basket, in which case just fry until they are golden brown). Then place finished corn dogs on a cooling rack while you finish frying the rest.

I normally have some batter left over. I like to use the leftovers to make a batch of onion rings. Just slice a large yellow onion and dip rings in remaining batter. Fry in the already hot corn dog oil until golden brown.