I can’t think of a better way to end Taco Night than with fresh churros. Fried dough tossed in a generous coating of cinnamon and sugar…come on now! Churros are often paired with a dipping sauce, like chocolate or caramel; for these, I’m serving my churros with a homemade dulce de leche sauce. The churros are made using a French technique for a batter called pate-a-choux. Fresh cinnamon-sugar churros with a sweet-salty sauce are a delightful way to finish a beautiful meal.

A lovely French-style dough batter is what makes the churros so particularly good. A pate-a-choux is ideal for this purpose. A choux (sounds like “shoe”) is made with just four ingredients: flour, butter, water, and eggs. These come together to create a bit of a sticky dough that is then transferred into a piping bag. I pipe the churros onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. The churros will spend a few minutes in the freezer, allowing the dough to set and maintain its shape.

Cinnamon and sugar are like peas and carrots; they just naturally go together. Cinnamon brings a spicy warmth while sugar adds the obvious sweetness. The cinnamon and sugar will cling to the freshly fried churros, still warm from the hot oil. Crispy fried dough and that savory-sweet granular sugar make for a delightful combination of texture and flavor, and the dough itself is so light, even after frying, that they don’t feel heavy or greasy, they’re practically perfect.

Next, the caramel sauce. While a simple shortcut is to buy a premade sauce, making your own is not only delicious but also renders a feeling of culinary accomplishment. Sugar and water, heavy cream, butter, and salt are simple, readily accessible ingredients and are gradually transformed into this drool-worthy dipping sauce. It’s luxurious, sweet, salty, and the best way to serve up a fresh batch of churros. I love the spiced-salty-sweet trifecta – cinnamon, sugar, and salted caramel are in perfect harmony.

Need I say more? Taco night’s curtain call is with this show-stealing dessert, all homemade and delicious. If you’re lucky, you’ll have some extra sauce that can be stored in an airtight container and refrigerated…that is IF you’re lucky enough to have any left after dipping every bite of the churro into this golden deliciousness!

Fresh Churros with Dulce de Leche Sauce are from the Mexican Taco Night menu at Table for 12. The menu also includes Carne Asada Tacos, Spanish Rice and Spiced Black Beans, and a Crunchy Winter Street Corn Salad.