Vetkoek

This is a South African traditional dish that has its roots deep in the country's Dutch heritage. I suspect that it owes much to Dutch oliebolle. It has, however, gained a wider market than just those of Dutch descent in the country (if it were at all possible to draw a ring around that subset these days!). My husband has fond memories of bunking out of his high school hostel to buy what is called a curry bunny, a vetkoek, filled with curried mince.

I use a breadmaker to make these, but you can use pretty much any bread recipe and pick it up at the point where we shape it into balls.

Balls that will fit in your hand

Ingredients

500ml bread flour
7.5ml fast acting dried yeast
5ml salt
2.5ml sugar
250ml lukewarm water
Oil for deep frying

Method

• Pour the water into the breadmaker pan.
• Add the dry ingredients, yeast last of all.
• Set your breadmaker to the 'dough' setting and start.
• With wet hands, shape the dough into balls that fit easily into the palm of your hand.
• Heat the oil in a saucepan - you don't need more than about an inch deep or so, the dough will float on top of the oil anyway. Don't use a high heat, or the vetkoek won't cook through.
• Pack the dough balls fairly closely together in the oil. Fry them for about 5 minutes until they're golden brown (roughly doughnut coloured).
• Flip them over and cook on the other side.
• Take them out of the oil and place them on a cooling rack with paper towel underneath.
• They're best eaten while still fairly hot. They're delicious with cheese and apricot jam (yes, together - be adventurous!) or with curried mince.

  

  Roughly doughnut coloured

Robyn's health rusks

This recipe was given to me many years ago by my sister, Robyn.

In the UK, the word 'rusk' tends to conjure up images of an oversized tea biscuit given to teething babies. In South Africa, a rusk is an altogether different thing, enjoyed with (and dunked in) coffee.

During my teens, my extended family often went en masse on holiday to the Drakensburg mountains during the winter, and I have fond memories of rusks with coffee for breakfast on those freezing (no central heating in South Africa) mornings before heading off on a hike. If you really want to be decadent, you sweeten the coffee with condensed milk. Now that really takes me back!

Perhaps it would be best for non-South Africans to relate to these rusks more in the way they would relate to biscotti. In fact, the Afrikaans word for rusk is 'beskuit', so there is probably some shared heritage somewhere along the line.

Apparently the origin of the word 'biscuit/biscotti' (which, strictly speaking, is what 'beskuit' means, although it isn't quite that straightforward in practice) means 'twice baked'. That perfectly describes how rusks are prepared. I have to warn you of a few things:

• First off, this particular recipe is very high in fibre and will have exactly the effect that you expect that would have on your digestive system - especially if you eat too many of them, which is all too easily done. In that sense, they could be considered 'health rusks'. Hence the name.
• Second, the last part of the baking process might prick your conscience in terms of carbon footprint. So you might want to do something to compensate.
• Thirdly, you are going to have to get your hands dirty, okay? This is not a recipe for a cook who goes "Eeewww!" In fact, it's probably a great recipe to make with your kids!

Oven temperature
160C and then 'low' (about 80-100C)

Ingredients
The ingredients in the original recipe are very much South African, and it references flour types that don't exist in the UK. So I will give the recipe in its original format and supply the UK substitutes in brackets.

8 cups nutty wheat (I used granary flour)
4 cups cake flour (plain flour)
2 cups sugar
1 cup bran (I struggled to find this so went with oat bran, but you might have more success)
4 tablespoons baking powder
500ml buttermilk (see note below)
250ml natural yoghurt
50ml cooking oil (I used canola)
500g margarine/butter (I always use butter)
1 teaspoon salt

Method

• Melt butter and sugar together
• Add all dry ingredients and mix well. Forget your electric beater - you will just burn out the motor. And you would probably snap your wooden spoon. So just wash your hands really well, roll up your sleeves and do it the way your granny would.
• Add buttermilk, yoghurt and oil and mix through thoroughly. This will be when it gets really messy, but I still recommend your hands.
• Press into a greased oven pan (you know - the one that came with the oven in the first place?). This recipe is enough for two oven pans full.
• Bake at 160C for about 45 minutes (adjust as appropriate for fan assisted ovens)
• Remove from the oven (and reduce the temperature to about 80-100C)
• Cut into slices about 2.5cmX10cm or so (use your own judgement - what size rusks do you want?) and turn out onto metal cooling racks
• Dry in the oven for about 4-6 hours (or even overnight) until they are crisp right through. For this, I actually put the cooling racks straight into the oven. Avoid placing the rusks onto a solid base like a baking sheet. They need air from all sides. I actually prop the oven door slightly open during this process (this is where the carbon footprint bit comes in) by wedging an oven glove in one side.
• Enjoy with coffee. Even in the politest society, it is entirely acceptable to dunk a rusk.

Note:
It is quite tricky getting hold of buttermilk in the UK these days. In some of the bigger towns, the major supermarkets seem to stock it. But in my small town, the only supermarket that does so is Waitrose. However, I discovered that Elmlea single is 85% buttermilk. And that can be found just about anywhere. So, if you can't get buttermilk, give that a whirl.

Almond crunch

This recipe came from my mother-in-law. I make several batches of it every year to use as Christmas gifts, and often take it as a gift for the hosts when we are invited to someone's home for dinner. It makes a pleasant change from a bottle of wine or a bunch of chrisanths.

The recipe is for a single batch. I usually make a double batch at a time.

Ingredients
250ml blanched, flaked almonds (not the toasted kind)
125ml sugar
30ml butter
2.5ml vanilla extract
Salt

Method
Before you start, it's a good idea to spread a sheet of foil/baking parchment on the counter - you will need this later

• Heat the sugar, butter and almonds in a heavy based skillet/frying pan over a medium heat
• Stir constantly until sugar is golden and almonds are toasted
• Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla
• Spread onto a sheet of foil/baking parchment
• Sprinkle with salt to taste
• Leave to cool
• Break into clusters