Koeksister balls Heavenly bites of a traditional favourite. Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 25 minutes Skill level: medium Makes about 45 Syrup 5 x 250 ml (1 kg) sugar 500 ml water 2 ml cream of tartar 2 ml salt 1 small piece fresh root ginger, peeled 1 small piece lemon peel 45 ml fresh lemon juice Dough 625 ml (350 g) Snowflake cake wheat flour 15 ml Snowflake baking powder 3 ml salt 60 g butter or margarine 1 extra-large egg 125 ml water 15 ml fresh lemon juice cooking oil for deep-frying 1. Syrup: Combine all ingredients in a heavy-based saucepan.
Heat and stir until sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Cool. Refrigerate, preferably overnight. 2. Dough: Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Rub in butter with fingertips until mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 3. Whisk egg, water and lemon juice together. Add to flour mixture, cut in with a knife and knead lightly to a soft dough. 4. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. 5. Roll dough into heaped teaspoon-size balls. Heat oil in a small, heavy-based saucepan. Deep-fry balls in hot oil, turning constantly, until golden brown. Remove from oil with a slotted spoon and immediately drop into ice-cold syrup. Place on wire racks. Refrigerate for a few days before serving. Variation Cut the dough into 6 x 9 cm strips and plait to make traditional koeksisters. Makes about 30. Dirt Bombs
Like a cinnamon-sugar doughnut in muffin form. You ve been warned. Ingredients Servings: Makes 12 muffins Nonstick vegetable oil spray 2¼ cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon kosher salt ½ ½ ¾ 1 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature cup sugar large egg cup whole milk topping and assembly ½ cup sugar 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, melted Recipe Tips Preparation muffins Preheat oven to 375. Coat a standard 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt,
and nutmeg in a medium bowl; set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in egg. With mixer on low speed, add dry ingredients in 3 additions alternating with milk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Divide batter among muffin cups and bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 30 35 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes in pan, then transfer to a wire rack. topping and assembly Mix sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Working one at a time, dip tops of muffins in melted butter, then cinnamon sugar. DO AHEAD: Muffins can be made 6 hours ahead. Keep tightly wrapped at room temperature. Nutella Brownies Nutella 3 ingredients chocolate brownies
1 cup Nutella 2 eggs 1cup flour Optional 1/4 cup chocolate chips or chopped walnuts Preheat the oven to 180*C. In a small bowl mix Nutella and eggs. Add flour and whisk until blended. Spoon butter into muffin pan and sprinkle with choc chips or nuts. Bake 8 to 12 minutes or till the tops have settled and cracked around the edges. Makes 12 regular muffins. Ystervarkies (Lamingtons) Bestanddele Koek 250 ml (1 k) meel 5 ml (1 t) bakpoeier knippie sout 3 eiers, geskei 125 ml (½ k) suiker 125 g botter, gesmelt 5 ml (1 t) vanielje-ekstrak
Versiersel (bruin sjokoladestroop) 500 ml suiker 140 ml kakao 250 ml water 10 ml botter Instruksies Vir die fyngebak-uitdaging moes die Koekedore ystervarkies maak wat in drie verskillende versiersels gedoop is: n bruin sjokoladestroop, sneeuvlokkie-stroop (wit) en n aarbeiwitsjokolade-stroop(pienk). Dié resep is vir ystervarkies wat in bruin sjokoladestroop bedek is die mees tradisionele opdiening. (Lewer 18 ystervarkies) Koek Voorverhit die oond tot 180 C. Smeer n broodpan. Meng die meel, bakpoeier en sout in n mengbak. Klits die eierwitte en suiker saam in n aparte mengbak tot sagte pieke vorm. Vou die botter, eiergeel en vanielje-ekstrak in tot gemeng. Voeg dit by die meelmengsel en vou in tot glad. Giet die beslag in die bereide bakpan en bak vir 30 minute of tot n tandestokkie skoon uit die koek kom. Keer uit op n draadrak en laat heeltemal afkoel. Versiersel (bruin sjokoladestroop) Kook die bestanddele saam om stroop te vorm. Klapper om die ystervarkies in te rol. Aanmekaarsit van die ystervarkies Sny die koek in blokkies om 18 ystervarkies te maak. Doop die blokkies in die stroop en rol dan in klapper.
Salty Nutella Cigars Serves: 24 Ingredients 1½ cups Nutella spread 1 (8 ounce) package phyllo dough, thawed according to package directions ¾ cup butter, melted optional ~ flaked sea salt Instructions 1. Preheat the oven to 400 F/200 C 2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. 3. Scoop Nutella into a large piping bag, or gallon sized zip-top bag and snip the corner off. 4. Unwrap thawed phyllo dough and cover it with a slightly moist clean kitchen towel. Phyllo dries out very quickly, so keeping it covered while you re working is essential. 5. Place one sheet of phyllo dough on your work surface carefully. Using a pastry brush, brush melted butter on one half of the phyllo and fold the other half on top. The butter works like a glue and holds the sides together. Pipe a strip of Nutella down one side of the dough, leaving ½ inch at the top and the bottom. Fold
6. 7. 8. 9. the Nutella up at the ends (so it doesn t squeeze out) and then tightly roll the phyllo into a tube. Lightly brush the end with butter so the end stays sealed. Place the cigar onto the baking sheet and lightly brush with a little more butter. Repeat this process with all the sheets of phyllo. Bake the cigars for 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt flakes if desired. Apple Roses Ingredients: to make 6 roses 1 frozen puff pastry sheet, thawed 2 red organic apples (I used red delicious) half lemon, juice 1 tablespoon of flour, to sprinkle the counter 3 tablespoons of apricot preserve cinnamon (optional) powder sugar for decorating (optional) Preparation time: about 20 minutes to prepare, plus 45 minutes to bake
Directions: 1. Thaw the puff pastry if you haven t done so yet. It should take about 20-30 minutes. 2. Prepare a bowl with some water and the lemon juice. Cut the apples in half, remove the core and cut the apples in paper thin slices, as shown in my picture. Leave the peel so it will give the red color to your roses. Right away, place the sliced apples in the bowl with lemon and water, so that they won t change color. 3. Microwave the apples in the bowl, for about 3 minutes, to make them slightly softer. If you prefer, you can also simmer the apple slices in the water in a small pan (on the stove).
4. Unwrap the puff pastry over a clean and lightly floured counter. Using a rolling pin stretch the dough a little, trying to keep it in a rectangular shape. Cut the dough in 6 strips. These are about 2 in x 9 in (5 cm x 22 cm). 5. In a bowl, place three tablespoons of apricot preserve with two tablespoons of water. Microwave for about one minute, so that the preserve will be easier to spread. Spread the preserve on the dough.
6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Drain the apples. 7. Place the apples on the dough, as shown in my picture. Sprinkle with cinnamon if you d like. 8. Fold up the bottom part of the dough.
9. Carefully roll, seal the edge, and place in a silicone muffin cup. No need to grease the muffin mold if it s silicone. Otherwise, make sure to grease it.
10. Do the same for all 6 roses. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 40-45 minutes, until fully cooked. NOTE: make sure the pastry is fully cooked on the inside before removing the roses from the oven! If after 30 minutes the apples on top look fully cooked, move the pan to a lower rack in the oven, and wait for 10-15 more minutes to avoid undercooking the puff pastry. Sprinkle with powder sugar and enjoy!
True Belgian Waffles Recipe TOTAL TIME: Prep/Total Time: 20 min. YIELD:5 servings Ingredients 2 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup sugar 3-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 2 eggs, separated 1-1/2 cups milk 1 cup butter, melted 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Sliced fresh strawberries or syrup Directions 1. In a bowl, combine flour, sugar and baking powder. In another bowl, lightly beat egg yolks. Add milk, butter and vanilla; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until combined. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form; fold into batter. 2. Bake in a preheated waffle iron according to
manufacturer s directions until golden brown. Serve with strawberries or syrup. Yield: 10 waffles (about 4-1/2 inches). CHOCOLATE ÉCLAIRS Makes about 24 small éclairs or 12 large éclairs Ingredients: For the choux pastry: 1 cup cold water ½ tsp caster sugar 85g unsalted butter Pinch salt 1 cup cake flour 4 medium eggs, beaten For the cream filling: 300 ml fresh cream 1 tbsp icing sugar To complete: 175g cooking chocolate, broken into pieces
Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 200C. 2. To make the pastry, place the butter, water, salt and sugar into a large saucepan. 3. Place over a low heat to melt the butter. Increase the heat and pour in the flour in one go. 4. Remove from the heat and quickly beat the mixture vigorously until a smooth paste is formed, stirring continuously to dry out the paste. 5. Once the paste curls away from the side of the pan, transfer the mixture into a large bowl and leave to cool for 10-15 minutes. 6. Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, stirring vigorously until the paste is smooth and glossy. 7. Continue adding the egg until you have a soft dropping consistency. The mixture will be shiny and smooth. 8. Lightly oil a large baking tray or line the tray with greaseproof paper. Dip a teaspoon into some warm water and spoon out a teaspoon of the éclair mixture onto the baking tray. Leave enough space in between for the éclairs to expand. 9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown, if too pale they will become soggy when cool. 10. Remove from the oven and prick the base of each éclair. Place onto the baking tray with the hole facing upwards and return to the oven for 5 minutes. The warm air from the oven helps to dry the middle of the éclairs. 11. Prepare the filling: lightly whip the cream and icing sugar until soft peaks form. Do not over whip. When the éclairs are cold, cut the éclairs in half and spoon in the cream with a teaspoon. 12. Melt the chocolate over a pan of boiling water. Spoon the melted chocolate over the éclairs.
Classic Glazed Doughnuts Ingredients 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon active dry yeast 1 cup whole milk, heated to 110 F 2 to 2 1/2 cups (320 to 400 grams) bread flour 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 3 large egg yolks 2 tablespoons (30 grams) superfine sugar 1/2 teaspoon table salt 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick or 2 ounces) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature and cut into cubes Vegetable oil for frying Basic Sugar Glaze Chocolate Glaze Special equipment: Stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and dough hook, 2 large baking sheets, nonterry dish towel, 3-inch-diameter doughnut cutter with 1-inch-diameter hole (or cookie cutters), wire cooling rack, deep-fry thermometer Preparation In a medium bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of the yeast with 3/4 cup of the warm milk and stir to dissolve the yeast. Add 3/4
cup of the flour and stir to create a smooth paste. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the flour mixture rest in a warm place for 30 minutes. Once 30 minutes have passed, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the remaining 1 teaspoon yeast with the remaining 1/4 cup milk (the milk will be room temperature at this point). Add the rested flour mixture along with the vanilla and egg yolks and mix on low until the ingredients are incorporated and the dough is smooth, about 30 seconds. Turn off the mixer and add 1 cup of flour, along with the sugar and salt. Mix on medium until the dough starts to come together, about 30 seconds. Add the butter and mix on medium until it s incorporated, about 30 seconds. Remove the paddle attachment from the mixer, and switch to the dough hook. Start adding the remaining flour, 1/4 cup at a time (turning the mixer off for each addition) and knead the dough on medium until it completely pulls away from the side of the bowl and is smooth and not too sticky, about 1 minute. The dough will be very soft and moist but not so sticky that you can t roll it out. (For this step, you may only need to use as little as 1/4 cup flour, so there may be flour leftover.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in a warm place for 30 minutes. Once 30 minutes have passed, gently press down on the dough to remove any gas bubbles then chill, covered, for at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours. When ready to roll out the dough, line a baking sheet with a lightly floured non-terry towel. Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the dough to a 1/2-inch thickness. Using doughnut or cookie cutters, cut out 3-inch-diameter rounds with 1-inchdiameter holes. (For filled doughnuts, don t cut out the holes.) Arrange the doughnuts on the prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 1 inch between doughnuts. Cover the doughnuts
loosely with plastic wrap and let them proof in a warm place until almost doubled in size, 30 to 40 minutes. Check to see if the doughnuts are ready every 5 to 10 minutes. To test, use a fingertip to lightly touch one of the doughnuts. If the dough springs back immediately, it needs more time; if it springs back slowly, it s ready; and if the dough doesn t spring back at all, it s over-proofed. You can punch down and reroll over-proofed dough once. While the doughnuts are proofing, line a baking sheet with 2 layers of paper towels and place a wire rack on top of the towels. In a heavy-bottomed large pot or deep fryer, heat at least 2 inches of oil until a deep-fry thermometer registers 360 F. Working in batches, use a slotted metal spoon or spatula to carefully place the doughnuts in the hot oil. Fry, flipping once, until light golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer as done to the wire rack and return the oil to 360 F between batches. Let the doughnuts cool slightly before glazing Apple fritters
Just 15 minutes and you are done, i serve it with Cinnamon sugar or home-made caramel sauce or just a sprinkle of icing sugar. 1 heaping cup all purpose flour 1/3 cup sugar 1 tsp. baking powder dash salt 1 2 tsp. cinnamon (depending on how much you love cinnamon) 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 1/2 tsp. vanilla 1 T. butter, melted 1 egg 1/3 cup milk + plus more if needed 1 1 1/2 cups chopped apple, your favourite kind for eating, peanut sized or smaller oil for frying milk and powdered sugar glaze for dipping or just powdered sugar for dusting (About 1 cup Icing sugar + 1 T. milk or more) Mix all dry ingredients together, slowly add the wet ingredients minus the apple. Carefully mix until well combined but not overly beat,gently fold in apple pieces. The batter should be the consistency of a light cake mix. Once the oil is ready (when a test drop of dough floats to the top of the oil, a drop of water sizzles, or a piece of white bread browns in 60 seconds) then using a cookie scooper or soup spoon, place a 4-5 balls of dough into the oil. Be careful not to overcrowd and watch carefully for the underside to turn golden brown, then gently flip over and continue frying until done. I cooked mine about 35 seconds per side, but they were the size of golf balls adjust cooking times based on size of fritters and temperature of your oil, ideally around 180 C. It is always a good idea to test one to ensure it comes out like you are expecting.