Calas

Calas are dumplings composed primarily of cooked rice, yeast, sugar, eggs, and flour; the resulting batter is deep-fried. It is traditionally a breakfast dish, served with coffee or cafe au lait, and has a mention in most Creole cuisine cookbooks. Calas are also referred to as Creole rice fritters or rice doughnuts. The origin of calas is most often credited to slaves who came from rice-growing regions of Africa. A 1653 French recipe, beignets de riz, lends support to a French origin as well. The name "calas" is said to have come from the Nupe word kara ("fried cake"). According to The Dictionary of American Food & Drink, the word calas was first printed in 1880. Creole street vendors, typically women,[b] sold the fresh hot calas in New Orleans' French Quarter, with the cry, "Bel calas tout chauds!" (Creole for "Beautiful calas, still hot"). These vendors, called "calas women", would sell their pastries in the early morning from covered baskets or bowls carried upon their heads.

Source: Wikipedia