An Elephant Ear is a must-have at any Midwest fair. In the South, they prefer a Funnel Cake.
Yes, they are both fried dough covered in sugar but they are two completely different items. An Elephant Ear is a huge piece of dough stretched out to be as big as an elephant’s ear then it’s deep fried and topped with cinnamon sugar.
A Funnell Cake is fried dough as well but you pour the dough into the deep fryer in a circle like pattern with the circles overlapping each other then it’s topped with powdered sugar.
Both have were created in the 19th century and still a fan favorite to this day.
I am from Cleveland, Oh where Elephant Ears were something you always had to get at the fair but when I moved to the south no one had a clue what it was. They are all about the Funnel Cakes down here.
If I had to choose between the two I would definitely take the Elephant Ear.
How to make a Funnel Cake…
How to make an Elephant Ear…