Published in 2011 by Struik Lifestyle
(an imprint of Random House
Struik (Pty) Ltd)
Company Reg. No. 1966/003153/07
Wembley Square, 1st Floor, Gardens, Cape Town 8001
PO Box 1144, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa

Copyright © in published edition: Random
House Struik (Pty) Ltd 2011
Copyright © in text: Annalie Nel and
Zuretha Roos 2011
Copyright © in photographs: Random House
Struik (Pty) Ltd 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers and the copyright holders.

Publisher: Linda de Villiers

Managing editor: Cecilia Barfield

Editor and indexer: Bronwen Leak

Designer: Helen Henn

Photographer: Matthys van Lill

Food stylist: Brita du Plessis

Stylist’s assistants: Yvette Pascoe and Katherine Freemantle

Proofreader: Gill Gordon

ISBN 978-1-77007-898-7 (Print)

ISBN 978-1-43170-212-1 (Epub)

ISBN 978-1-43170-213-8 (PDF)

Annie says

Even with a brilliant cook for a mother, I left home to go to college with only enough know-how to fry an egg. For the next six years this shortcoming was unimportant, as food was definitely not a priority at that age. But that changed when I married, because suddenly there was someone relying on me for a hot meal every night!

My first attempt at meatballs remains a family joke to this day. Not only were they tennis-ball hard, but I’d tried to add flavour with mixed herbs. Instead, I had actually added mixed spice … ‘Oh no, this tastes like cinnamon!’ my new husband exclaimed. I was furious – at him! After that disaster we lived on lamb chops and mashed potatoes until Jaap tactfully suggested buying a basic cookbook. I think he was very disappointed to discover that my mum’s cooking skills hadn’t magically rubbed off on me. He had, after all, raved about her food from the first time he had dined at the family table.

We loved eating well as children, but I think we had precious little interest in how all those great tastes were created. But through the ensuing years, raising children, working, and the usual challenges of life, I realised how wonderfully creative cooking can be.

I started collecting cookbooks and food magazines, experimented with recipes and tried my own versions. I still love creating dishes with what I have at hand, or with relatively simple ingredients. Living quite far from supermarkets, I can’t just hop into the car and go shopping, so I have to make do with what I have available. It helps to have a herb garden and veggie patch. Fresh is always best and I try to avoid packets and tins except for a few staples such as canned tomatoes, olives and the like. I prefer to make my own rubs for roasting meat and chicken. It is easy and satisfying and you do taste the difference.

However, I remain a self-taught home cook and you will find that my recipes reflect that. I have a strong nostalgic streak and love the old-time dishes that my mom and grannies used to make, and believe they should not be forgotten. Yet, my tastes have also evolved over the years in accordance with new influences and experiences.

After my husband returned from a three-month stint in India, when he had to cook for himself, he introduced me to the Indian way of cooking. It involved lots of aromatic spices, coconut, curry leaves, chillies, ginger and yoghurt – opening a whole new culinary world for me. Now, I can’t manage without chillies or a hot chilli sauce in my cupboard. Hot food grows on you – and thus many of my recipes contain chilli. Coconut milk or yoghurt added at the end tempers the heat for the faint-hearted! Thai-style food is also high on my list of favourites and I have included quite a few Asian-style dishes.

However, for me, soul foods are still those dishes I remember from childhood. One of my earliest memories is of Ouma Greta’s sweet, cinnamony melkkos, eaten on a cold winter’s night in front of her Dover stove. Another dish we always requested when visiting her in the Langkloof was pampoenmoes, a mashed pumpkin dish, made with a type of pumpkin that is impossible to source nowadays: Ouma called it slonspampoen (actually Ceylon pampoen). The story goes that the seeds were brought to South Africa from Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka) long ago by Boer prisoners-ofwar. It cooked to a bright orange, mushy consistency, and was sweetly delicious.

My mother had a wide repertoire of dishes, some of which are included in this book. One of her pièces de résistance was her succulent, roasted Muscovy duck, served as a fortnightly Sunday feast with crispy potatoes and Dad’s home-grown veggies. What a pity these large, white Muscovy ducks aren’t commercially available. Through the years I kept remembering that golden-brown bird on our Sunday dinner table.

To my delight, shortly after we moved to a smallholding outside Port Elizabeth, my husband was given two white Muscovy ducks by a colleague. I watched with joy as this male and female waddled disgustedly about their new domain, making raspy noises and looking decidedly annoyed by everything they saw – including their pond. I, of course, had visions of the generations of Muscovies that were to follow and would grace our dinner table! But as soon as the two birds settled down, the male’s nasty temperament emerged. A reign of terror began, aimed at women only. No woman was safe from his vicious attacks, and as they had no coop, our farmyard was their oyster; my maid and I were virtual prisoners in the house.

We had to hang the washing together: one protecting the other from the duck’s attacks with a blanket held matadorstyle to fend him off. We weren’t always successful and often had nasty bruises where his beak got us. To reach my car I had to race across the yard before he spotted me and came charging. My husband, at work all day, found my complaints highly amusing and exaggerated. How on earth could I be scared of a duck?

And this nasty piece of work clucked hypocritically around my husband’s ankles, as tame as a lapdog. Then early one Saturday morning it happened. Jaap went outside with his first cup of coffee, wearing his red dressing gown, to enjoy the dawn. Next moment, all hell broke loose – shouts, curses, feathers and flying coffee! His ‘friend’ had mistaken him for a female in his gown, and had launched a vicious attack.

Needless to say, the friendship was over. To my satisfaction the two Muscovies were put into a coop and fattened up in readiness for the table. My mother’s famous recipe for stuffed Muscovy was put to very good use, and I ate them without a qualm. At last I had roast duck on Sunday again!

Zuri says

My cooking style and the flavours I use often differ markedly from those of generations past. Since the 1990s many new trends have influenced cooking in South Africa, yet many traditional recipes are part of my permanent repertoire, just as they were eaten at the table of my youth.

No one who ate at our table has ever forgotten my mother’s cooking. She did not cook many fancy dishes; but her meals were wonderfully tasty. When we slouched through the front door after school, dragging along bookbags and bad attitudes, the enticing smells from the kitchen were enough to lift our poor spirits immediately.

We grew up surrounded by vineyards in the beautiful Hex River Valley, where my father was both a high school teacher and a part-time farmer on his narrow slice of the family farm. Dad had a magic touch with vegetables, and we always had a luscious kitchen garden.

He kept a Jersey cow for milk, cream and golden butter, and from time to time a pig or sheep was fattened for the slaughter. (This was rather difficult if we’d become even slightly attached to the sacrificial beast, so we were forbidden to give it a name. You can’t eat anything with a name).

Mom baked a cake every Friday, and sometimes a tart as well, without the benefit of any electrical equipment. Her flawless creaming of butter and sugar was done with a simple fork, and her cakes were unsurpassed.

One of the crowning glories of those years was Mom’s golden-brown, fatly stuffed roast Muscovy duck that appeared on our Sunday dinner table every couple of weeks. She kept these large, well-fed white Muscovies in a shady coop with a cement pool. White Muscovy ducks, unlike common-or-garden supermarket ducks, are really large with lots of tender, succulent meat: a male white Muscovy can weigh up to 8 kg!

I left home for university barely able to toast bread. Eventually I married and, as my husband and I both worked, we lived on pan-fried steak, boiled potatoes and sliced tomatoes for a very long time. One day I decided to attempt a fresh vegetable, and bought three very large Swiss chard leaves – surely enough to feed the two of us? I cut them up and boiled them, and then burst into tears when I found a tablespoon of drifting green slush in the vast pot of water.

One Christmas, missing home and Mom’s food, I scoured the butcheries of Greater Johannesburg. Muscovies? Nope. So I found a goose. I told my mother-in-law I’d be contributing a stuffed goose for the Christmas dinner. With great enthusiasm I took the golden, stuffed bird from the oven at the appointed time. It was still rock hard and a knife point barely penetrated the skin. In desperation, I sawed up that bird, and threw it into a pressure cooker with lots of wine. It took a long time: we were late to Christmas dinner, and my contribution was tasteless, stewed goose. And that was the end of the Muscovy chase.

I finally learnt to cook when I had two babies and was housebound. It was my only creative outlet. I used two books: Kook en Geniet, that bride’s bible by S. J. de Villiers, given to me by my husband (surely with hope in his heart), and a paperback called Great Dishes of the World, by possibly the first celebrity chef ever, Robert Carrier.

Mrs de Villiers might have taught me how to prepare our traditional dishes, but it was Robert Carrier who grabbed my imagination. Reminiscent of Julie Powell, who cooked her way through Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking, I cooked and baked my way through masses of his recipes. A whole new, international world of food opened up. I made French onion soup, coq au vin, gazpacho, pasta (by hand and with a rolling pin), Crêpes Suzettes, ragoûts and rum baba. I turned out blanquette de veau, saltimbocca alla Romana and boeuf bourguignon. I discovered the wonderful satisfaction of ‘creative cooking’!

Some years later, rushing in where angels fear to tread, I asked the editor of the then-popular magazine Darling to consider me for the position of food editor. I got the job! For over six years I churned out two to three pages of recipes fortnightly. It was hard work: in those days we did not have assistants, or photographers dedicated to food photography.

My recipes in this book reflect personal tastes and flavours. You may even recognise a few older ones from way back when, but it’s because they’re too good to be forgotten!

So, Annie and I are not professional cooks and never have been. We are home cooks. When younger, we had dreams of opening a little bistro together, but alas, we lived far apart before retirement and our cosy eatery remained pie-in-the-sky.

We both prefer fresh ingredients to cans and bottles – even if we do use some. Both of us grow organic herbs and vegetables with varying success. Annie, a quick and instinctive cook, is the one who dispenses with too many fancy ingredients; she found it really hard to re-test recipes for this book and having to measure out and write down quantities

I’m the one who sometimes tries more unusual ideas. But we both live too far from delis and large supermarkets to source exotic things easily, so most of our ingredients are easily available. I confess to stocking up on hard-to-find luxuries when visiting the Western Cape, but we don’t do towering stacks, wildly outrageous flavours or spun-sugar cages!

We dedicate this book to our mother, aged 91 as I write this, as well as to our two late and well-beloved grannies, both wonderful cooks of the old school. When we asked Mom how she managed to cook all those delicious meals, day after day, year after year, she said, ‘It was easy. I cooked with love.’

PANTRY LORE

The following are some of the pantry and fridge products we try to keep on hand. The liquors are of good quality and may be expensive, but they last a very long time and are only used for cooking and baking (well, mostly)!

PANTRY

Artichokes (canned)

Asparagus (canned)

Baby peas (petits pois) (canned)

Black and green olives in sachets

Black pepper (ground)

Brandy

Coconut cream and milk

Dried breadcrumbs*

Dried pastas (various)

Dry and medium cream sherry (good quality)

Herbs (dried)

Honey

Mild curry powder (good quality)

Mustards (various)

Nando’s peri-peri sauces

Oil: canola, sunflower

Oyster sauce

Piquanté peppers (Peppadews™)

Port wine

Rice: Basmati and long-grain (white and brown)

Salt (Maldon and Himalayan crystal)

Soy sauce (especially Kikkoman and Tamari)

Smoked oysters and mussels (canned)

Spices (ground), plus whole dried spices such as fennel and cumin seeds

Tabasco sauce

Thai fish sauce

Thai sweet chilli sauce

Tomatoes (canned)

Tuna and salmon (canned)

Vinegar: apple cider, balsamic, grape (never spirit vinegar)

Virgin olive oils (made in South Africa)

Worcestershire sauce (especially Lea & Perrins)

FRIDGE

Butter or Butro

Cheese: Cheddar, blue, Parmigiano-Reggiano (Parmesan), pecorino, feta and mozzarella

Eggs (jumbo)

Gherkins

Ginger (fresh)

Mayonnaise (Woolworths’ Tangy Mayonnaise)

Mint sauce (homemade)

Parsley

Sour cream and crème fraîche

Tomato sauce (All Gold)

FREEZER

Any fresh-caught fish that cannot be eaten straight away

Calamari (steaks and rings, not battered)

Mozambican prawns

New Zealand or West Coast mussels

Nuts (various)

Peas

Phyllo pastry

Puff pastry

Smoked salmon (good quality)

Stewing meats

Whole chicken and chicken pieces

ON THE KITCHEN COUNTER OR IN THE VEGGIE DRAWER

Bulbs of garlic

Butternut

Chillies (usually dried)

Fruits

Gem squash

Lemons (and limes in season)

Onions (various, according to the season)

Potatoes

Tomatoes

*Shops often sell dried breadcrumbs in small containers, but it’s easy to make your own. Dry crustless bread chunks in a slow oven until pale brown, then whizz in a blender to make crumbs. Save in the fridge in airtight containers or Ziploc™ bags.

A Savoury Smorgasbord

This really is a smorgasbord of various savoury dishes. They could be served as snacks, lunch bites or starters, or with drinks at cocktail hour. All are easy to make but, to ensure the least fuss, it is always best to gather and prepare the ingredients in advance.

Annie’s Bruschetta

Simple and delicious in summer, and a great lunch bite with a glass of wine, this recipe is sufficient for a long baguette. Annie

1 long baguette or French loaf

fruity virgin olive oil

1 large or 2 medium vine-ripened tomatoes, thinly peeled and finely chopped

½ sweet onion, peeled and finely chopped

salt (preferably sea salt)

freshly ground coarse black pepper

30 ml (2 Tbsp) basil pesto

100 g ripe Brie or Camembert, thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 200 ºC.

Slice the entire baguette into thick slices, at a slant, discarding the ends.

Pour some of the oil into a bowl and dip each slice, on one side only, into the oil. (It doesn’t have to be covered in oil – each slice will have small patches where the oil didn’t reach.)

Arrange on a baking tray, and bake for 7 minutes until the slices are pale brown at the edges and hard in the centre. Keep an eye on them so that they don’t burn!

Combine the chopped tomatoes and onion, then season with salt and pepper.

Spread the hot baguette slices thinly with the pesto and top each with a teaspoon of the tomato-onion mixture. Place the slices back on the baking tray.

Drape a slice of Brie or Camembert over each bruschetta. Return to the oven for 2–3 minutes to melt the cheese, then serve warm.

Makes about 12 slices

Snails with Camembert in Phyllo Pastry

Bite into one of these little parcels: a taste sensation! You can also substitute feta or Brie for the Camembert. It’s an easy recipe. Snails are usually canned in different sizes, so check the label for the number of snails. Be sure to chop the parsley very fine and use really strong garlic. And do call it ‘escargots’ for the squeamish, although it’s actually a very healthy meat morsel! You could also serve it as a main dish (two pastries each) with garnishes after a substantial salad starter. Zuri

1 × 200 g can snails (minimum 30 snails)

4 sheets phyllo pastry

olive oil

about 180 g ripe Camembert

125 ml (½ cup) roughly chopped walnuts

185 ml (¾ cup) very finely chopped fresh parsley

45 ml (3 Tbsp) butter

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped and crushed pungent garlic

10 ml (2 tsp) freshly ground coarse black pepper

a pinch of salt (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease 6 cups of a muffin tin with butter (it’s easier to use every alternate hole of a 12-cup muffin tin).

Drain the snails in a sieve. Open up the sheets of phyllo pastry and, if not using immediately, cover with a damp cloth to prevent them drying out.

Brush the top phyllo sheet with olive oil, remove carefully, and place on a clean, floured counter or a wooden board. Brush the next sheet with oil, and place on top of the first one. Repeat with the third and fourth sheets. Cut the stacked phyllo sheets into 6 squares (patch the phyllo if it tears). Gently pat the squares into the muffin cups until they fit in roughly, but don’t tear the pastry. There should be a generous overhang; leave as is (that’s why it’s easier to use alternate holes).

Slice the Camembert into 6 slices and put one in each phyllo cup. Add 5 snails to each cup. Divide the chopped walnuts among them. Add about 1 heaped teaspoon parsley to each filling.

Melt the butter gently in a saucepan, then stir in the garlic and pepper, and salt if you like. Add 1–1½ teaspoons of this mixture to each filling.

Carefully fold the overhanging phyllo over each cup – fold over the shortest bits first, followed by the longer pieces, and fasten with a toothpick. Brush each bundle lightly with olive oil or melted butter, then bake for 25 minutes or less, until the pastry is golden. They should come out easily, but be careful as the phyllo will be brittle. Place each pastry on a small plate and garnish as you please.

Serves 6

Smoked Salmon Rolls

This recipe was sent to me by a friend in Canada, who described it as a ‘Christmas appy’ (appetiser), so I made it as a starter for a Christmas dinner. It’s pretty, delicious, and easy to make. Buy good-quality smoked salmon, not bits and pieces. Note that it is made a day in advance, but it can also be made at your leisure and frozen until needed. Zuri

250 g salmon-flavoured, low-fat cream cheese

a pinch of salt

30 ml (2 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh parsley

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh dill (or fennel)

250 g smoked salmon slices

20 ml (1 heaped Tbsp) chopped capers

1 long cucumber

finely chopped spring onion or chives to garnish

red or black lumpfish caviar to garnish

Mix the cream cheese with the salt, parsley and dill.

Place a large piece of clingfilm (about 30 × 30 cm) on a board or counter. Carefully remove the salmon slices from their wrapping and line them up in a rectangle (about 15 × 23 cm) without gaps in the centre of the clingfilm.

Spread the cheese mixture over the salmon, not quite reaching the edges of the longer sides. The easiest is to put blobs of the mixture all over the salmon, then carefully pat it flat with a spatula or knife. Place the chopped capers along one of the long edges on the cheese filling. Beginning at the caper edge, use the clingfilm to neatly roll up the salmon, like a long Swiss roll, but be careful not to roll the plastic into the salmon! Wrap the clingfilm around the ‘sausage’ and fold over the ends. Chill overnight. (At this stage the roll may be frozen, so this part may be made ahead of time.) It will firm up in the fridge.

Wash and slice the cucumber into fairly thick slices. Remove the salmon from the plastic wrap and use a very sharp or serrated knife to cut the salmon ‘sausage’ carefully into rolls of about 2 cm thick, and arrange each slice on a slice of cucumber.

To serve, garnish each salmon roll with the chopped spring onion or chives and a little caviar for a slightly salty tang.

Makes 24–30 rolls

Four-cheese Pie with Piquanté Peppers

This shamelessly rich pie is my South African version of the Greek tiropita. It is a great vegetarian dish, served with a green, herbed salad, or in squares as a side dish with fried chicken pieces. It is equally delicious if baked without the phyllo pastry, in a larger, flatter ovenproof dish, and served in small squares, hot or cold, as a snack with wine. Zuri

3–4 sheets phyllo pastry

45 ml (3 Tbsp) melted butter or oil

200 g feta cheese, patted dry and crumbled

100 g mature Cheddar cheese, coarsely grated

125 g mozzarella cheese, roughly grated or chopped

50 g Pecorino or Parmesan cheese, grated

50 g walnuts, broken up

120 g sweet piquanté peppers (Peppadews™), finely chopped

250 ml (1 cup) chopped spring onions

60 ml (¼ cup) dried breadcrumbs

4 jumbo eggs

5 ml (1 tsp) hot chilli sauce or Tabasco

5 ml (1 tsp) sea salt flakes

Preheat the oven to 190 ºC. Grease a 20 × 20 cm square glass ovenproof dish or a fairly deep glass pie plate with a bottom diameter of 18 cm.

Line the dish with one sheet of the phyllo pastry (but don’t cut off the overhang) and brush it with the butter or oil. Repeat with 2 or 3 more sheets, placing them on top of the first. (Sometimes thin phyllo sheets tear; 4 sheets will ensure that the bottom is properly covered).

Using a fork, mix the cheeses, nuts, piquanté peppers and spring onions in a bowl. Toss until well mixed, but do not compress the ingredients. Add the breadcrumbs and mix through.

Beat the eggs in a separate bowl until foamy, then stir in the chilli sauce or Tabasco and the sea salt flakes. Add the eggs to the cheese mixture, and fork in well.

Scrape the mixture into the phyllo-lined dish, and smooth the top. Fold the phyllo overhang over the pie. It should be adequate to cover the top, but if not, it doesn’t matter. Bake for 40–45 minutes, reducing the heat to 180 ºC after 10 minutes. Don’t allow the top to burn; if it colours too quickly, place a piece of foil loosely over the top.

Leave the pie in a warming oven if necessary. Serve warm, but it’s also delicious cold!

Serves 4–6

Mushroom Tart

200 g oyster mushrooms

200 g shiitake mushrooms

250 g portobello mushrooms

oil for frying

1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped

2–3 strips bacon, finely diced

45 ml (3 Tbsp) dry or medium cream sherry

3 cloves garlic, peeled, chopped and crushed

10 ml (2 tsp) sea salt flakes

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg

3–5 ml (½–1 tsp) freshly ground black pepper

125 ml (½ cup) fresh cream

60 g Parmesan or Pecorino cheese, grated

3 large eggs, well beaten

185 ml (¾ cup) finely chopped fresh parsley

extra nutmeg to sprinkle

dried breadcrumbs for topping

Preheat the oven to 160 ºC. If not using pastry, grease a suitable ovenproof dish.

Wipe all grit off the mushrooms and remove any rough stem ends. Pull the oyster mushrooms off their tough little ‘roots’ and tear them. Chop the other mushrooms, then place all in a bowl.

Heat about 3 tablespoons of oil in a large pot, then fry the onion and bacon, stirring often, until softened and cooked.

Tip in the mushrooms. Stir over a medium heat (if the heat is too low the mushrooms will shed too much liquid). Add more oil if necessary. Leave uncovered and stir occasionally until the mushrooms have collapsed, shrunk in size and are tender (about 10 minutes).

Stir in the sherry, increase the heat and keep stirring until the liquid has almost boiled away, but be careful not to burn the mushrooms!

Add the garlic, salt, nutmeg and pepper, stir, and remove from the heat.

Combine the cream and cheese with the beaten eggs, then add to the mushrooms along with the parsley. Taste the mixture and adjust the seasoning.

Pour the mixture into the prebaked pie shell, or simply into the greased ovenproof dish. Sprinkle over some nutmeg, then scatter well with the breadcrumbs to prevent the top from drying out.

Bake for 45–60 minutes, or until the tart has risen slightly in the centre and does not wobble when shaken. Serve hot or cold as a side dish with meat, or as a brunch dish with salad. It also works well for a picnic.

Serves 6–8

This is definitely for mushroom lovers! The success of this tart depends on the quality of the mushrooms. Use the best, and the variety listed here is a must. Blind bake a pie shell (see page 25) with readymade short pastry or bake it as a crustless mushroom tart without pastry. Annie

Crustless Asparagus Tart

Savoury tarts might be a bit old-fashioned these days, but this one is so tasty I simply had to include it. It’s suitable as a light lunch or as part of a buffet or tea party. It puffs up beautifully in the oven, but sinks back a little as it cools. It’s delicious even when cold! Annie

125 g bacon, diced

oil for frying

5–6 spring onions, sliced

90 g butter

50 g cake flour

125 ml (½ cup) milk

125 ml (½ cup) asparagus liquid (see below)

3 eggs, separated

1 × 420 g can asparagus (salad cuts), drained and liquid reserved

5 ml (1 tsp) Dijon mustard

250 ml (1 cup) grated Cheddar cheese

5 ml (1 tsp) dried chilli flakes (optional)

50 ml (3 heaped Tbsp) chopped fresh parsley

salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 180 °C. Grease a 22 cm-diameter ovenproof pie dish.

Fry the bacon in a little oil in a large frying pan for about 1 minute. Add the spring onions and stir-fry, but do not over cook.

Stir in the butter and, when melted, remove the pan from the heat and mix in the flour. Keep stirring until smooth.

Return the pan to the heat and slowly stir in the milk and asparagus liquid, until the mixture is smooth and thick. Remove from the heat again.

Beat the egg yolks, then add them, along with the asparagus, mustard, cheese, chilli flakes (if using) and parsley, to the bacon mixture. Taste and add salt if necessary.

Beat the egg whites until stiff, then lightly fold into the mixture. Pour the mixture into the pie dish and bake for about 40 minutes, until puffed up and lightly browned.

Mom’s Quick Savoury Tart

Most cooks have a recipe for a savoury tart. This is the tart, slightly tweaked, which was Mom’s standby for unexpected guests. Yes, it has a distinct 1950s feel, but is so quick to make, really tasty, and a dependable standby. Instead of Viennas and ham, you could use 100 g snipped bacon, in which case, fry the bacon and onion in a little oil first, until the bacon is almost cooked. Annie

1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped

65 ml (just over ¼ cup) cake flour

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

10 ml (2 tsp) Dijon mustard

3 large eggs, beaten

250 ml (1 cup) milk

15 ml (1 Tbsp) melted butter

250 ml (1 cup) grated strong Cheddar cheese

1 × 385 g can Vienna sausages in brine, drained and chopped

100 g ham, chopped

50–100 ml finely chopped mixed fresh parsley and chives

3–5 ml (½–1 tsp) cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease an ovenproof dish or pie plate.

Mix all the ingredients together, then scrape into the prepared dish.

Bake for 45–50 minutes, or until puffy and set.

Serves 4–6

Cheese-filled Tortilla Slices

We both make this popular and delicious snack to add to a buffet or finger-food table. Although it can be made a few hours ahead, covered and chilled, the tortillas will soften too much if left to stand overnight. Annie

4–6 thin tortillas

Filling:

250 g cream cheese, softened

250 ml (1 cup) grated mature Cheddar cheese

about 125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped spring onions

about 125 ml (½ cup) very finely chopped mixed green and red peppers

30–45 ml (2–3 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh parsley

125 ml (½ cup) Thai sweet chilli sauce

125 ml (½ cup) finely crumbled feta

60 ml (¼ cup) finely grated Parmesan

a few piquanté peppers, finely chopped (optional)

Beat the filling ingredients together until well mixed and spreadable. If necessary, add more sweet chilli sauce to achieve a spreading consistency, but the filling should be fairly firm or it will ooze out.

Spread the mixture fairly generously over the tortillas, then roll them up, like a Swiss roll, and wrap each tightly in clingfilm. Chill for about 2 hours until firm.

Before serving, trim the rough edges, slice carefully (1½ cm thick) and arrange on a platter. If you like, serve with pitted olives and ripe cherry tomatoes.

Makes about 20 slices

Brinjal Dip

This is a very simple variation on many similar recipes. Tahini is extremely healthy and is available from health shops, delis and some supermarkets, but if you can’t find it, use sesame seeds. It goes well with any bread other than Government loaves! Annie

1 large brinjal (eggplant or aubergine), halved

15 ml (1 Tbsp) tahini spread

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

2 cloves garlic, chopped and mashed

a large pinch of coarse black pepper

125 ml (½ cup) very finely chopped fresh parsley

extra fresh parsley to garnish

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease a small ovenproof tray.

Bake the brinjal, cut-side down, for about 25 minutes or until tender. Scrape out the soft flesh into a bowl, then add all the other ingredients and mash well, until it’s a purée (otherwise you won’t be able to mound it).

Mound in a pretty dish and garnish with extra parsley. Serve with fresh bread, crispbread or crudités.

Makes about 1 generous cup

Biltong Cheese-ball

A variation on the usual cheese-ball, this is quick to prepare and can be made a day ahead, wrapped in plastic and refrigerated. Roll it in crushed nuts or chopped parsley before serving. You could also roll the mixture into little walnut-sized balls, and arrange on a platter with piquanté peppers, black olives, cherry tomatoes and quail eggs. Annie

500 g cream cheese

150 g biltong, finely grated

30 ml (2 Tbsp) very finely chopped spring onions or chives

10 ml (2 tsp) salt

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

very finely chopped fresh parsley or crushed nuts such as almonds

Combine the ingredients and mix well. Cream cheese is often very firm, depending on the brand you use, so you may find it easier to put everything in a food processor.

Shape into a ball and roll in either parsley or nuts. Keep it chilled, but bring to room temperature before serving. Serve with crackers or as suggested above.

Blue Cheese Tart with Walnut Topping

This tart can be made a day ahead. To bake pastry blind, line a pie dish with the pastry, prick the bottom a few times with a fork, cover with a round of wax or baking paper, then spread a handful of dried beans on top of the paper. Bake at 200 ºC for 10 minutes. The best dish for this tart is a fluted, loose-bottomed flan tin. Zuri

1 roll short pastry, defrosted

3 eggs, beaten, plus 1 extra egg

250 g cream cheese

150 ml fresh cream

180 g blue cheese (e.g. Gorgonzola or Roquefort)

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse-ground black pepper

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg

45 ml (3 Tbsp) finely chopped chives (or garlic chives)

30 ml (2 Tbsp) olive oil

3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

100 g fresh walnuts, roughly chopped

15 ml (1 Tbsp) walnut, macadamia or sesame oil

45 ml (3 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh parsley

Roll out the pastry and bake blind, as explained above. Remove the paper and beans, and leave to cool slightly. Beat the extra egg and paint it over the pastry.

Leave the oven on, but turn it down to 180 ºC.

Beat the cream cheese until softened, then whisk or beat in the cream and eggs. Crumble in the blue cheese and mix gently. Season with the pepper and nutmeg and stir in the chives.

Scrape the cheese mixture into the pastry case. Bake for 30–35 minutes, or until the filling is lightly browned and slightly puffy.

Heat the oil in a pan, then stir-fry the garlic and walnuts until the garlic slices are light golden in colour. Sprinkle over the tart.

Serve the tart warm or at room temperature, drizzled with the nut oil and garnished with the parsley.

Serves 6

Escargot Starter in Ramekins

This makes a great starter for a romantic dinner for two people who love snails! Ideally, it should be served with some crusty bread. Quantities are easily doubled, if necessary. Zuri

1 × 200 g can escargots

60–90 ml (4–6 Tbsp) crème fraîche or sour cream

5–6 large white mushrooms, finely chopped

1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped

30 ml (2 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh parsley

30 ml (2 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh chives

10 ml (2 tsp) finely chopped and crushed garlic

15 ml (1 Tbsp) butter

a good pinch of sea salt flakes

3 ml (½ tsp) freshly ground black pepper

Drain the escargots in a sieve, rinse very briefly under cold running water, then shake to dry.

In a small pot, bring the crème fraîche, mushrooms and onion to the bubble, then reduce the heat and simmer slowly for about 10 minutes (the onion should be tender and the sauce reduced).

Stir in the escargots, herbs, garlic, butter, salt and pepper, and simmer slowly for about 2 minutes until the snails are heated through.

Serve in individual ramekins, with crusty bread. And some wine!

Serves 2

Savoury Bacon, Onion and Herb Bread Pudding

This is a recipe I badly wanted to include, so I asked my friend Karen Booth, who has a guest house in the southwest of France, if she’d mind if I snitched this recipe of hers. I’ve made it often as it’s the kind of comfort food I adore. This is what Karen says about this incredibly versatile recipe: ‘... a very old recipe from Scarborough, in the north of England. It’s often served before a meal, to take the edge off your appetite and stop you from eating too much meat! I added the bacon ... Serve it with lashings of onion gravy as a light supper, brunch or lunch dish, or as an appetiser, with gravy. It makes a wonderful accompaniment to roast pork or chicken. It’s delicious when cold, and ideal for picnics.’ Zuri

400 g crustless brown or wholewheat bread

300 ml hot vegetable, ham or chicken stock

200 g streaky bacon, chopped into small pieces

4 large onions, peeled and finely chopped

oil for frying (if necessary)

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh parsley

3 ml (½ tsp) finely chopped fresh sage

3 ml (½ tsp) finely chopped fresh rosemary

3 ml (½ tsp) chopped fresh thyme

3 large eggs, beaten

90 ml (6 Tbsp) vegetable suet or melted butter

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 190 ºC. Grease a large baking dish, about 30 × 21 cm.

Tear the bread into small pieces, put in a bowl, and pour over the hot stock. Mix well and leave to soak for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, fry the bacon over a medium to high heat. As soon as the fat starts to run, add the onions (you may have to add a little extra oil). Keep stirring, about 15–20 minutes, until the onions are soft and the bacon is crispy or cooked. Add the remaining ingredients, including the bread and stock, and mix well.

Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish, level with a spoon, and bake for 40–50 minutes, until well risen, firm to the touch and golden brown.

Leave to rest for about 5 minutes, then cut into squares and serve.

Serves 4–6

Chicken Liver Pâté with Port Flavour

Keep a few liquors at the back of your pantry, just for cooking. These fortified wines last for years. Although fairly expensive, the pistachios add a nice crunch and the green nuts look attractive in a pâté. Zuri

100 ml dry white wine

100 ml brandy

100 ml good-quality port wine

1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled, chopped and crushed

30 ml (2 Tbsp) fresh thyme or 5 ml (1 tsp) dried

100 g butter

500 g chicken livers, drained of blood and cleaned

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

5 ml (1 tsp) coarse black pepper

100 g ready-peeled fresh pistachio nuts

Add the wine, brandy and half the port to a small pot with the onion, garlic and thyme. Simmer until reduced to one-third of its volume (about 100 ml). (Tilt the pot to judge the quantity.)

While simmering the liquors, melt the butter in a pan, then fry the livers over medium-high heat until just pink on the inside. Do not overcook.

Place the livers in a food processor with the butter left in the pan, then add the boiled-down liquors and seasonings, but discard any thyme stalks. Add salt and pepper to taste. Purée the livers, then add the remaining port and whizz again. (The pâté will be very soft at this stage, but will firm in the fridge.) When it’s velvety smooth, scrape into a bowl, and fork in the nuts.

Cover, leave to cool, and refrigerate. The flavour will develop over the next day, and it will keep for at least 4 days. Best served at room temperature.

Makes about 1¾ cups

Sumptuous Soups, Breads and Pastries

Neither of us follows recipes when making soup. Normally we create soups with whatever suitable ingredients we have at hand, and leftovers come in very handy when making soup. We find that the powdered or granular stock powders are best to use, not cubes.

Unless stated otherwise, these soups all do well served wih fresh, crusty bread (either shop-bought or made from scratch using our easy-to-follw bread recipes).

We are also not pastry makers of repute, but the two pastry recipes given are really good. Ouma Greta’s Sour Cream Pastry is a quickie that is often used, but we confess we also keep rolls of shop-bought pastry in the freezer!

Rich Chicken Soup

This simple soup contains butter and cream: don’t change that. It’s delicious and comforting, and a perfect way to use up that leftover roast chicken. (In our house, the breast usually gets left.) Do not use tasteless or raw chicken: leftover seasoned roast chicken is best! You can make up the stock with powder or use homemade chicken stock. Annie

about 125 g butter

125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped celery

1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped

1–2 carrots, scraped and finely chopped

10 ml (2 tsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

125 ml (½ cup) cake flour

1.5 litres (6 cups) warm chicken stock

250 ml (1 cup) full-cream milk

250 ml (1 cup) fresh cream

about 625 ml (2½ cups) finely chopped cooked chicken

5 ml (1 tsp) white pepper

5 ml (1 tsp) dried chilli flakes

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

Melt the butter in a large pot and fry the vegetables and garlic over a gentle heat until tender.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the flour until there are no lumps. Then whisk in the heated stock.

Return to the heat, whisking continuously, until simmering. Whisk in the milk and cream, and then add the chicken and seasonings. Simmer over a low heat for a couple of minutes.

Taste and adjust the seasonings. You can keep the soup in a warming oven for a while, if you like.

Serves 6–8

Butternut Soup

I once made this soup, along with three others, to welcome new neighbours. This plain soup vanished first. You can double the recipe if you like. Annie

30 ml (2 Tbsp) butter

2 medium onions, peeled and chopped

1 kg butternut, peeled and cubed

1.5 litres (6 cups) chicken stock

5–10 ml (1–2 tsp) chopped fresh thyme leaves

1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg

250 ml (1 cup) fresh cream

salt and white pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a large pot and fry the onions until soft, but not browned. Add all the other ingredients, except the cream, salt and pepper.

Bring to a simmer, and simmer until the butternut is soft. This won’t take long.

Mash or purée the soup, whichever is easiest for you, then stir in the cream (do not boil once the cream has been added). Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Serves 4–6

Healthy Winter Vegetable Broth

Few foods are more nutritious than a thick broth made with lots of fresh vegetables. The orange juice used here lends a tang and piquancy. Note that this soup can be made well ahead of time, as the flavour improves a great deal on standing. With crusty bread, it makes a wonderful evening meal. Zuri

45 ml (3 Tbsp) oil

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

1 large or 2 smaller potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 large or 2 smaller carrots, peeled and chopped

5 ml (1 tsp) fennel seeds

5 ml (1 tsp) mustard seeds or a few cardamom pods

5 ml (1 tsp) coarse black pepper

5 ml (1 tsp) crushed coriander seeds or the powdered spice

500 g butternut, peeled and cut into chunks

500 ml (2 cups) chicken or vegetable stock

125–250 ml (½–1 cup) freshly squeezed orange juice (incorporate any orange flesh that lands in the juice)

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh ginger

15 ml (1 Tbsp) sugar about 10 ml (2 tsp) salt

Heat the oil in a large pot and add the onion, potato and carrot, and stir well. When slightly softened, add the fennel and mustard seeds (or cardamom), pepper and coriander. Stir well and fry for a minute or two. If necessary, add a little more oil.

Add the butternut chunks, the stock and orange juice (start with 125 ml (½ cup) and taste, as you might not want to use a full cup). Add the ginger, sugar and salt, and stir well.

Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and put on the lid at an angle. Simmer for about 30 minutes, until the veggies are tender.

Purée in batches in a food processor until smooth, then taste for seasoning. Return to the pot and reheat some hours later or cool and refrigerate. Heat and serve with delicious bread.

Serves 2–4

Cool Green Summer Soup

This soup is for lovers of the cool taste of cucumber, and is made for a hot summer’s day. It contains only Greek yoghurt and no cream. When freshly made, it is quite bland, so make it at least 4 hours ahead of serving or, better still, the previous day, to give the flavours a chance to develop. Serve very cold in pretty glasses. Zuri

about 600 g English cucumber

250 ml (1 cup) cold chicken stock*

250 ml (1 cup) roughly chopped fresh parsley

125 ml (½ cup) chopped sweet onion

250 ml (1 cup) Greek yoghurt (not low-fat)

10 ml (2 tsp) sea salt flakes

3 ml (½ tsp) Tabasco sauce

30 ml (2 Tbsp) virgin olive or walnut oil

15 ml (1 Tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice

croutons or snipped garlic chives or spring onions to garnish

Rinse the cucumber and cut off the ends. Cut into rounds and then into cubes, and put in a food processor. Add the stock and whizz at medium speed.

Add the remaining ingredients, except the croutons and garnish. Whizz at high speed until the soup is smooth. It won’t ever be velvety smooth, however.

Pour into a bowl, cover and chill. Taste again before serving and adjust seasoning.

Garnish with croutons and snipped garlic chives or spring onions.

Serves 6

*Use powdered or granular stock powders rather than cubes. They are not salty: my soup needs the extra salt, but do taste before adding salt.

Thai-style Prawn and Coconut Cream Soup

This is a quick, delicate soup, meant as a starter to something more substantial. It can be made a day ahead, as it definitely improves in flavour over time. An original Thai soup of this type would use lemon grass and maybe shrimp paste, but I stuck to more easily available ingredients. Do not leave out or substitute anything, as the flavours work so well as they stand. Zuri

300–350 g small raw, peeled prawns

15 ml (1 Tbsp) oil

5 ml (1 tsp) chopped garlic

125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped spring onions

15 ml (1 Tbsp) grated lemon zest

5 ml (1 tsp) finely chopped fresh red chilli

500 ml (1 cup) chicken stock

15 ml (1 Tbsp) fish sauce

300 g butternut, peeled and cut into chunks

1 × 400 ml can coconut cream

5 ml (1 tsp) sugar

fresh basil to garnish

If your prawns are fairly large, cut each in half and set aside.

Heat the oil in a pot, and quickly stir in the garlic, spring onions, lemon zest and chilli. Stir through for a few seconds, and then add the stock with the fish sauce.

Add the butternut chunks and bring to a boil. Then turn down the heat, put on the lid and simmer for 10 minutes until the butternut is tender.

Add the coconut cream, the raw prawns and the sugar. Bring to the boil, and simmer for a further 5 minutes or until the prawns are just cooked through.

Serve in bowls, garnished with fresh basil.

Serves 4–6 as a starter

Annie’s Dumplings

Actually, these are not quite ‘my’ herb dumplings; it’s an old family recipe that never fails. They’re feather-light and should be in every pot of soup when winter winds howl. Annie

250 ml (1 cup) cake flour

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

45 ml (3 Tbsp) soft butter

3 ml (½ tsp) coarsely ground black pepper

15 ml (1 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh parsley

15 ml (1 Tbsp) very finely chopped onion

3 ml (½ tsp) dried thyme or basil or rosemary, whichever you prefer

1 egg

milk to mix

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingers until the mixture is crumbly.

Mix in the pepper, parsley, onion and herb.

Beat the egg well in a small bowl, then stir into the mixture. Don’t worry about lumps. Now add just enough milk, stirring, to make a sticky dough – not too wet, not dry, just sticky enough to stick to your fingers.

Drop dessertspoonfuls of the batter into your simmering soup or stew, scraping it out of the spoon with a finger. Cover the pot and simmer gently for 20 minutes, by which time the dumplings should be cooked.

Remove the lid and simmer for a further 5 minutes or so, so that the tops of the dumplings dry out a little.

Serve the soup or stew in warmed bowls, with 2–3 dumplings per serving. Real comfort food!

Makes about 10 dumplings

Winter’s Night Seafood Soup

This is a ‘recipe’ for which you need to use your own judgment and not go entirely on the quantities and flavours suggested. Clean and prepare all ingredients ahead of time: when I tested the soup again, the actual cooking took only 45 minutes! Fish stock in the freezer is a great standby for those winter fish soups. Zuri

Basic stock:

Ideally, you need that fish stock you made with fish heads, bones and prawn shells. It should be free of all bones if you strained it well, but should contain the delicious little bits you picked off the fish heads.

Failing that, you’ll have to resort to chicken stock. You can now buy liquid chicken stock at some supermarkets. You need about 1.5 litres.

oil for frying

1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

1–3 potatoes, depending on size, peeled and chopped

2 carrots, peeled and grated

4 pork rashers, rinds and small bones removed, and chopped into bite-sized chunks (or use 125 g streaky bacon)

1 × 410 g can chopped peeled tomatoes

30 ml (2 Tbsp) tomato paste

45 ml (3 Tbsp) Thai fish sauce

10 ml (2 tsp) sugar

1 fresh hot chilli, seeded and finely chopped (optional)

1½ litres fish or chicken stock

250 g fish fillets such as yellowtail, geelbek or kob, cut up

about 18 large raw prawns, shells and heads removed, deveined (or use frozen, ready-cleaned)

about 24 mussels, fresh or frozen*, in shell or out

about 300 g calamari rings

6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

30 ml (2 Tbsp) chopped fresh or dried soft herbs, like thyme, origanum or marjoram

10 ml (2 tsp) coarse sea salt flakes

250 ml (1 cup) sour cream

125 ml (½ cup) very finely chopped fresh parsley

braised and seasoned marrow bones** to serve (optional)

Heat some oil in a large soup pot, then add the onion, potatoes, carrots and pork rasher bits. Fry over a high heat, stirring often, for about 7 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, fish sauce and sugar, and stir through. At this stage, add the chilli if using. Turn up the heat and add the stock.

Add the fish pieces and prawns, and bring to a simmer. Add the mussels. Allow the mussels to simmer for a few minutes, and then add the calamari and garlic. Calamari needs only 1–2 minutes of brisk simmering, otherwise it turns tough. A little scum will rise to the surface and you can skim it off, but it’s already sterilised, so you can leave it, as it will disappear when you add the sour cream.

Add the pepper, herbs and salt. Stir in the sour cream and remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the parsley.

The cherry on the top: I either add a marrow bone or two to each helping, or I remove the marrow and place it on top of each helping.

Serve in roomy soup bowls, with lots of crusty bread and a glass of wine.

Serves 6–8

*If using fresh mussels, make sure they are tightly closed. Watch after you add them to the boiling soup, and discard any that do not open. If using frozen mussels,the New Zealand green-lipped variety is best.

**If I can source them, I like braising the marrow bones separately, and seasoning them well with salt and pepper.

Picnic Bread

This makes the perfect padkos, school lunch or breakfast. The recipe was given to me many years ago by a friend, and I think the original recipe, since adapted, came from Eastern Europe. It needs no butter: just slice and eat. It does not pretend to be low-fat. This is real sustenance! Zuri

625 ml (2½ cups) cake flour

20 ml (4 tsp) baking powder

250 ml (1 cup) finely chopped spring onion, green and white parts

750 ml (3 cups) coarsely grated mature Cheddar cheese

500 g bacon, chopped (do not use bacon bits)

8 large eggs, beaten

10 ml (2 tsp) salt

5 ml (1 tsp) coarse black pepper

15 ml (1 Tbsp) chilli sauce (fairly hot)

45 ml (3 Tbsp) melted butter

about 500 ml (2 cups) buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease two smallish bread tins well.

Mix all the ingredients, except the buttermilk. Do NOT fry the bacon first: it goes in raw. It cooks in the baking process and adds to the flavour. Add enough buttermilk to make a soft, slightly sticky batter, as for scones.

Divide the batter between the two greased tins. Bake for about 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until a skewer comes out clean. Turn out and cool on a rack.

If you’re going to use the bread as road food or for a picnic the next day, wrap it in foil. Simply slice and eat as is. It also freezes well.

Serves 8–12

Linda’s Fuss-free Bread

Sometimes one finds a special recipe when you least expect it, like this easy bread, which has become my standby. I met my friend Linda at the bread counter in the supermarket and bemoaned the lack of really tasty bread on offer there. She later gave me this recipe, and now I make it often: nothing beats homemade bread. The quantity can be doubled to make a really large loaf. Annie

500 g bread flour

5 g (½ sachet) instant yeast

375 ml tepid water

10 ml (2 tsp) sugar

10 ml (2 tsp) salt

30 ml (2 Tbsp) oil

Mix the flour and yeast in a large bowl. In another bowl, mix the water, sugar, salt and oil. Add this to the dry ingredients and stir well.

It should make a soft, sticky dough. Sometimes a little more water is needed to get the right consistency.

Grease a loaf pan well with butter or fat, put in your dough, cover loosely with clingfilm and let it prove until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 200 ºC.

Bake for 45–60 minutes. The bread should be golden brown with a crisp top. If you knock on it and it sounds hollow, your bread is done.

Makes 1 loaf

Olive and Cheddar Holey Bread

This is a different type of bread, and be warned that the consistency is unlike any other! It’s French in origin and is delicious! It can be eaten as i with no butter, served with platters of cheese and meats, and with wine. It’s also delicious served with plain fried fish. You could also add chunky walnut pieces to the batter. Zuri

200 g green pitted olives, drained and patted dry

100 g coarsely grated mature Cheddar cheese

260 g or 500 ml (2 cups) cake flour

3 eggs

15 ml (1 Tbsp) baking powder

125 ml (½ cup) dry white wine

80 ml olive oil

15 ml (1 Tbsp) sour cream or crème fraîche

10 ml (2 tsp) coarse black pepper

a pinch of sea salt flakes

Grease a medium-sized bread tin very well with butter. (I use a 19 cm-long bread tin with slightly sloping sides.) It’s best to put baking paper or wax paper on the bottom as well and butter the paper.

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Slice the olives into rounds. You can use pimiento-stuffed olives if you like. Grate the cheese on the large holes of your grater, and then weigh it.

Put the flour into a bowl, break in the eggs and whisk with an electric beater. The eggs and flour will form small clumps. Add the baking powder, white wine, olive oil and cream to the flour-egg mixture, and whisk or beat until smooth. Fold in the sliced olives, cheese, pepper and salt.

Scrape the cake-like batter into the prepared tin and smooth the top. Bake for 55–60 minutes. It’s best to test with a skewer after 50 minutes. The top might crack, which is normal for this type of bread. When a skewer comes out clean and the bread sounds hollow when tapped, turn out and cool on a rack.

Makes 1 loaf

French-style No-knead Bread

This is the nearest Annie and I can come to those gorgeous French boules. It is real bread – irresistible – and all you need is good timing. The original recipe for this amazing bread comes from baker Jim Lahey of New York’s Sullivan Street bakery. However, his recipe was such a messy business (typically male, he has enough people to clean up after him!) that I simplified and tweaked it.

You need a heavy iron pot with a lid. It does not have to be large, and can be oval or round. Good old iron pots can often be found in junk stores. You won’t be sorry that you spent some time looking for the right pot!

There is no kneading, so it’s wonderful for fingers with arthritis! Keep in mind that the dough needs 18 hours of being left in peace. If you stir this together at 3 p.m., the bread will be ready for the oven at 9 a.m. the next morning. It’s so easy a child can do it, but read the instructions carefully. It is one of the best breads you’ll ever eat! Zuri

750 ml (3 cups) white bread flour (not wholewheat)

2.5 ml (½ tsp) instant yeast

2.5 ml (½ tsp) sugar

7.5 ml (1½ tsp) salt

415 ml water

Put all the dry ingredients into a plastic bowl and stir well. Add the water and stir until well mixed to a smooth, quite sloppy, dough. (Note that this dough cannot be handled).

Cover the bowl with clingfilm and put a thick kitchen towel over the top as well. Stand the bowl in a draught-free place for 18 hours. After 18 hours, the dough should have puffed up, more or less doubled in size, and have little bubble holes on top.

Lightly scrape the dough away from the sides of the bowl with floury fingers, turning the bowl round and round and flattening the dough (lightly!) with your hands.

Cover the bowl with the same plastic as before, and also with the towel, and leave to rise again for 2 hours.

Half an hour before the 2 hours are up, preheat your oven to 220 ºC.

Grease your iron pot and lid with butter (not margarine). I also add some olive oil to the pot, for no reason except that I feel I should.

Now put the pot into the oven, with the lid on, to heat up with the oven.

When the 2 hours are up, and the oven and pot are at the right temperature, very carefully take out the pot and put it on an iron grid or old wooden board next to the oven. Have the dough nearby!

With a silicone spatula or your fingers, scrape the dough lightly and evenly into the hot pot. It will sizzle as it falls in.

Shake the pot lightly to distribute the dough, put on the lid, and shove it back into the oven. This manoeuvre should be carried out quickly.

Bake your bread for 30 minutes with the lid on, then take off the lid and bake for a further 15–25 minutes, until the bread has a cracked, golden crust.

Turn out onto a grid or other suitable surface and, as soon as you can handle the bread with a kitchen towel, saw off the end slice and eat it with butter melting into it!

The bread should be very crusty on the outside, and soft and full of holes on the inside, just like a French boule.

Do not store the bread in a plastic bag, but rather in a paper bag. Here, near the sea, the crust does not stay crisp in the humidity, but no matter, the bread is still delicious!

Makes 1 small loaf

Granny Greta’s Sour Cream Pastry

I seldom bother with frozen puff pastry anymore, because this pastry is so quick and easy to make. It acts somewhat like puff pastry, and also needs light, cool handling. It should be kept quite cold until it goes into the oven. Like puff pastry, it’s too tricky to blind bake as it can slump into the pie plate: the filling goes into the raw pastry and it’s baked in a fairly hot oven. I find it’s best when used for savoury recipes. Note: crème fraîche keeps literally for weeks, even months, in the fridge, so keep a carton at hand. Zuri

625 ml (2½ cups) cake flour

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

250 g cold butter

250 ml (1 cup) crème fraîche (see page 182) or thick sour cream

Put the flour and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Cut in the cold butter in small pieces.

Mix first at low speed, then faster, until the mixture forms fine crumbs and looks a bit like yellow mealie meal. (This can be done by hand, of course: rub the butter into the flour with your fingers.)

Add the crème fraîche or sour cream in spoonfuls. You may not need all the sour cream, but if using crème fraîche I always use the full amount. Process until a dough ball forms. You might have to scrape down the sides with a spatula once. Once the ball of dough has formed, scrape it out onto a floured surface. Form lightly into a neat ball or flattish shape with floured hands. Cover with clingfilm and chill for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

To use the pastry: Preheat the oven to 220 ºC. Roll out to about 3 mm thick. Line a pie dish and brush the pastry with beaten egg. Add your filling. (Keep the pastry as cool as possible until it goes into the oven.)

Bake in the oven at 220 ºC for 10 minutes, then lower the heat to 180 ºC, and bake until the pastry has puffed and browned lightly, and your filling is puffy and set. This is ideal for a large chicken pie or individual pies of any kind. The pastry should be golden brown and slightly puffed.

Makes about 500 g

Best Shortcrust Pastry Ever

This is the only shortcrust pastry I make, after trying many recipes and ending up disappointed every time. You do not have to blind bake it but, if you do, the final colour of the pastry will be better (more golden brown). The texture is fantastic. If you want a sweet pastry, add ½ cup castor sugar and a drop of extra water. It’s hard to guess yield and servings, as it depends on what you use it for. Zuri

750 ml (3 cups) cake flour

250 ml (1 cup) cornflour

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

360 g cold, unsalted butter

3 ml (½ tsp) cream of tartar

100 ml cold water

Sift the flour, cornflour and salt into a bowl. Cut up the butter, and then rub it in with your fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. This can also be done in a food processor on high speed.

Dissolve the cream of tartar in the water, and add to the crumbly mixture. Mix well – again, you’ll need a high speed to bring the pastry together if using a food processor.

The pastry should be easy to handle. If at all necessary, add a few more drops of water. When the consistency is right, the dough will not stick to your hands and will feel silky soft and firm.

Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for 20–30 minutes before using.

To roll out, sprinkle flour on a wooden board or your countertop. Roll out only half of the pastry to start with, as it is easier to handle. Roll out thinly, about 0.5 cm thick or less.

When you come to bake, heat the oven to between 160 and 180 °C. The pastry will be pale golden when done. An egg wash before baking will improve the colour of the final product.

The Tide is Running: Cooking Fresh Fish

Our association with freshly caught fish dates back to earliest childhood and would make a good story if we had the space to reminisce! Our father was one of five brothers, all keen anglers. Summers were spent in Kleinmond in the Southwestern Cape which, way back then, was a small, unspoilt village.

Not only did we eat fish often, but we learnt about the ways of fish and fishermen; when the fish were likely to bite and what kinds of weather keeps fish away. We knew which fish preferred which bait, and we helped to find white mussels and redbait, mud prawns and mussel worms. It was part of the seaside lore of our childhood. The sea was full of fish, and the idea that the oceans could one day be almost fished out was science fiction back then.

Back in the Hex River Valley, where we lived, the fish lorry from Cape Town came around fairly regularly, blowing its tin horn and selling truly fresh fish glistening on a bed of ice: Kalk Bay and Hout Bay were only a few hours drive from the Valley after all.

But alas, these days we know about the endangered species, and we also know that if you live further than 10 km inland, you rarely see fresh fish.

We often pick up on the uncertainty of holidaymakers to our villages when it comes to fresh fish. At the fresh fish counter of our local fishmonger, waiting my turn, I’m often asked, ‘How do you prepare this fish?’ And even when I explain how simple it is, they turn away and buy the ready-prepared hake, scorning the silvery kob, geelbek, roman and other fish.

When you have a choice, buy something other than the ubiquitous hake! Buy any other fish glistening and glimmering before you, unless they’re on the Red Data list. Have it filleted, if you must. Best is to fillet it yourself, and make a fish stock with the head and bones. And then freeze that stock! With a fish stock as a base, you can make a wonderful fish soup in winter (see page 40).

Fish heads also make for delicious, if indelicate, eating ... but who cares, when you can suck out all that flavour?

To pan-fry small fish whole, mix equal quantities of flour and mealie meal on a large board or platter. Season the fish inside and out with a seasoning mixture (we like Melissa’s Cook’s Salt with coriander and chilli), but go easy on the salt. Then put it on the mealie meal and flour mixture, and pat it on well. No, it won’t all stay on – shake off the excess – but a thin layer will adhere, which means the fish skin will be crispy.

If a whole fish is too large for the pan, chop it in half.

Heat oil or a mixture of butter and oil. Use enough. When the oil is really hot, add the fish. Fry on one side only until, if you peek with a spatula, the underside is light brown. Turn carefully. Fry until light brown on the other side. Now turn down the heat and put on a lid at an angle so that the steam escapes. Don’t overcook, ever. Undercook your fish. Put a wooden skewer through the thickest part – if there is a slight resistance, take out the fish, then put it on a platter in a warming oven. It will cook through quickly at that low heat, and your fish will be juicy and not dry.

A whole, fairly thick fish will cook through in no more than about 4 minutes a side, plus some resting time.

When frying fillets, do them the same way as explained above. Always start them skin-side down, and flatten slightly with a spatula. Fry for about 2 minutes on high heat, then turn over and fry for another 2 minutes. Use enough oil or butter. Again, undercook slightly and, as you finish frying the batches, put in a dish and leave in the warming oven for a while.

Enjoy sea-fresh fish with a squirt of lemon or lime juice, or a dab of mayonnaise, and you might need more salt as well. We hesitate to give recipes with sauces that will overpower the delicate taste of really fresh line-fish.

Potatoes in any form, and sweetish vegetables like peas, butternut or sweet potato, really go well with fish – and don’t forget the wine!

When you buy fresh fish it is always better to buy two or more smaller ones, about 1 kg or just over, rather than a very large one weighing 4–6 kg or thereabouts. Large fish have coarse flesh, which can be dry, no matter how carefully you anoint them with marinades. Such fish is excellent, however, for curried and pickled fish recipes and in chunks in fish soup.

Many people imagine that a large yellowtail or geelbek (Cape salmon, which is not salmon, really) is ideal for the braai. Granted, there are men who can braai anything and get away with it. But personal preference and experience over the years have taught us that the fattier types of fish, and the smaller sizes, are better on the braai.

Some of the best fish for the braai are harders (mullet), elf (shad), bronze bream or hottentot, or, one of the best, a really fresh snoek that has not been salted yet. And snoek can be large, because it’s a fatty fish and is excellent on the braai with a sweetish marinade. It’s all good Omega 3 fats!

Fish Fillets with Greek-style Topping

This is a fast way to liven up fresh fish fillets. Make the topping first, then fry the fillets as explained on pages 50-51. Annie

4 fresh fish fillets

extra sea salt flakes for serving at table

Topping:

100 g feta cheese, rinsed lightly and patted dry

1–2 medium-sized, ripe, firm tomatoes, finely chopped

about 60 ml (¼ cup) chopped pitted black olives

about 60 ml (¼ cup) very finely chopped fresh parsley

a good pinch of coarse black pepper

For the topping, crumble the feta into a bowl, then add the remaining ingredients. Mix lightly with a fork.

Fry the fillets, which you have rolled in a flour-mealie meal mixture. Be careful when adding salt, because feta and olives are salty. Extra salt can always be added at table, by putting sea salt flakes in a small container.

Serve each fillet with a quarter of the mixture on top. Serve this simple fish dish with boiled, buttered baby potatoes, peas and a green salad.

Serves 4

Fish Fillets in Tomato Cream Sauce

I’m a great believer in booze, butter and cream for good cooking. This is a recipe I created years ago for a food column in a Sunday newspaper. Zuri

oil for frying, or use butter

1 medium onion, peeled and chopped

1 x 410 g can chopped peeled tomatoes

125 ml (½ cup) dry white wine

about 100 ml very finely chopped fresh parsley

3 ml (½ tsp) coarsely ground black pepper

5 ml (1 tsp) sugar

5 ml (1 tsp) seasoning salt

1 kg fresh fish fillets

125 ml (½ cup) sour cream or crème fraîche

a sprinkling of nutmeg (optional)

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion until softened. Stir in the tomatoes and their juice, as well as the wine, parsley, pepper, sugar and seasoning salt.

Bring to a simmer and add the fish fillets carefully (in two batches if your pan is small). Simmer the fish for no longer than 4 minutes, then transfer the fillets with a slotted spoon to a serving dish and keep in a warming oven.

Boil the sauce over a high heat until reduced by half and thickened. (We find that certain imported Italian canned tomatoes have a wonderfully thick juice.) Stir to prevent burning, then remove from the heat and allow to cool down a little.

Stir in the sour cream or crème fraîche. Taste the sauce for seasoning: you could also add a good sprinkle of nutmeg.

Pour the sauce over the fish and serve with rice or mashed potatoes.

Serves 4

Lightly Battered Fish Fillets

After much trial and error, this is the batter I like most. It is thin and very crispy, but if you want a thicker batter, just whisk in more flour. This batter is also ideal for deep-frying sliced vegetables, such as baby marrows. Zuri

130 g cake flour

3 ml (½ tsp) baking powder

3 ml (½ tsp) garlic-and-herb seasoning spice

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

45 ml (3 Tbsp) very soft butter

250 ml (1 cup) beer (no foam)

1 jumbo egg white

6 fresh fish fillets, such as hake, kob or geelbek

oil for deep-frying

Combine the flour, baking powder, seasoning spice, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl, and then cut in the soft butter. Rub it in with your fingers to achieve a crumb-like mixture.

Add the beer and whisk until the mixture is very smooth.

With clean beaters, beat the egg white until very stiff. Fold or whisk this into the batter.

Either dust the fish fillets with flour or pat them quite dry with kitchen paper.

Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pan over a high heat until a small drop of batter sizzles and turns brown.

Dip each fillet in the batter, let the excess drain off (hold the bowl near the pan of oil to prevent a mess) and gently slide the coated fillet into the hot oil. Fry until golden brown, which for an ordinary fillet takes 1–2 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper and place on a heated ovenproof dish. Do this in batches – do not crowd the fillets.

Although the batter will hold up for quite a while in a warming oven, serve the fish as soon as possible to retain the crispness.

Makes enough for about 6 fish fillets

Annie’s Fish Pie

I make this pie – a preferred method – from the tasty flesh I pick off the heads and bones of fresh fish after making a fish stock. Yes, it’s a tedious job because of having to feel for small bones and scales, but so worth it, because these bits add delicious flavour to the dish. If you don’t want to go to the trouble, use, preferably, a mix of hake and haddock or kob. Annie

knob of butter and a little oil for frying

250 ml (1 cup) chopped spring onions

200 g mushrooms, sliced

30 ml (2 Tbsp) butter

30 ml (2 Tbsp) cake flour

175 ml (about ¾ cup) fish stock

250 ml (1 cup) milk

60 ml (¼ cup) chopped fresh parsley

10 ml (2 tsp) grated lemon rind

5 ml (1 tsp) dried chilli flakes (optional)

750 ml (3 cups) loosely measured cooked fish

300 g cooked shrimps

salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste

6 medium potatoes, mashed with butter and milk

Heat a knob of butter and a little oil in a large saucepan. Fry the spring onions and mushrooms for 4–5 minutes, until softened.

Add the 30 ml butter to the same pan. When melted, mix in the flour.

Slowly add the fish stock and then the milk, stirring all the time to make a smooth mushroomy sauce.

Stir in the parsley, lemon rind and chilli (if using).

Take the pan off the heat and fold in the fish, shrimps, salt and pepper. Do not overmix.

Turn the mixture out into a suitable ovenproof dish and top with the mashed potato.

Put under a hot grill until the topping becomes a speckled brown colour. Be careful: it grills quite quickly!

Serve with a green salad and broccoli or peas. And do enjoy a glass of white wine with it!

Serves 6

Hake Fillets with Almond Topping

This is a quick and easy dish. The Worcestershire sauce gives it a really interesting tangy flavour, so do not leave it out! Use fresh, not frozen, hake. Annie

150 ml cake flour

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

5 ml (1 tsp) lemon pepper

650 g fresh hake fillets

extra cake flour for dusting

1 extra-large or jumbo egg, beaten

oil for frying

30 ml (2 Tbsp) butter

1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed

100 ml flaked almonds

15 ml (1 Tbsp) lemon juice

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

2 spring onions, sliced or chopped

Mix the flour with the salt and lemon pepper.

Dust the fish fillets with the extra flour, dip them into the beaten egg and then coat with the seasoned flour.

Fry the fillets in hot, shallow oil until nicely coloured on both sides, being very careful not to overcook. Keep in a serving dish in the warming oven while you prepare the almond topping.

In a small, clean pan, melt the butter over a medium heat and fry the garlic and almonds for 1–2 minutes until lightly coloured.

Remove from the heat and add the remaining ingredients. Stir through and spoon over the fish fillets.

Serve with mashed or baby potatoes and a salad.

Serves 3–4

Thai-style Sauce with Baked Fish

Although fresh fish needs little enhancement, try it with this very simple recipe, dreamed up when we felt like a light Thai-style sauce with an oven-steamed roman. For us, the sauce is spot-on, but do taste it and adjust the seasonings to your taste. This is an extremely easy recipe and very low in fat. The sauce can be made ahead of time and reheated in a warming oven. Annie

500 g English cucumber

23 ml (about 1½ Tbsp) Thai fish sauce

23 ml (about 1½ Tbsp) oyster sauce

45 ml (3 Tbsp) honey

45 ml (3 Tbsp) fresh lemon juice

2–3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

30 ml (2 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh ginger

5 ml (1 tsp) dried chilli flakes (or seed and chop a small fresh chilli)

185 ml (¾ cup) finely chopped spring onions

about 1–1.3 kg whole fish, head on

Preheat the oven to 200 ºC.

Coarsely grate the cucumber into a small pot, liquid and all, and then stir in all the ingredients, except the fish. Heat the sauce, but do not boil.

Score the whole fish through the skin on both sides, making about three cuts on each side.

Wrap the fish in a large piece of foil, large enough to enclose the fish completely and still leave space for steam.

Bake the fish, tightly enclosed in the domed foil, for 30 minutes. Yes, the fish will be done!

Open up carefully and roll the fish onto a warmed serving platter with the liquid that will have formed. Spoon over the warm sauce. If there is too much sauce, serve the extra in a small jug.

Serve with jasmine rice, coconut-coated fried bananas, a semisweet vegetable and a green salad.

Serves 3–4

Trout with Van der Hum Cream Sauce

Fish takes well to something slightly sweet, in this case a touch of Van der Hum liqueur. You can also use Cointreau, Grand Marnier or sweet sherry. This easy dish should be served very soon after being made. White basmati rice goes well with this, because the sauce is thin and it needs a carb to mop it up. Zuri

60 ml (¼ cup) butter

4 fresh trout

125 ml (½ cup) fresh cream

30 ml (2 Tbsp) Van der Hum

30 ml (2 Tbsp) good brandy

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

60 ml (¼ cup) slivered and toasted almonds

Melt the butter in a large frying pan and fry the trout (perhaps in two batches) until pale brown on both sides – 2–3 minutes per side. Keep warm.

In a small pot, heat the cream, but do not boil. Add the Van der Hum and brandy, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Arrange the trout either together on a platter, or on separate serving dishes, spoon over the sauce and sprinkle with the toasted almonds.

Serves 4

Delicious Curried Fish

Once you’ve tasted your own curried fish you won’t buy it in a shop again! We’ve learnt from Mom that firm-fleshed fish should be used for good curried fish. Hake is too soft, but it can be used if nothing else is available. Fish that are especially suitable are larger fish whose flesh is already almost too coarse to make for good eating. Yellowtail comes to mind, as well as large specimens of kob (kabeljou) or geelbek (Cape Salmon). In this recipe, the balance between vinegar and sugar is really a matter of personal taste. Some people make curried fish that is too sour to our taste. Please adjust the vinegar-sugar ratio by tasting! Zuri

1.5 kg firm, fresh, fish fillets

oil for frying

2 eggs, beaten

cake flour

4 medium onions, peeled and sliced into rings

750 ml (3 cups) white grape vinegar

20 ml (4 tsp) salt

125–250 ml (½–1 cup) sugar, or to taste

50 ml (about 2½ Tbsp) fresh curry powder

10 ml (2 tsp) turmeric

3 ml (½ tsp) dried chilli flakes or cayenne pepper

6 lemon or bay leaves, bruised

smooth apricot jam

Cut the fish into fairly large chunks. Heat enough oil in a frying pan. Dip the chunks of fish in the egg, roll in the flour and fry in batches in the hot oil. Do not overcook!

Keep the fried fish in a dish in a warming oven.

In a separate pot, boil together the onion rings, vinegar, salt, sugar, curry powder, turmeric, chilli or cayenne pepper, and lemon or bay leaves, and simmer until the onions have softened.

Take the sterilised bottle(s) from the oven. Spread a very thin layer of apricot jam on one side of each fish chunk and pack them into the bottle(s). Work fast as you want the fish to be hot and the vinegar sauce still boiling hot.

As soon as you have packed the fish into the bottle(s), pour over the vinegar sauce until the bottle is full. Insert a skewer or knife into the bottle(s), and move it around to make sure all air escapes, and the fish is completely covered with the sauce. Screw on the lids and allow to cool.

The curried fish needs 3–4 days at room temperature to mature. Once opened, keep in the fridge and eat within a week. Any bones in the fish will soften as it stands.

Makes 2–3 large canning bottles*

*Use large, old-fashioned canning bottles, if you can still find them. Put them on a biscuit tin in a cold oven, then set the oven to 160 ºC. The bottles should be left at that heat for at least 10 minutes to sterilise them.

Crunchy Prawns with Sweet Chilli Sauce

This is super easy and quick to make, and sooo tasty! It’s best to buy Mozambique prawns if at all possible, as the farmed prawns from the East that seem to be everywhere nowadays are quite tasteless. It’s hard to guess at servings, as these will be very popular! Serve with a good brand of Thai sweet chilli sauce. Zuri

1 kg jumbo or tiger prawns

about 185 ml cake flour

about 315 ml cornflour

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

5 ml (1 tsp) garlic powder

5 ml (1 tsp) dried thyme or origanum

3 ml (½ tsp) baking powder

6 jumbo egg whites

185 ml white wine or water

60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil

oil for deep-frying

150 g cornflakes, fairly finely crushed

Thai sweet chilli sauce to serve tartare sauce to serve

Clean the prawns by removing the body shell and vein, but keep the head on – it makes them easier to handle.

In a bowl, combine the flour, cornflour, salt, garlic powder, thyme or origanum and baking powder.

Add the egg whites as is (no whisking), the wine or water (but not all at once, because it might be too much) and the olive oil. Whisk well. Only add the rest of the wine/water if you think the batter is too thick: you don’t want a thin batter.

Heat 8–10 cm of oil in a wok or pot, until the oil makes little circles on top and a piece of bread sizzles when added.

While the oil heats up, dip each prawn into the batter and then into the cornflake crumbs, and place separately on a plate. Also put a wad of paper towels near the oil for the prawns to drain on.

Deep-fry 4–6 prawns at a time, until curly and golden brown, no more than a minute or so. Lift out and drain on the paper towels.

Serve hot with sweet chilli sauce and tartare sauce as dips.

Serves 4

Old Cape Spiced Prawns

Use the largest size prawns you can find – and sea-caught prawns taste miles better than farmed prawns. But, if beggars can’t be choosers, the spice in this recipe will save the day! Zuri

600 g jumbo prawns, peeled, deveined and rinsed*

250 ml (1 cup) Greek-style full-cream yoghurt

65 ml (¼ cup) honey (Oil your measuring cup before measuring the honey, and the honey will slide out easily.)

65 ml (¼ cup) freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice

8 cardamom pods, crushed a little

30 ml (2 Tbsp) peeled and finely chopped fresh ginger

30 ml (2 Tbsp) peeled and crushed fresh garlic

30 ml (2 Tbsp) oil

10 ml (2 tsp) turmeric

10 ml (2 tsp) mild paprika

3 ml (½ tsp) dried chilli flakes

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

Lay the prawns in a single layer in a shallow baking dish.

In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients.

Use only half the sauce mixture, but coat all the prawns with it. Cover the baking dish with clingfilm and marinate for 1 hour.

Either grill the prawns over hot coals or bake them in a 180 ºC oven, until they turn pink and curl up. Brush often with the rest of the marinade.

If done in the oven, serve them with the juices that form.

This really only serves 2 people as a main dish. Otherwise, serve it in small portions as a starter, on mixed baby greens. Serve with crusty bread and an assertive wine, such as a Chardonnay.

Serves 2 as a main dish, easily doubled

*The prawns should be weighed after cleaning, not before.

Harbourside Mussel Dish

This is my take on a quick mussel dish. If you keep to the quantities given, you’ll find the flavours meld very well. This dish, like many I created, can handle waiting a while in a warming oven, mellowing the flavour. I prefer our West Coast mussels, but where I live I usually have to settle for New Zealand mussels. Annie

1 kg plump mussels on the half shell

60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil

1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

45 ml (3 Tbsp) balsamic vinegar

1 x 410 g can chopped peeled tomatoes

15 ml (1 Tbsp) sugar (extra may be needed)

45 ml (3 Tbsp) Thai fish sauce

10 ml (2 tsp) chopped fresh garlic, or more to taste

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

5–10 ml (1–2 tsp) Tabasco or other hot sauce to taste

250 ml (1 cup) white wine (preferably not too dry)

250 ml (1 cup) very finely chopped fresh parsley

250 ml (1 cup) chopped spring onions

Pick over the mussels for bits of broken shell and grit. Whether frozen or fresh, rinse well in a colander. Even the best imported mussels need a good going-over and rinsing before use.

Heat a warming oven and put in a deep dish to warm.

Heat the oil in a large pot, preferably a soup pot, and fry the onion over a high heat, stirring a few times. When the onions start catching and colouring, turn down the heat and add the balsamic vinegar. Stir until the vinegar more or less evaporates.

Add the tomatoes, sugar, fish sauce, garlic, salt, hot sauce and wine. Stir well and keep simmering. Taste the sauce at this point. It might need a little more sugar due to the tomatoes and wine, and it might also need more salt.

Add the parsley, stir through and add the mussels. Stir gently with a wooden spoon and simmer for 4–5 minutes. Even previously frozen mussels should be done after 5 minutes in the simmering sauce.

Remove from the heat and ladle the mussels into the warmed oven dish. Pour over all the sauce left in the pot. Add the spring onions and lift up the mussels so that some spring onions slide into the sauce.

Serve in warmed soup plates, with plenty of fresh rye or French-style bread to mop up the sauce.

Serves 4

Tasty Tuna Muffins

It’s hard to classify this simple recipe. It can be delicious as a filling teatime snack, or as a main dish – tuna frikkadelle! The mixture is too soft to form into balls, but can be baked in a casserole dish. I prefer to bake them in a very well-greased muffin tin. They are moist and flavourful when done. Annie

60 ml (¼ cup) cake flour

5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

2 x 170 g cans solid tuna* (in water or oil)

3 ml (½ tsp) black pepper, or more to taste

15 ml (1 Tbsp) diced sweet piquanté peppers

30 ml (2 Tbsp) finely chopped spring onions

125 ml (½ cup) roughly grated mature Cheddar cheese

60 ml (¼ cup) tangy mayonnaise

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

2 jumbo eggs

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease 7 muffin holes very well with butter, especially on the bottom, as these soft balls may stick otherwise. If you don’t mind the extra time involved, cut little rounds of baking paper to put in the bottoms. Alternatively, a silicone muffin tin sprayed with non-stick cooking spray works very well, and nothing sticks.

In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt.

Drain the tuna well in a sieve, pressing out the liquid.

Add the black pepper, piquanté peppers, spring onions and cheese to the tuna, and mix well.

In another bowl, combine the mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce and eggs, and whisk well. Add the egg-mayo and the flour mixtures to the seasoned tuna and mix well to prevent lumps from forming.

Fill each muffin hole with the tuna mixture and bake for 30 minutes.

Allow to cool slightly, then run a knife tip or thin spatula around the balls and lift out gently.

Serve hot, perhaps with sweet chilli sauce or tomato sauce on the side, a yellow veggie, such as butternut, baby potatoes and a salad.

Makes 7

*If you don’t have solid tuna, you may have to to use 3 cans of the flaked variety to ensure you have enough tuna for the recipe.

A Delectable Fish Braai!

Yes, it can be a delectable experience, but it has to be done right – which, if you’ve tried it once or twice, is really not difficult at all! The best braai fish are the oilier fish, such as fresh snoek or galjoen. (The latter may not be sold and has become a rare angling fish.)

Other suitable fish are fresh young yellowtail and shad (elf), reef fish like roman, or rock species like Blacktail (Dassie) and Hottentot.

Kob (kabeljou), geelbek (erroneously translated as Cape salmon) and most other white-fleshed fish are not quite as successful, and need a lot of butter during the braai process.

A fish for braaiing should be bought completely intact, with its intestines, unscaled and really, really fresh!

Also keep in mind that large fish of over 60 cm in length will usually have coarse, dryish flesh (except snoek). It is better to choose two or three smaller fish rather than a really big specimen.

To prepare the fish for the braai, use a rigid and really sharp filleting knife. If you do not like keeping on the head, remove it. Otherwise, because you are going to butterfly, or vlek, the fish, keep the head on, but split it in half.

Butterfly the fish by cutting it open from the back, just behind the head, alongside the backbone towards the tail, and downwards. Do not cut open the belly or slice through the skin at any stage. Be careful not to cut into the intestines either. Carefully continue filleting across the bones and towards the tail until you are able to open up the fish and lay it flat on its skin side. (Of course you will fillet the fish from both sides, so the backbone can be removed.)

Remove the gills and intestines, and rinse the cavity. Use paper towels to absorb excess liquids. Your fish is now ready to be seasoned, mostly depending on which species you have. Not all flavourings and seasonings are compatible with all fish species!

We prefer to braai over an open fire, over slow coals.

The most important hint is this: the fish is not scaled at any stage, and is fried skin-side down and never turned! As soon as the fish is turned over, the juices and marinade drain into the coals!

It is obviously impossible to prescribe about weights, so from here on you’re on your own. Master the art during one seaside holiday, and you’ll be a convert ... but it is an art! Jaap

2 kg of butterflied fish, not gutted or scaled

Basting:

125 g melted butter (not margarine)

125 ml (½ cup) fresh lemon juice

30–45 ml (2–3 Tbsp) smooth apricot jam (only used for snoek or yellowtail)

30 ml (2 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh parsley

15 ml (1 Tbsp) fresh thyme, stripped from the stems

5 ml (1 tsp) sea salt flakes or to taste

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

Clean and dry the fish as described on the previous page.

Mix the ingredients for the basting in a saucepan and keep it warm on the grid, but away from the coals. This will improve and meld the flavours.

If you braai snoek or yellowtail, spray the braai grid well with non-stick cooking spray or rub with butter, as the skin tends to stick. For other fish with tougher scales you don’t need to do this.

Position the grid about 30 cm above the coals.

Place the fish skin-side down on the braai grid. While the fish cooks slowly, brush on the marinade every now and then. Use a brush with natural bristles rather than a nylon pastry brush.

Fish does not take long to grill through. On average it takes from 15–20 minutes on a fairly slow fire. The fish will be white-fleshed on top when done, and nearer the skin it should also be opaque. Test for doneness by carefully poking with a fork. Be careful of the old adage that ‘the fish should flake easily’. By that time it is almost overdone!

Braaied fish should be served and eaten straight from the braai grid instead of presented on a pretty platter! You could squeeze a little fresh lemon juice onto the fish and garnish it with finely chopped fresh parsley. Serve it with lovely fresh bread and butter, and a salad. As something sweet is always suitable with fish, wrap sweet potatoes in foil and bake them on the coals for about 20 minutes before putting the fish on the grid. Turn them frequently to avoid blackening and ensure they are well cooked before removing from the coals.

Serves 4–6

Remember, fish on the coals is not a precise art. Pracice makes perfect! Jaap

Curried Calamari Stew

Some people are convinced that calamari is always tough. Nothing is further from the truth. When cooked correctly, calamari is never tough. It can safely be slowly cooked until tender, as in this recipe. Here is a very nice calamari curry dish. Annie

about 900 g calamari tubes

oil for frying

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

20 ml (4 tsp) crushed breyani mix*

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Cape Malay fish masala powder or any mild, fresh curry powder

10–15 ml (2–3 tsp) cardamom seeds, crushed

1 x 410g can chopped peeled tomatoes

5 ml (1 tsp) sugar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

about 10 ml (2 tsp) salt

This is a casual recipe, and so precise weights and measures are not important. Rinse and pat dry the calamari tubes, and remove any transparent ‘pens’ that may still be inside. If the tubes are large, cut them crosswise into 2 or 3 pieces.

Pour about ½ cm of oil into a heavy-bottomed pot and fry the onion, stirring now and then, until softened.

Add the breyani mix, masala powder and cardamom seeds to the softened onion, and stir over a fairly high heat for a minute.

Add the tomatoes, sugar and garlic, and stir through. Keep the heat high and add all the calamari.

Mix through well and, when it starts plopping, turn the heat to low, put on a lid and simmer gently for 1–1½ hours. The sauce will look as if it’s not enough, but during the stewing process the calamari will shed some liquid. During cooking, add the salt to taste.

Serve with sticky white rice and a salad of mixed greens.

Serves 4–6

*If you do not have a ready-made breyani mix, use a selection of any of the following, and crush roughly: allspice berries, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cardamom seeds, some cinnamon, dried curry or bay leaves, star anise and turmeric.

Seafood Bobotie

This is a delicious dish. Use a good mixture of seafood, which can include crabsticks. The frozen marinara mixtures work just fine, and you can always add in extra shrimps or mussels if you like. Just make sure your seafood has been defrosted completely and drained well of all excess liquid. The dish absolutely has to be prepared a day ahead. It’s best to do all the prep of the ingredients before you start: the actual cooking is quick and easy. Zuri

2 slices white or brown bread, normal thickness, crusts included

1 x 400 g can coconut milk

45–60 ml (3–4 Tbsp) oil

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

20 ml (4 tsp) mild curry powder (Cape Malay type)

20 ml (4 tsp) crushed breyani mix*

3 ml (½ tsp) turmeric

1 large ripe tomato, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

1 apple, cored, peeled and roughly grated

15 ml (1 Tbsp) chutney

3–5 ml (½–1 tsp) sugar

10 ml (2 tsp) lemon juice

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely grated lemon zest

750 g mixed seafood of your choice, completely defrosted and drained

10 ml (2 tsp) salt

15 ml (1 Tbsp) fish sauce

3 jumbo eggs

extra 3 ml (½ tsp) turmeric

almonds in any shape, or lemon or bay leaves

Lightly grease a deep casserole dish.

Tear the bread into small pieces into a bowl, and add 125 ml of the coconut milk. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pot and fry the onion, stirring now and then, until translucent. Then add the curry powder, breyani mix and turmeric. Stir well and fry for a minute or so over medium heat. Add more oil if necessary: the spices absorb some oil as they fry.

Add the tomato (don’t add all the tomato juice if you’ve used a very juicy tomato), garlic, apple, chutney, sugar, lemon juice and zest, and stir through. Let it stew gently for a couple of minutes.

Turn up the heat, then add the seafood all at once, along with the salt and fish sauce. Take the bread from the coconut milk and crumble it into the pot, without pressing out too much of the milk. Stir the mixture well and let the seafood cook for 5–7 minutes. It won’t be cooked through, which is fine. (To avoid having too much liquid in your pot at this stage it is very important that you drain the seafood well before using.)

Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Beat 2 of the eggs well and stir into the slightly cooled seafood mixture. Then turn the mixture into the greased dish and smooth the top. Cover and allow to cool. Refrigerate until the next day.

Remove the bobotie from the fridge to bring it closer to room temperature, and preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Bake for 45 minutes. In the meantime, whisk 125–150 ml of the coconut milk with the remaining egg, add the extra 3 ml turmeric and whisk well.

Pour carefully over the bobotie and sprinkle with sliced almonds or stick in whole almonds or lemon or bay leaves.

Bake for a further 15–20 minutes, until the top is golden with light brown patches. Remove from the oven and cool; it will sink a little as it cools. Serve hot with yellow rice and a sliced-tomato salad.

Serves 6–8

*If you do not have a real breyani mix, simply mix 4 or preferably more of the following spices, and crush in a pestle and mortar or a small blender: fennel seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, pimento (allspice) berries, cardamom, star anise and cinnamon.

The Mainstay of Meals

As wives, mothers and grandmothers, we have found that dinner is the most important meal, and the mainstay is still the meat dish! With one exception, we have not included braai recipes, as that is usually the men’s domain! We do have a predilection for using certain seasonings, such as lemon, honey and rosemary, and spices feature strongly in our repertoire: Annie hardly ever cooks a meat dish without garlic and chilli! Mediterranean touches and Southeast Asian flavours have also made themselves at home in our kitchens.

Roast Duck with Van der Hum Sauce

We love duck, and it’s such a pity we can no longer find the large, tender-fleshed domestic Muscovy ducks of our youth. Ordinary ducks cannot compare to the large Muscovies, which have so much more flesh on their bones and can weigh up to 8 kg! When preparing a whole duck, I prefer pricking the breast and roasting it first, for an hour or more. This renders the fat – I pour it off and save it jealously in the fridge for roast potatoes and other fries.

Cut up the duck after roasting, if you like, and pour over the sauce. Or serve the duck whole, with the sauce, spring onions and extra salt on the side. A duck has very little flesh apart from the breast meat, and a duck weighing 2 kg like this one will basically only serve three, maybe four, people. This should be kept in mind when entertaining with roast duck. I usually buy 2 large plump ducks to serve four to six people. Zuri

1 duck, about 2 kg

1 large ripe orange

30 ml (2 Tbsp) soy sauce

45 ml (3 Tbsp) honey

10–15 ml (2–3 tsp) finely chopped fresh ginger

a pinch of ground cloves

60 ml (¼ cup) Van der Hum

180 ml chicken stock or duck giblet stock

10 ml (2 tsp) cornflour

250 ml (1 cup) finely chopped spring onions (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Remove any giblets from the cavity of the duck. Pat dry and let all liquid run from the cavity. (I put the liver back inside – it’s for me!)

Put the duck on the grid of an oven roaster and roast for 1–1¼ hours. To prevent too much splattering in your oven, cut open 2 oven roasting bags and tent them over the duck. When the duck has browned nicely, take it out of the oven, pour off the fat from the roaster below, and save it.

While the duck is roasting, peel off some of the rind from the orange (avoid the white pith), and slice it into thin julienne strips. I use the rind from about three-quarters of the orange. Then cut the orange in two and juice the halves into a mixing bowl, including any flesh that comes with the juice. You will need 50–60 ml juice.

Add the remaining ingredients, except the spring onions, pour into a small pot and, whisking, bring to a boil until it thickens.* Remove from the heat and taste: you may need more honey.

Cut the duck neatly into portions, or leave whole, with the spring onions on the side, or scattered over the platter of portions (if using). Serve with rice and the sauce on the side.

Serves 2–3

*You could, if you like, boil down the sauce a little before adding the cornflour. Once the cornflour has been whisked in and has thickened, do not simmer for too long.

Duck Breast with Black Cherry, Port and Redcurrant Sauce

This is a totally delicious dish. I created it one Christmas when oranges were hard to find, and have made it several times since. The sauce will also go well with ham. Use a 155 g bottle of Staffords Redcurrant Jelly, which is widely available. Zuri

Sauce:

1 x 425 g can pitted black cherries in syrup (The cherries should not be canned in thick sugar syrup; the syrup should be fairly thin and not very sweet. Try Goldcrest’s cherries.)

62 ml (¼ cup) water

15 ml (1 Tbsp) chicken stock powder

125 ml (½ cup) port wine (try KWV Tawny Port)

125 ml (½ cup) liquid from can of cherries

125 ml (½ cup) redcurrant jelly

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely grated lemon zest

30 ml (2 Tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon juice (Keep any extra lemon juice you may have squeezed out, as it may be needed later to adjust the taste.)

2 ml (¼ tsp) ground cinnamon

a pinch of ground nutmeg

a tiny pinch of ground cloves

10 ml (2 tsp) cornflour

extra 30 ml (2 Tbsp) water

6–8 duck breasts (Woolworths usually have them)

butter, chicken or duck fat, or a little oil for frying

salt to taste

Make the sauce first, as it can be made ahead and kept in the fridge. Drain the cherries in a sieve, saving the liquid.

In a pot, combine all the ingredients, except the cherries, cornflour and extra water.

Stir over a medium heat until the redcurrant jelly dissolves, then boil quite vigorously until about 1 cup of liquid is left. This doesn’t take very long. If in doubt about the amount of liquid left in the pot, remove from the heat, cool slightly, and pour into a measuring cup. If just over 1 cup, that’s also fine.

Pour back into the pot. Mix the cornflour with the extra water, add to the sauce and bring to a simmer while stirring. Let the sauce thicken, and then remove from the heat. Taste for seasoning. I usually do not add salt as it doesn’t seem necessary. At this point you can add more lemon juice if the sauce is too sweet – a lot will depend on your brand of cherries. Now add in about ¾ cup of the cherries in the sieve. (Save any left over, chilled, for another use). The sauce should be fairly thick.

Score the fat layer on the duck breasts neatly into diamonds. Fry the breasts over a fairly high heat, first on the skin side, then flip over. Do not overcook – the tendency these days is towards under-done duck breasts, but this is personal preference. Season with salt and serve with the sauce.

Serves 6–8

Chicken á l’Orange

Like many of our recipes, this one improves in flavour if made ahead of time: a recipe quality I appreciate! So much easier than ‘serve immediately’, which does not really work in my house. Do use sweet oranges in season; this is an ideal winter dish when citrus is in season. Please taste the sauce, as it might need adjusting. Serve with opposite, mild tastes, like broccoli and brown rice. Zuri

1.5 kg chicken pieces

250 ml (1 cup) freshly squeezed orange juice

30 ml (2 Tbsp) grated orange zest (avoid the white pith)

80–90 ml honey

30 ml (2 Tbsp) wholegrain mustard

45 ml (3 Tbsp) soy sauce

15 ml (1 Tbsp) chopped fresh rosemary

5 ml (1 tsp) dried chilli flakes (optional)

about 5 ml salt

45 ml (3 Tbsp) medium cream sherry or brandy

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Pack the chicken pieces, skin-side up, in a large ovenproof dish, preferably in one snug layer.

In a small pot, combine the remaining sauce ingredients, except the sherry or brandy.

Simmer the sauce, stirring now and then, until it has reduced by a quarter or more. This reduction process will thicken it slightly and intensify the flavours. Do watch, as it can boil over on high heat – you want a brisk, bubbly simmer. Don’t worry if some foam forms, as it will disappear as the sauce simmers.

Remove the reduced sauce from the heat and add the sherry or brandy. The alcohol will evaporate in the roasting process, but gives a nice flavour overlay.

Taste the sauce, being careful not to burn your tongue! If too acidic, stir in more honey. You want a tangy taste.

Pour the orange sauce over the chicken and bake for about 45 minutes, but after 15 minutes, lay a piece of foil loosely over the chicken to prevent burning. Baste the chicken with the sauce a few times while cooking. Remove the foil when the chicken is nearly done, to let it brown.

If you have quite a bit of sauce left in the dish, you can reduce it further in a small pot and serve it on the side.

Serves 4–6

Feta-stuffed Chicken Breasts with Bacon

Skinned, deboned breasts can be dry and tasteless. However, treated to a nice stuffing they become something delicious. The trick is not to overcook them so, with this recipe, watch your pan! The herbs can be varied to suit your tastes. Thyme, rosemary and French tarragon are all nice to use here. If you don’t like chilli, leave it out. Annie

4 large and plump skinned, deboned chicken breasts

45 ml (3 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh parsley

45 ml (3 Tbsp) finely chopped chives

7 ml (about 1½ tsp) peeled and crushed fresh garlic

3–5 ml (½–1 tsp) dried chilli flakes (optional)

45 ml (3 Tbsp) Danish feta, crushed with a fork

5 ml (1 tsp) grated lemon zest

enough olive oil to moisten

lemon pepper to taste

4 large slices bacon, or as needed

white wine and cream to make a sauce (optional)

Cut a pocket in the thickest part of each breast, being careful not to cut right through.

Mix the parsley, chives, garlic, chilli (if using), feta and lemon zest to form a paste. Moisten with enough olive oil to help combine the stuffing. Season with lemon pepper. Do not add salt: feta and bacon are salty. It should rather be seasoned at the table if necessary.

Divide the stuffing into 4 parts, and use it to fill each breast pocket. Wrap each breast in a slice of bacon and secure at intervals with string. Use more bacon slices if one per breast is not enough. Wrap it in such a way that the bacon covers the slit where the stuffing was inserted.

Heat a heavy-bottomed pan and add a splash of olive oil. When hot, add the wrapped breasts and turn the heat to low. Fry slowly, turning them often, until they turn golden and the bacon becomes crispy. Test with a skewer for doneness and remove as soon as the juices run clear, to preserve moisture.

If you like, deglaze the pan with a little white wine, scrape off all the bits that have stuck, add a splash of cream, heat through and pour over the breasts. Serve with baked potatoes and salad.

Serves 2–4

Spicy Peanut Chicken

For a different take on chicken, try this delicious dish. Don’t be put off by what looks like a long list of sauce ingredients: once you have assembled everything it’s really quick and easy to make. I prefer using thighs, but any cut will do. Sliced chicken breasts will also shorten the cooking time considerably. You can easily double the recipe. Annie

6 chicken thighs

1 x 400 g can coconut milk

salt and black pepper to taste

1 clove garlic, crushed

5 ml (1 tsp) ground cumin

5 ml (1 tsp) ground coriander

1 small chilli, finely chopped

100 ml crushed peanuts

15 ml (1 Tbsp) peanut butter

15 ml (1 Tbsp) light soy sauce

15 ml (1 Tbsp) fish sauce

15 ml (1 Tbsp) lime juice

20 ml (4 tsp) brown sugar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) medium or sweet sherry

chopped fresh coriander to garnish

Combine the chicken and coconut milk in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Season lightly with salt and black pepper, keeping in mind that the soy and fish sauce in the peanut sauce are salty. Simmer for 40–50 minutes or until the chicken is tender.

Strain, reserving 250 ml (1 cup) of the liquid. Keep the chicken warm while making the sauce.

To make the sauce, combine the garlic, cumin, coriander and chilli in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir over a medium heat for about 1 minute,until fragrant. Add the reserved liquid from the chicken and all the remaining ingredients, except the fresh coriander for garnishing. Stir until combined and heated through.

Place the chicken pieces on a serving dish and pour over the sauce. Scatter over the chopped fresh coriander.

Serve with basmati rice and sliced, fried bok choy or steamed broccoli.

Serves 2–3

Roast Chicken with Honey-lemon Marinade

This is one of my easiest chicken recipes, and a favourite with us all. The flavour combo might be well known, but it never fails to please! A word about chickens, which I’m sure Zuri will echo: buy nicely plump chickens, with a yellow tinge to their fat, and avoid thin birds with a bluish colour. Annie

1 whole chicken, about 1.5 kg

90 ml (6 Tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon juice

90 ml (6 Tbsp) honey

30 ml (2 Tbsp) grainy mustard

30 ml (2 Tbsp) fresh rosemary leaves, finely snipped

salt or seasoning salt of your choice to taste

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Remove any extra flaps of fat from the chicken.

Whisk the lemon juice, honey and mustard in a bowl. (If your honey is very thick, warm the bottle gently in a microwave first.) Stir in the rosemary.

Put the chicken in an ovenproof dish – choose a dish into which it will fit quite snugly. Use a pastry brush to brush the marinade all over: under the wings, underside and legs. The leftover marinade goes into the cavity of the chicken.

Now sprinkle salt all over, and also inside the cavity. I use a sea salt to which herbs have been added.

Don’t add any oil or water, as the chicken will be fine as it is. Cover the chicken lightly – don’t tuck in – with tented foil, as the marinade burns easily.

Bake for 45 minutes, then remove the foil and let the chicken brown well, but do watch that it does not burn. Depending on weight, the chicken will be done in about 1¼ hours total.

Serve with baby potatoes, fresh vegetables and a salad.

Serves 4–6

Tangy Chicken Wings with Coconut Topping

This is a quick-to-assemble oven dish with a tangy taste. Annie

20 ml (4 tsp) mild Malay-style curry powder or masala

125 ml (½ cup) Greek yoghurt or other plain yoghurt

10 ml (2 tsp) cornflour

100 ml apricot jam

30 ml (2 Tbsp) Dijon mustard

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Marsala sweet wine or sweet sherry

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

14–16 chicken wings, about 900 g

100 ml desiccated coconut

Preheat the oven to 160 ºC and grease an ovenproof dish.

Combine the curry powder, yoghurt, cornflour, jam, mustard, wine, salt and pepper in a bowl, and whisk until smooth.

Pack the chicken pieces quite tightly together in the dish and spoon over the sauce. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 minutes to allow it to colour to golden.

While the wings are baking, toast the coconut in a small pan over a high heat. Stir continuously, as it burns quickly. Stirring will also allow the coconut to release its flavour and turn a pale brown.

Remove the chicken from the oven and sprinkle over the toasted coconut.

Serves 4

Lemon Chicken with Olives

This is for lovers of clean Mediterranean tastes. Pitted olives are now widely available in 200 g sachets. Zuri.

45 ml (3 Tbsp) oil for frying

about 1.2 kg chicken pieces

30 ml (2 Tbsp) chicken stock granules

20 ml (4 tsp) cake flour

375 ml (1½ cups) warm water

45 ml (3 Tbsp) honey

200 g sachet green pitted olives

200 g sachet black pitted olives

1 lemon

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh rosemary

5 ml black pepper or to taste

5 ml salt or to taste

Heat the oil in a roomy, heavy-bottomed pot. When hot, add the chicken pieces. Fry them, stirring now and then, for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, in a measuring cup, mix the stock granules with the flour, and mix very well. Add warm water to the 375 ml level, and stir well.
Do not use very hot or boiling water, as the flour will form lumps. Add the honey to this warm mixture, and stir well until the honey has dissolved.

Drain the olives. You could use only one sachet if you feel two are too much.

Slice the lemon very thinly, discarding the ends and pips. Cut the slices in half.

Add the stock to the chicken in the pot, lower the heat and put on the lid at an angle to let steam escape.

After a period of time, add the rosemary, olives and lemon slices to the pot.

Simmer with the lid at an angle for about 25 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced somewhat. If uncertain, stick a skewer through a thick piece. If the juice that runs out is clear, the chicken is done. Transfer the chicken pieces to a serving dish.

Taste the sauce and, if necessary, adjust with either honey or lemon juice. Add the pepper and salt to taste.

Ladle the sauce over the chicken and serve with rice and vegetables.

Serves 4

Chicken with Rosemary and Roast Garlic

This is very simple – just a roast chicken with butter and rosemary, but that roast garlic makes it irresistible! Zuri

1.5–1.8 kg plump organic chicken

about 60 ml (¼ cup) very soft butter

seasoning salt (I prefer Melissa’s Cook’s Salt with chilli, lime and coriander)

a handful of fresh rosemary sprigs

1 lemon, quartered

1 onion, cut into large chunks

1 whole garlic bulb

5 ml (1 tsp) olive oil

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Put the chicken in a suitable ovenproof dish.

Rub the chicken all over with the soft butter, and season with a good seasoning salt.

Strip the rosemary leaves off the stalks, or simply cut off. Then snip the rosemary leaves and pat over the chicken, and put some in the cavity. Add 2 lemon quarters and chunks of onion to the cavity as well. Put the rest around the chicken.

Slice the top off the garlic bulb, so most of the clove tops are exposed. Place in a small ovenproof dish or next to the chicken. Pour the olive oil over the garlic and bake it alongside the chicken.

If you like, truss the chicken with string. Bake, with no added liquid, in the preheated oven for about 1½ hours until golden brown.

Press out the garlic paste from the baked bulb and spread this over the chicken before serving.

Serves 4–6

My Chicken Pie

Chicken pie remains a favourite traditional dish. This is my take on it, which is not very labour intensive. The flavours are as close to Granny Greta’s as possible. Do shop for a plump, yellow-tinged organic bird and avoid blue-tinged, thin chickens. Zuri

frozen puff pastry or Granny Greta’s Sour Cream Pastry (see page 46)

1.5 kg plump chicken

500 ml (2 cups) water

45 ml (3 Tbsp) chicken stock powder

15 ml (1 Tbsp) garlic-and-herb seasoning

2 fresh garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

10 ml (2 tsp) freshly ground black pepper

7 ml (about 1½ tsp) ground nutmeg

3 ml (½ tsp) ground cloves

45 ml (3 Tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon juice

5 ml (1 tsp) salt or seasoning salt

10 ml (2 tsp) chopped fresh thyme or 5 ml (1 tsp) dried thyme

10 ml (2 tsp) dried rosemary or 15 ml chopped fresh rosemary

45 ml (3 Tbsp) cake flour

3 eggs

120 g good-quality sliced ham

Defrost the puff pastry in the fridge. Place the whole chicken and the water in a large pot. Sprinkle over the stock powder, put on the lid and bring to the boil. Then lower the heat and simmer until the chicken is so tender that it falls off the bones.

Carefully remove the chicken from the pot using a slotted spoon and put it into a dish to cool. Pull the pot with the stock off the heat to cool. When the chicken has cooled enough to handle, remove all the meat from the bones and place in a separate bowl. Use all the meat and skin. Don’t cut the meat too finely as this spoils the final texture. Be sure to remove all the tiny bones. With a slotted spoon, lift out any bits of meat that stayed behind in the cooled stock.

Now add the remaining ingredients, from the garlic-and-herb seasoning up to and including the rosemary, to the pot of stock, adjusting the flavour to your taste if necessary.

Add the flour, 1 Tbsp at a time, and whisk well. Then beat 2 eggs and add. Return the cooled chopped chicken to the pot and mix gently with a wooden spoon. If you feel the sauce is not enough, add a little more stock or some white wine.

Preheat the oven to 220 ºC.

On a floured surface, roll out the pastry to fit the top of a suitable ovenproof dish. Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl.

Scrape the chicken and sauce into the ovenproof dish. Slice up the ham and scatter over the chicken. Paint the edges of the dish with the extra beaten egg, and cover the top of the pie loosely with the puff pastry. Leave some slack as the pastry will shrink while baking. Press down the edges neatly and cut off the excess pastry with kitchen scissors. Brush the pastry with the remaining beaten egg.

Bake for 10 minutes, then turn down the heat to 180 ºC and bake for about 1 hour, until the pastry is puffed up and golden, and you can see the filling sizzling underneath.

Serve with rice, roast potatoes or sweet potatoes, young green beans and a tomato salad.

Serves 4–6

Malay-style Chicken Curry

There are so many variations on these lovely curries. Cape Malay curries are not always strong, but contain a wonderfully aromatic mix of spices. This is more or less the way we like it: it took discipline to measure and write down spice quantities, as I usually go by ‘feel’! Naturally this can be made into a stronger curry by adding more hot chillies. Again, this dish also improves if made ahead and reheated in the oven. Zuri

about 7 ml (1½ tsp) fresh coriander seeds

10 ml (2 tsp) dried chilli flakes or chopped fresh chilli to taste

10 ml (2 tsp) ground fennel or 20 ml (4 tsp) fennel seeds

7 ml (1½ tsp) ground cumin

30 ml (2 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh ginger

5 ml (1 tsp) turmeric

5 ml (1 tsp) coarse black pepper

10 whole cardamom pods

3 ml (½ tsp) ground cinnamon

15 ml (1 Tbsp) garam masala

60 ml (¼ cup) oil for frying

1 medium onion, peeled and chopped

1 x 410 g can chopped peeled tomatoes

1 kg chicken pieces

10 ml (2 tsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

10 ml (2 tsp) brown sugar (muscovado is nice)

15 ml (1 Tbsp) lemon juice

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

Put the 10 spices listed – from the coriander seeds down to the garam masala – in a pestle and mortar or a coffee-bean grinder. Mash together so that the cardamom pods crack open and you have a mess of spices.

Heat the oil in a pot and fry the onion over a fairly high heat for a few minutes, stirring now and then. Add the mashed spices and stir. You might have to add more oil, as the spices slurp up oil as they fry.

Fry, stirring a few times, for about 2 minutes. Add the can of tomatoes, stir through and bring to a bubbly simmer.

Add the chicken pieces and, with a wooden spoon, stir well to coat with the sauce. Turn down the heat, put a lid on the pot and cook for about 20 minutes.

Sprinkle over the garlic, sugar, lemon juice and salt. Simmer, with the lid slightly tilted to let steam escape, for a further 15 minutes. Then stir through, taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking.

Near the end of cooking, wait for oil and fat to collect on top and then skim off as much as you can.

Serve with rice and old-fashioned stewed beans.

Serves 4

All-in-one Roast Chicken Dinner

At least once in 10 days I make some variation of this simple roast dish. It’s very hard to provide a definitive recipe, but I assure you it works beautifully! Many other sliced vegetables can be substituted for those mentioned here.* For a larger family, simply use a larger, deep roasting tin and more of the ingredients. A whole chicken works out cheaper than chicken pieces, but for this dish it should be butterflied (a flattie) or cut into pieces. We love a flattie (without any butcher’s sauce, so I usually butterfly a chicken myself). It helps to cut out the breast bones for ease of spreading the meat over the veggies. And in case you’re wondering: everything really is cooked at the same time! The recipe might sound long, but it’s so easy: just a case of mixing a dressing, and layering vegetables and chicken. Zuri

4 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

sea salt flakes to taste

500 g fresh green beans, topped

3 ml sugar

ground nutmeg to taste

fresh rosemary

1–2 large sweet peppers, any colour, seeded and quartered

1 red onion, peeled and cut into wedges

fresh thyme, stripped from the stems

4 baby marrows, topped, tailed and sliced lengthwise

30 ml (2 Tbsp) mustard**

30 ml (2 Tbsp) honey

30 ml (2 Tbsp) mayonnaise

250 ml (1 cup) dried breadcrumbs, or more if necessary

1 butterflied chicken or chicken pieces (about 1.5 kg)

30 ml (2 Tbsp) balsamic vinegar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) olive oil

1 whole garlic bulb

extra olive oil for drizzling

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Spray a large, deep ovenproof dish with non-stick cooking spray. Layer the bottom with the potato slices and sprinkle very sparingly with salt. Lay the green beans over the potato slices and again sprinkle very lightly with salt, as well as the sugar and nutmeg. Snip over a generous amount of fresh rosemary.

Put the sweet peppers and the onion wedges on top of the beans, and add some fresh thyme. Top these layers with the sliced baby marrows and again sprinkle lightly with salt.

In a bowl, whisk together the mustard, honey and mayonnaise until emulsified. Put the dried breadcrumbs into another bowl.

Dip each chicken piece in the mustard-honey dressing, then roll in the crumbs, and place on the bed of vegetables. Continue until all the chicken pieces are coated. Alternatively, if using a butterflied chicken, season the chicken underneath, then simply place skin-side up on the vegetable bed, paint thickly with the mustard sauce, and sprinkle very well with breadcrumbs.

Sprinkle the balsamic vinegar and olive oil lightly over the dish.

Keeping the bulb whole, cut off the tops of the garlic cloves and place in the centre of the dish. Drip olive oil over the cut clove tops.

Drizzle any remaining mustard-honey dressing among the chicken pieces, to reach the vegetables underneath.

Bake for 1¼–1½ hours, until a fork or knife inserted in the centre goes through easily. It will probably be necessary to cover the chicken lightly with foil halfway through cooking, if it starts to burn on top.

All you need with this dish is a nice salad, and you have a healthy dinner!

Serves 4–6

*Other sliced vegetables that can be used: sliced pumpkin and butternut, baby gem squash, patty pans, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, etc. If using a hard vegetable like carrots, cut them into thin julienne strips as they don’t soften easily.

**Any mustard can be used. The taste of the sauce might differ, but it’s usually very tasty, even with the cheap yellow mustard. I recently discovered an American-type mustard (Spicy Brown Mustard) that really makes a lovely tangy sauce with the honey.

Slow-roasted Pork Belly

This is one of our absolute favourite meat dishes! It is a relative of the Pulled Pork of America’s southern states, but wholly my own simple way of preparing it. They eat theirs on buns, with all kinds of garnishes. Because it is rich, we have this with very plainly cooked vegetables and baby or jacket potatoes. The oven temperature is correct and safe, and the final product is meltingly tender and can literally be pulled apart. Buy a meaty slab of pork belly, or have your butcher cut it for you. He can also score the rind for you. It’s best, but not necessary, to prepare the belly the day before you plan to roast it. Zuri

about 1.8 kg meaty pork belly in a neat slab

125 ml (½ cup) apple cider vinegar

100 ml brown sugar

The pork rind should be scored, diamond fashion, with a very sharp knife, but usually this has been done for you already.

Put the belly in a suitable ovenproof dish, not metal. Rub the belly, top and bottom, with the vinegar. Pour the leftover vinegar over the meat.

Pat the brown sugar all over the rind: the meat will not be sweet!

Time the roasting, so the belly is ready at dinnertime: it needs 8 hours’ roasting. In fact, whatever the weight of the pork belly, it stays in the oven for 8 hours.

Heat the oven to 120 ºC and roast the belly, uncovered, for the prescribed 8 hours.

After that, you could switch on your grill, and grill the crackling to get it more crispy – but watch closely, as it burns quickly.

Don’t remove or cut off any fat ... eat as is, cutting or pulling apart the meltingly tender meat. Have salt on the table, and have the mustard ready for those who want to gild the lily.

Serves 4–6

Stewed Pork Shanks

This meat cut is extremely nutritious and reasonably priced. Contrary to general belief, it is low in fat. It has a lot of connective tissue and gelatine, and it’s very high in calcium. It has great flavour and needs no dressing up. It’s one of our favorites! Zuri

1 kg or more pork shank slices

500 ml (2 cups) water

30 ml (2 Tbsp) vinegar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) sago

2 large potatoes, unpeeled, cut into chunks

30 ml (2 Tbsp) dried onion flakes or a chopped onion

5 ml (1 tsp) dried crushed garlic powder or fresh crushed garlic

salt to taste

5 ml (1 tsp) coarse black pepper or to taste

grated lemon rind and chopped fresh parsley to garnish

Wash the slices of pork well under running water. Put them into a pot and add the water and vinegar. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat to low, put on the lid and simmer for 1½–2 hours, until the meat is tender but not falling apart. Do check the liquid in the pot from time to time, and add more if necessary.

Add the sago, potato chunks, onion flakes or onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Stir well, put the lid back on and simmer for a further ½ hour. The meat should now almost fall off the bones, the sago should be translucent and the potatoes done.

Spoon the stew into a serving dish, and sprinkle over the lemon rind and parsley.

Serve with rice, vegetables and a salad.

Serves 4

Cheat’s Easy Pork Terrine

Let your guests think you took hours over this! It’s the easiest terrine ever; just choose the very highest-quality pork sausages to get the best results. This dish should be made a day ahead. Zuri

250 g streaky bacon (not lean)

750 g pork sausages, skins removed

2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

5 ml (1 tsp) dried rosemary or 15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely snipped fresh rosemary

30 ml (2 Tbsp) brandy or whisky

coarsely grated rind of 1 orange

125 ml (½ cup) orange juice

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

2 eggs, beaten

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Lightly grease a ceramic or metal medium-sized bread tin. Line with the bacon, pressing it against the greased inside: it will stay put.

Put the pork sausage meat in a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix well. Spoon the mixture into the lined bread tin and press it in lightly, spreading to the corners, with the back of a spoon.

Bake for 1 hour or more, until slightly risen. (You could bake it more carefully, by putting the bread tin in a larger dish, then filling the outer dish halfway up the sides with hot water.)

Wrap an ordinary, cleaned clay brick in two thicknesses of foil.

When the terrine comes out of the oven, do not pour off the liquids that were shed, as most will be reabsorbed. You can get rid of excess fat when you finally unmould it.

Cool the terrine slightly, then fit the brick on top so it rests firmly on the terrine. When cooled completely, put in the fridge and leave overnight.

To serve, discard the brick, unmould the terrine onto a platter and reheat if you like. This can be served at room temperature, but not chilled. When sliced, it will have the appearance of a real terrine. Garnish to taste and serve with a mild mustard or other sauce of your choice.

Serves 6–8

Roast Pork with Grape Sauce

I can’t remember my mother ever cooking with grapes, even though vineyards surrounded us. Grapes were packed for export, eaten or used to make jam. Yet grapes go so well with meat dishes like chicken or pork, and then there is the well-known Sole Véronique. For the following recipe I used deboned neck of pork, but any pork roast or pork chops will do, as the sauce is the main flavour. Annie

1 kg pork roast

salt and lemon pepper to taste

125 ml (½ cup) semisweet white wine

Sauce:

250 ml (1 cup) reserved stock (use extra chicken stock if necessary)

250 ml (1 cup) seedless grapes, peeled

2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

10 ml (2 tsp) Dijon mustard

30 ml (2 Tbsp) medium cream sherry

125 ml (½ cup) cream

salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 190 °C.

Heat an ovenproof skillet on your hob until very hot and fry the pork in its own fat until nicely brown on all sides. Drain off the excess fat and sprinkle the meat with salt and lemon pepper. Return the meat to the skillet, pour in the wine, cover with foil and roast for 1½–2 hours.

Remove the pork and keep warm in a serving dish. Measure out 250 ml (1 cup) of the meaty juices in the skillet and reserve for the sauce. If you do not have enough, add chicken stock.

Put the reserved liquid, stock, grapes and garlic in a pot and bring to a boil.

Boil for about 5 minutes or until the grapes are slightly softened.

Add the mustard and sherry, and stir to combine well. Lastly, add the cream and bring back to the boil. Season very lightly with salt.

Pour the sauce over the whole roast or slice first and then add the sauce.

Serves 4

Stuffed Pork Belly

When buying a pork belly for this dish, choose a meaty one with a not-too-thick layer of fat, and ask the butcher to remove the rind. You can do it yourself, but it needs a sharp knife and is time-consuming. A supermarket butcher will also do it for you. This is an economical cut and the end result is very tasty and looks very appetising. The ingredients for the stuffing and the rub really do contain the same seasonings, in case you’re wondering! Annie

1 pork belly, about 1.8–2 kg

olive oil for brushing

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

200 ml beer or white wine

Stuffing:

4 good-quality pork sausages, skins removed

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Dijon mustard

15 ml (1 Tbsp) fresh thyme leaves, stripped from the stalks

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh sage

15 ml (1 Tbsp) honey

Rub:

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Dijon mustard

15 ml (1 Tbsp) chopped fresh thyme leaves

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh sage

15 ml (1 Tbsp) honey

juice and zest of ½ lemon

15 ml (1 Tbsp) olive oil

Preheat the oven to 190 ºC.

Combine all of the stuffing ingredients and mix well. Season with a pinch of salt only, and a little black pepper to taste, as the sausages contain salt.

Place the belly, fat-side down, on a work surface. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle sparingly with salt and black pepper.

Form the stuffing into a ‘sausage’ and place it in the centre of the belly. Roll up from the longest side, tying the roll at intervals with kitchen twine, to make sure the roll holds its shape while roasting.

Mix the ingredients for the rub and rub this all over the belly roll. Sprinkle sparingly with salt and some black pepper.

Place the roll into a suitable ovenproof dish, add the beer or wine to the dish and bake, uncovered, for 2–2½ hours. Baste a few times during cooking.

When done, let the meat rest for a while before carving into slices. Don’t forget to remove the twine before serving!

If you wish, you can make a gravy with the pan juices after you have drained off most of the fat.

Serves 6–8

Old South African Pork Chop Marinade

This is one of our inherited heirloom recipes and probably known only on my father’s side of the family. This recipe was used not only as a marinade: in a time before refrigeration it actually preserved the chops for more than a week. You will think it a peculiar, very sour marinade, but the marinade is discarded and not eaten – and it is amazing what it does to pork loin chops, which can be hard and dry. I cannot recommend this enough for a modern-day braai! Allow the meat to marinate for at least three days before braaiing. Zuri

250 ml (1 cup) dried apricots, loosely measured

3 large onions, peeled and sliced into thin rings

500 ml (2 cups) white grape vinegar

20 ml (4 tsp) mixed spices (crushed cardamom, cumin, fennel seeds, aniseed, coriander – whatever you have)

15 ml (1 Tbsp) fresh, mild Malay-style curry powder

5 ml (1 tsp) turmeric

30 ml (2 Tbsp) sugar

12 well-bruised lemon leaves or 6 slices lemon peel

5 ml (1 tsp) white pepper

salt to taste

Boil the apricots in water until soft. There should be enough water in the pot to allow you to purée the apricots in a blender when soft. At the same time, simmer the sliced onions in the vinegar in a pan until tender.

In the meantime, mix the spices with the curry powder and turmeric, and stir in the sugar.

The apricots cook quickly: mash or purée them, add to the boiling onion-vinegar mixture, and then add the spice-sugar mixture, the lemon leaves or peel, and the pepper. Remove from the heat, stir well and cool to room temperature. If the marinade is very thick, add a little water, but it must be of coating consistency, i.e. fairly thick.

Ladle some of the mixture into the bottom of a glass, porcelain or ceramic dish, and spread it. Add a layer of chops and spread some marinade over them. Stack the rest on top and spread again with the marinade. There should be enough so each chop gets its share.

Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate. Allow at least 3 days for the marinade to work its magic. In days of old, the dish would have been kept in an outside ‘cold room’. It’s a good idea to repack and turn them at least once to make sure every bit is marinated. They will last up to 7 days in the fridge, maybe more, but let’s stay on the safe side.

They should definitely go on a braai and not in a pan, although if that’s not possible, a ridged iron pan can be used on the hob. Please note that the very sour marinade is not used. Scrape it off the chops with a spatula before braaiing. You should not scrape them clean, just get rid of most of the marinade.

Braai and then add salt to taste. You should have very tender chops with a lovely tangy taste. Use medium, not low heat: it’s fine if the fat starts scorching just a little.

Makes enough for 8–10 pork loin chops

Lamb Shanks with Red Wine Sauce

Deliciously robust, this is a really assertive sauce. It can be made up to two days ahead, as the flavour improves on standing. One shank at about 500 g per adult sounds like a lot, but shanks contain a large bone and shrink a lot during cooking. Besides, don’t we South Africans have large appetites for good lamb? Zuri

1.5–2 kg meaty lamb shanks, not less than 4

180 ml dry red wine (Tassies will do)

125 ml (½ cup) water

4–8 sprigs of rosemary, chopped

250 ml (1 cup) lamb broth (if left in pot, otherwise add beef stock to make up 1 cup)

250 ml (1 cup) dry red wine

1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped

125 ml (½ cup) brown sugar

45 ml (3 Tbsp) soy sauce

45 ml (3 Tbsp) balsamic vinegar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

a pinch of ground cloves

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

grated zest of 1 lemon

salt to taste

125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped fresh parsley or spring onions or lemon rind curls

Preheat the oven to 150 ºC.

Arrange the shanks tightly together in a roasting tray or suitable dish. Pour over the wine and water, and scatter over the rosemary. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 2–3 hours. Check after 2 hours, as you want tender shanks, but not falling off the bone. The cooking time may be appreciably longer, depending on the thickness and tenderness of the meat.

Remove the shanks from the dish to a suitable serving platter. Measure 250 ml (1 cup) of the lamb broth left in the dish. I sometimes find there is not enough broth left, in which case I add some beef stock to make up the amount.

Put the broth or stock, red wine, onion, sugar, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, cloves and pepper in a fairly big pot. Bring to a rolling boil (don’t cover) and let it boil for about 30 minutes, until it has reduced to about 1½ cups or less. It will have thickened considerably.

Add the lemon zest. Taste the sauce on a wooden spoon; do not burn your tongue! Season with salt and add either more vinegar, sugar or lemon juice to taste.

Spoon some of this sauce over the meat and pour the rest into a gravy boat. Keep the lamb and sauce lightly covered in a warming oven if not served immediately: the sauce will mellow on standing.

Serves 4–6

Garnish this dish with either parsley, spring onions or lemon rind curls, and serve with buttered jacket potatoes and steamed vegetables.

Cape-style Roast Leg of Lamb

My mother believed that a leg of lamb or mutton should weigh in excess of 2½ kg, otherwise it wasn’t worth her while – certainly not for making this flavourful roast. This age-old method of marinating the leg before roasting is also used for venison roasts. The meat must marinate for a minimum of 24 hours. Apart from the gravy and side dishes, it’s usually served with homemade mint sauce. I have no formal recipe for this: I guessed the quantities. Adjust to your taste and the size of the leg of lamb. Annie

60 ml (¼ cup) coriander seeds

2½–3 kg leg of lamb

8–10 cloves garlic, peeled and slivered

4–6 slices bacon, chopped and rolled in chopped fresh or dried thyme

750 ml (3 cups) red wine (Tassies is fine)

½ cup water for roasting

¾ cup beef stock for gravy

30 ml (2 Tbsp) cake flour for gravy

salt and black pepper to taste

Using a small pan, dry-roast the coriander, shaking the pan so it does not burn. Roast just until you can smell it or it starts to catch.

Don’t remove any fat from the lamb unless the layer of fat is excessive. With a sharp paring knife, make slits all over the leg and on the underside, and stuff each with a sliver of garlic and a piece of bacon rolled in thyme.

Put the leg in a non-reactive ceramic or glass dish and pour over the red wine, to come up halfway. (You may not need all the wine.) Take a palm full of roasted coriander seeds and rub all over the lamb. Sprinkle the rest into the wine, along with any leftover garlic, bacon and thyme.

Marinate the lamb for at least 24 hours, but preferably 2–3 days. Turn over once or twice a day. (The wine will ‘discolour’ the meat. I don’t even notice it, but if that bothers you, you can use white wine, although the flavour of the meat will not be the same.)

To roast, heat the oven to 200 ºC. Lift the leg from the marinade into a roaster. Do not add the marinade, as it tends to turn bitter in the oven, but keep some to add to the gravy later. Add the water to the roaster.

Roast the lamb, uncovered, for at least 20 minutes, until the fat begins to colour. Then put on a lid and reduce the heat to 180 ºC. Usually I calculate roasting time at 20–25 minutes per 500 g, but that might be too long for a nice tender leg. Take the lid off again about 10 minutes before the lamb is done.

Place on a serving platter and keep warm.

Skim most of the fat off the liquid in the roaster and, if your roaster is up to it, put it straight onto a stove plate. Otherwise, decant all the juices and bits into a small pot.

Add the stock and ¼ cup of the leftover wine marinade to the roaster or pot. Whisk in the flour. (If you’re not a purist, you can also use Bisto for thickening.) Stir until the gravy starts to bubble and thicken. Season with salt and black pepper.

Before serving, pour a tablespoon or two of gravy over the leg of lamb and serve the rest separately. As the leg was not salted at any stage, provide salt at the table.

Serve with yellow rice or oven-roasted potatoes, stewed green beans, carrots or roast pumpkin and a salad.

Serves 6–8

Farmhouse Lamb Stew

This is a plain stew – just the kind of comfort dish one sometimes gets a longing for. It makes quite a lot of sauce, which is reduced by fast cooking at the end. Serve with rice and farmstyle cooked veggies. This simple dish can also be made the day before. Annie

1.5 kg stewing lamb, such as knuckles

cake flour for dusting

oil for frying

200 ml water

30 ml (2 Tbsp) vinegar

1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 × 410 g can chopped or whole peeled tomatoes

10 ml (2 tsp) sugar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) soy sauce

1 small chilli, finely chopped or 5 ml (1 tsp) hot sauce

3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

3 ml (½ tsp) ground cloves

10 ml (2 tsp) ground sage or 15 ml (1 Tbsp) chopped fresh

10 ml (2 tsp) dried rosemary or 15 ml chopped fresh

3 potatoes, cut into chunks

10 ml (2 tsp) salt or to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat a large pot until quite hot. In the meantime, dip the meat into a small bowl of flour. When the pot is really, really hot, add a film of oil and then let the oil reach a very high heat. (If you do this every time you fry meat, the meat won’t stick to the bottom.)

Lightly fry the meat in batches, using a wooden spoon to turn the pieces. Be careful of spattering fat.

Add the water, vinegar and onion to the pot, lower the heat, put on the lid and simmer for about 45 minutes – more if the meat is tough. Do peek now and then, as the water might boil away, although the heat should be low enough to prevent this from happening.

Add the tomatoes, sugar and soy sauce, and simmer with the lid on for about another 30 minutes. Then add the chilli, garlic, cloves, herbs and potato chunks.

Boil the stew over a fairly high heat, without the lid, until the potatoes are cooked and the sauce is reduced. By the time the sauce has reduced, the potatoes will be tender.

Taste and season with salt and pepper. You may need to add a little extra sugar. Tip the stew into an ovenproof dish, cover with foil and keep warm until ready to serve. The flavour will improve on standing.

Serves 4–6

Spiced Lamb Stew with Dried Apricots

This stew is reminiscent of Moroccan cuisine, but was home-grown in my kitchen. It is really, really necessary to make this a day ahead or in the morning for evening dinner, as the flavours improve so much on standing. Be sure your spices are fresh and fragrant. Annie

oil for frying

1 large onion, peeled and sliced or chopped

about 5 cm fresh ginger root, peeled and finely chopped

10 ml (2 tsp) ground cinnamon

2 ml ground cloves

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

5 ml (1 tsp) salt or to taste

8 cardamom pods

15 ml (1 Tbsp) ground coriander

3 ml (½ tsp) turmeric

3 star anise (optional)

1.5 kg stewing lamb or neck of lamb, preferably lean and meaty

about 6 strips lemon peel, chopped

500 ml (2 cups) beef stock

60 ml (¼ cup) flaked or nibbed almonds

2–3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

125 g dried apricots, halved

sugar or honey to taste

Heat the oil in a large pot and fry the onion and ginger, stirring now and then, until the onion has softened.

In the meantime, mix the cinnamon, cloves, pepper, salt, cardamom pods, coriander, turmeric and star anise (if using) in a mortar and pestle. Pound to break up the cardamom pods and star anise.

Add the spice mixture to the onions and stir well. Let the spices fry for a couple of minutes to release their fragrance. You might have to add a little more oil at this stage.

Add the lamb and lemon peel, and stir well to coat with the spices. Add the stock and almonds. Put on the lid, turn the heat to low and simmer until the lamb is almost tender.

Add the garlic and apricots to the pot and simmer, with the lid on, until the meat almost falls off the bone. Cooking time is approximate, but usually 1½–2 hours.

Taste for seasoning: dried apricots can be sweet, but can also be quite tart, and become more so in cooking. In the latter case, you will want to add some sugar or honey to the stew.

Serve with basmati rice and a green vegetable.

Serves 4

Stuffed Beef Roll

Buy high-quality matured steak for this, as a cheap cut will result in a tough roll and won’t be worth the effort. The Gruyère can be substituted for Provolone or another mild cheese, or even blue cheese. The Black Forest ham can be replaced with prosciutto or Parma ham, but again, use a high-quality ham and not pink plastic. Annie

about 1.4 kg thick and even rump steak, preferably rectangular

45 ml (3 Tbsp) olive oil

30 ml (2 Tbsp) prepared mustard, such as Dijon

sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper to taste

100 ml finely chopped fresh parsley

100 g Black Forest ham, thinly sliced

100 g Gruyère cheese, thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 200 ºC.

Carefully butterfly the steak without cutting right through, open it up, and flatten with a rolling pin between two sheets of clingfilm.

Rub 15 ml (1 Tbsp) of the olive oil over the surface of the meat and spread the mustard over that. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and all the parsley.

Arrange the ham in overlapping layers on the meat and then arrange the cheese slices over the ham. Don’t layer these two ingredients right to the edge of the meat; leave a small margin at the edges.

Starting at the long side, roll up the meat, pressing down lightly as you roll, to prevent air being trapped inside. Tie the roll at intervals with kitchen twine. Rub the rest of the olive oil over the meat.

Place the roll in a roasting tin or ovenproof dish and roast for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180 ºC and roast for a further 30 minutes. Let the roll rest in a warming drawer for 10 minutes before slicing, and remember to remove the twine before serving!

Serves 6

Beef Stew in Red Wine with Croutons

The French have their boeuf bourguignon and beef daube: well, this is our simple South African version. You can add mushrooms if you like. You can use a cheaper meat cut, but the cooking time will be appreciably longer.* This very flavourful stew can easily be doubled. Zuri

500 g beef rump or sirloin, cut into chunks

15 ml (1 Tbsp) cake flour

oil for frying

1 large red onion, peeled and cut into large chunks

250 g rindless back bacon, cut into large pieces

30 ml (2 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

250 ml (1 cup) red wine

5–10 ml (1–2 tsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

10 ml (2 tsp) dried thyme

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

chopped fresh parsley to serve

Croutons:

125 ml (½ cup) olive oil

finely chopped fresh garlic to taste

10 ml (2 tsp) dried thyme

1 long French baguette, cut into about 12 thin slices

Place the beef in a bowl and sprinkle over the flour, then toss to coat.

Heat some oil in a roomy pot. Add the onion, stir through for a minute, then add the beef and bacon. Cook for 2–3 minutes over a high heat, stirring often.

Reduce the heat, add the Worcestershire sauce and red wine, put on the lid and simmer for 10 minutes on a very low heat. Then remove the lid, turn the heat up somewhat and simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Add the garlic, thyme, pepper and salt. Simmer, uncovered, for another 10 minutes.

While the meat simmers, heat your grill and position a grid about 14 cm below the heat.

To make the croutons, pour the olive oil into a small bowl, add lots of garlic and the thyme, and dip both sides of each baguette slice into the oil. Place the slices on a baking tray and toast under the grill, turning once. Watch them: I find the croutons can burn in as little as 2 minutes. They should be golden brown and crisp.

Remove the meat from the pot with a slotted spoon and set aside in a serving dish. Turn the heat up high under the liquid remaining in the pot. Reduce somewhat – this takes just a few minutes – and pour over the meat. Arrange the croutons around the stew and sprinkle over some parsley. Serve with potatoes or brown basmati rice.

Serves 3–4

*If you use a cheaper cut of stewing meat, cook until the meat is tender. There will be no need to reduce the sauce due to the longer cooking time. In fact, you might have to add liquid during cooking.

Stir-fried Beef Strips with Broccoli

Serve this Chinese beef stir-fry with sticky rice and extra vegetables. Annie

500 g rump steak

30 ml (2 Tbsp) soy sauce

15 ml (1 Tbsp) sweet sherry

20 ml (4 tsp) cornflour

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh ginger

60 ml (¼ cup) cooking oil

3 spring onions, chopped

30 ml (2 Tbsp) oyster sauce

120 ml chicken stock

about 350 g broccoli florets

10 ml (2 tsp) sesame oil or olive oil

Cut the steak into narrow strips and put into a bowl.

Whisk together 15 ml (1 Tbsp) of the soy sauce, the sweet sherry, 10 ml (2 tsp) of the cornflour, the ginger and 10 ml (2 tsp) of the cooking oil. Stir this into the beef strips and leave to marinate for 10 minutes.

Combine the remaining soy sauce and cornflour with the chopped spring onions, oyster sauce and 30 ml (2 Tbsp) of the chicken stock.

Heat the remaining cooking oil with this sauce in a wok until hot, then stir-fry the marinated beef strips in batches over a high heat, until just done. Remove the batches to a heated serving dish with a slotted spoon, and keep in a warming oven (while you work).

Place the broccoli florets in the wok in the remaining sauce, adding the rest of the stock and the nut or olive oil. Stir over a high heat for 3–4 minutes.

Remove with a slotted spoon and arrange the broccoli around the beef in the serving dish. Serve immediately with rice.

Serves 4

Annie’s Mince-stuffed Green Peppers

This is hardly an unknown or highly original dish, but this is my take on it, and we found it flavourful and filling. This is a great main dish when green peppers are plentiful. Annie

little oil for frying

1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

200 g mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

100 g diced bacon

400–450 g lean beef mince

250 ml (1 cup) milk

5 ml (1 tsp) dried Italian herbs or 15 ml (1 Tbsp) any chopped fresh herbs

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce 3–5 ml (½–1 tsp) dried chilli flakes

1 × 50 g (or 30 ml) sachet tomato paste

5 ml (1 tsp) sugar

salt and pepper to taste

4 large green peppers (or any colour), halved lengthwise, seeds and ribs removed

a little water or white wine

olive oil for drizzling

about 125 ml (½ cup) grated Cheddar cheese

Heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the onion, mushrooms and garlic until soft. Add the bacon and mince, and fry for a few more minutes, stirring to prevent the mince forming lumps.

Now add 125 ml (½ cup) of the milk and bring to a simmer. Add the herbs, Worcestershire sauce and chilli flakes. Cook, stirring often, for 20–30 minutes, adding more milk as the liquid evaporates. I find that the longer it cooks in this slow fashion, the better the flavour. Add the tomato paste and sugar towards the end, stir through, and cook for another 10–15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 160 ºC.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to the boil and blanch the halved peppers for 5–7 minutes. Remove and drain, and arrange in an ovenproof dish. Pour a little water or wine into the dish. Fill the pepper cavities with the mince mixture and drizzle with olive oil.

Sprinkle some grated cheese on top of each pepper, and bake until heated through and the cheese has melted. Baking time depends on the oven, so may vary between 15 and 25 minutes. If you like, put under a hot grill for about 2 minutes to lightly brown the cheese.

Serves 4–6

Roast Fillet Family Platter

This simple ‘recipe’ could have been turned into a carpaccio plate, but we wanted it to be a little more substantial. It’s a great dinner-cum-salad for hot South African summer nights. Add any garnishes you prefer. My husband likes a crusty Continental-type bread alongside. Zuri

750 g beef fillet, the thick end

15 ml (1 Tbsp) cake flour

5 ml (1 tsp) Chinese five-spice powder

butter and oil for frying

4 medium potatoes

mixed lettuce leaves

4–6 gherkins, sliced

a handful of drained sweet piquanté peppers

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

a handful of chopped spring onions

sea salt flakes and coarse black pepper to taste

about 45 ml (3 Tbsp) capers

Parmesan or pecorino cheese

vinaigrette made with virgin olive oil for drizzling

To keep the fillet neat, I prefer tying it at intervals with string.

Mix the flour and five-spice powder, then roll the fillet in it to give the meat a light coating.

The secret to frying meat without it sticking to the pan is to first heat the pan until really hot. Then add some oil and butter, and heat that until the butter starts browning. Then add the meat.

For rare meat, as it should be in this case, use wooden utensils and sear the meat on all sides (turning, turning ... ) over a very high heat, until the fillet is an attractive brown all over. This takes not much longer than 7 minutes. Remove the fillet to a dish and let it cool down.

Boil the potatoes in their skins until just cooked, and then allow to cool.

Arrange the lettuce leaves on a platter. Cut the fillet with a sharp knife into slices of just less than 1 cm thick and arrange on the lettuce leaves.

Leaving the skins on the potatoes, cut them into slices. Arrange next to the meat.

Add the gherkins and piquanté peppers to the platters, and scatter over the onion and spring onions.

Sprinkle the platter lightly with sea salt and black pepper, followed by the capers. Slice off slivers of Parmesan or pecorino and add to the platter.

Finally, drizzle over the vinaigrette and serve with crusty bread and a nice dry red wine.

Serves 4, but can stretch to 6

Venison Pie

This is (currently fashionable!) slow food, because of the long cooking time, but worth the effort. I used cubes of kudu meat, but any venison will do. Venison can be quite dry and really needs the addition of either pork fat or rashers. As tastes differ, do taste as you go along and adjust accordingly. It should have the right balance between sweet and sour. Annie

500 g fatty pork rashers, cubed

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

10 ml (2 tsp) crushed coriander seeds

6 whole cloves

3 lime or lemon or bay leaves

1 kg boneless venison, cubed

500 ml (2 cups) boiling water

3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

125 ml (½ cup) red wine vinegar

125 ml (½ cup) Marsala or sweet wine

30 ml (2 Tbsp) brown sugar

salt and black pepper to taste

sweet sherry or lemon juice for adjusting taste

1 egg, beaten

400 g puff pastry or Granny Greta’s Sour Cream Pastry (see page 46)

Fry the pork rashers and onion in a pot until the rashers release their fat and colour slightly.

Add the coriander seeds, cloves and leaves, and fry until fragrant.

Add the venison and 250 ml (1 cup) of the water, and bring to the boil.

Slowly simmer for 2–3 hours until really tender, adding the rest of the water as necessary to prevent the meat from cooking dry.

Preheat the oven to 200 °C.

Add the remaining ingredients up to and including the salt and pepper.

Cook until the sauce is slightly reduced, tasting and adjusting with the sherry or lemon juice if needed.

Pour the meat into a suitable pie dish and brush the edges of the dish with the beaten egg.

Roll out the pastry to fit the top of the pie dish and use it to cover the pie (do not stretch it). Crimp neatly along the edges. Brush with the remaining beaten egg to obtain that nice golden-brown colour.

Bake for 20–25 minutes until the pastry is puffed up and golden, but keep an eye on it. Serve with rice, cauliflower and sweet carrots.

Serves 6–8

Lots of Side Dishes

As a rule, we cook or steam fresh vegetables with little extra enhancement, and use the simplest seasonings. But it can get boring. Here’s a wide variety of ideas, including salads, and hopefully you’ll find something you like. Most of the recipes are still very easy and simple, as we see no reason to mess around too much with nice fresh veggies.

Our families seem to be addicted to salads, although the availability of certain ingredients often limits us to the usual lettuce, tomato and onion! Some of the salads included here are ideal as light summer lunches or as starters.

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Pecans

Many people do not like Brussels sprouts, but this way they’re really tasty! It’s such a healthy veggie. Another brilliant way to do sprouts is to bake them in the oven with sea salt flakes and olive oil until browned – it’s delicious, believe it or not! Zuri

500 g fresh Brussels sprouts

about 200 ml chicken stock

125 g bacon

125 ml (½ cup) pecan nuts, broken up

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg

a pinch of salt to taste

If necessary, trim the stem ends of the sprouts, and remove any yellowed or loose outer leaves. Boil the sprouts in the chicken stock until just tender – al dente, really, not too soft.

Cut the bacon into bite-sized pieces with kitchen scissors, and fry in a small pan, stirring, until cooked and crisp.

Drain the sprouts when ready, and put into a serving dish. Add the bacon plus any bacon fat in the pan, and add the pecan pieces. Turn over and stir through, adding the ground nutmeg and salt to taste. Serve soon after making.

Serves 4

Baked Cucumber

It was a pleasant surprise to discover that cucumbers can be baked this way. Sometimes fresh vegetables can be hard to come by, but there never seems to be a shortage of cucumbers. So I am grateful I tried this method one night when I had no other fresh veggies. I’ve tweaked the original a few times. If you don’t have sweet onions, try chopped spring onions. Zuri

1 fresh, long English cucumber

30 ml (2 Tbsp) apple cider vinegar

7 ml (about 1½ tsp) salt

10 ml (2 tsp) sugar

45 ml (3 Tbsp) olive oil or melted butter

100–125 ml finely chopped sweet onion or spring onions

1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed

30 ml (2 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh parsley

white pepper and extra salt to taste

Wash and dry the cucumber, then cut it into 3 or 4 pieces crosswise. Then cut the entire cucumber into batons.

In a bowl, toss the cucumber with the vinegar, salt and sugar, and leave for about 30 minutes or longer. Drain and pat dry with kitchen paper.

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

In an oven dish, toss the cucumber strips with the olive oil or melted butter, onion and garlic.

Bake uncovered for 20–30 minutes or until the cucumber sizzles, but it should still have some texture and crispness, and must not be soggy. Remove from the oven, toss in the parsley and season with white pepper and salt to taste.

Serves 4

Peas Mashed with Mint

This is an old comfort food, remembered from childhood: one of Ouma Sannie’s maids would sit under a eucalyptus tree in her back yard, legs stretched out, patiently podding fresh garden peas into a bowl. Ouma Sannie lived in wealthy comfort on the family grape farm in the Hex River Valley, and that’s how things were in those days. The peas tasted somehow better than today’s frozen peas too ... Serve this with roast chicken, roast potatoes and a yellow veggie like butternut. Zuri

750 ml (3 cups) peas (frozen is fine, fresh is scarce)

1 small potato, peeled and chopped into small pieces

a knob of butter and a sprinkle of salt

80 ml water

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

10 ml (2 tsp) sugar

3 ml (½ tsp) white pepper

60–90 ml (4–6 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh mint (use to taste)

Rinse the frozen peas to get rid of the ice and then make sure you have about 3 cups.

Fry the potato in a knob of butter in a pot, stirring, until the bits soften. Sprinkle lightly with salt.

Add the peas and the water, and bring to the boil. Stir well as soon as it starts to simmer. Add the salt, sugar and pepper, and stir. Turn down the heat and put on the lid. Simmer for no longer than 3 minutes if using frozen peas.

Drain, keeping the cooking liquid. Chuck the mixture into the food processor, but the mashing can be done with any utensil (such as a potato masher) that can do the job. Add mint to taste and process until well mashed, but not quite smooth. You might have to add a little of the cooking liquid to get the right consistency.

Taste for seasoning, adding more butter if you like.

Serves 4–6

Broccoli Soufflé Bake

This is not a soufflé, but rather a soufflé-like broccoli dish that even the kids will like! Zuri

500 g broccoli, trimmed and stalks thinly sliced

little oil for frying

1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped

about 80 g bacon, chopped

250 ml (1 cup) milk

15 ml (1 Tbsp) cake flour

2 large eggs

7 ml (about 1½ tsp) salt (a seasoned salt is nice)

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

3 ml (½ tsp) chilli sauce

250 ml (1 cup) grated Cheddar cheese, loosely measured

45 ml (3 Tbsp) dried or fresh breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 170 ºC. Grease a round, deep dish.

Cook the broccoli in a little water until barely tender. At the same time, heat a little oil in a pot and fry the onion and bacon pieces over a high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring continuously. Set aside.

Put the broccoli into a food processor with the milk, flour, eggs, salt, black pepper and chilli sauce, and process until smooth. Scrape into a bowl, then stir in the onion and bacon, as well as the cheese.

Scrape the mixture into the greased dish and sprinkle over the breadcrumbs.

Bake for about 45 minutes, until slightly risen and set. Serve with fried chicken pieces, potatoes and a tomato salad.

Serves 4–6

Crustless Baby Spinach Tart

This is one of my favourite inventions. It’s so quick, and fits right in with the simple, back-to-rustic trend! I prefer buying the pre-washed pillow packs of baby spinach, but any spinach will do, although it should be properly dried before using in this recipe: use a salad spinner to rinse and whirl until dry. If your packet of spinach weighs less than 200 g, simply make up the shortfall with chopped flat-leaf parsley. Do not use Swiss chard for this recipe, because it does not wilt properly and the leaves will dry out on top. Zuri

200 g baby spinach leaves, roughly chopped

125 ml (½ cup) chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

200 g feta cheese, blotted dry

125 ml (½ cup) chopped spring onion

125 ml (½ cup) fresh cream or crème fraîche

3 jumbo or extra-large eggs

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

60 ml (¼ cup) dried breadcrumbs (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Grease a smallish pie plate with butter. (The bottom diameter of the one I use is 18 cm.)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the spinach and parsley. Crumble over the feta and add the spring onion.

In another bowl, whisk the cream, eggs, nutmeg and pepper until foamy.

Add this mixture to the spinach and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon. It looks like a mess, but don’t worry!

Scrape this into the pie dish and flatten with your hands. It will still look like a mess. Sprinkle over the breadcrumbs, if using.

Bake for 30–35 minutes. When done, it will have assumed a decent shape, will have puffed up slightly in the centre and won’t wobble when you shake it.

It can wait in a warming oven or be served, sliced, immediately.

Serves 4

Deconstructed Ratatouille

Fancy name, but still flavourful and really worth the extra time to prepare! It’s best to make this ahead and warm it up, as the flavours will improve. It’s delicious with braai meats. The quantities are not all-important. Zuri

125 ml (½ cup) olive oil

100 ml balsamic vinegar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) brown sugar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Dijon mustard

2 medium aubergines (eggplants), thinly sliced lengthwise

4–6 baby marrows, sliced lengthwise

4 tomatoes, peeled and thickly sliced

1 red pepper, quartered, seeds and ribs removed

1 yellow pepper, quartered, seeds and ribs removed, then sliced again

1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced

4 whole unpeeled garlic cloves sea salt flakes and coarse black pepper to taste

6–8 sundried tomatoes in oil, sliced (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180 °C.

Whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar and mustard. (You can use cider vinegar and white sugar, but the darker colours won’t really affect the vegetables).

Put the vegetables in a large bowl and toss carefully with the vinaigrette mixture.

Line the bottom of a large biscuit tin or roasting tray with overlapping sheets of baking paper, to come up the sides: this is to save scrubbing the tin afterwards. Spread the vegetables on the paper using your hands. They need not be in a single layer, but the arrangement should be shallow. Put the garlic cloves among the vegetable slices.

Roast until the vegetables are tender and slightly sticky; bits might start to catch. The tomato should be soft and the skin of the peppers should start blistering. This process takes 45–60 minutes, depending on your oven. Do keep a watch, and stir the lot once or twice with a wooden spoon.

When the vegetables are ready, sprinkle lightly with sea salt flakes and pepper, press out the garlic paste from the cloves and then gently mix everything together in a serving dish. Add the sliced sundried tomatoes, if using. At this stage it can be cooled, covered and refrigerated, and reheated when needed.

To make a fancier ratatouille, roast the vegetables in single layers in two tins. The aubergines and marrows will roast very fast in this way, and will have to be removed from the oven before the other vegetables are ready. Remove the skins from the peppers after roasting.

Serves 4–6

Peppery Herbed Baby Potatoes

This is more an idea than a recipe. It’s very simple, yet surprisingly delicious! Use a fruity extra-virgin olive oil. Annie

about 750 g golf-ball sized baby potatoes in their skins, rinsed and halved

125 ml (½ cup) extra-virgin olive oil

185 ml (¾ cup) rinsed and finely chopped fresh herbs, consisting of at least 4 of the following: rosemary, marjoram, basil, spring onions, flat-leaf parsley, thyme and chives

15 ml (1 Tbsp) freshly ground black pepper

salt to taste (Maldon is best by far for this)

Boil the baby potatoes in a pot of salted water until just tender. You do not want them falling apart!

Drain the potatoes and put into a serving dish. Add the olive oil and toss lightly and carefully until they are coated. Add the chopped herbs and the pepper, again tossing well. Keep warm, but serve fairly soon, as some of the herbs may lose their fresh taste.

These are best salted at the table, to each diner’s taste.

Serves 4–6

Baby Marrows with Asian Flair

Baby marrows always seem to be available, and can be a boring little veggie. Here the bland marrows marry very well with the stronger seasonings. Annie

about 8 baby marrows

15 ml (1 Tbsp) oil

5 ml (1 tsp) finely chopped or grated fresh ginger

3 ml (½ tsp) dried chilli flakes

1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed

100 ml peanuts, chopped or crushed

15 ml (1 Tbsp) rice or apple cider vinegar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) soy sauce

3 ml (½ tsp) sugar

Either julienne or cut the baby marrows into thin rounds.

Heat the oil in a pan and, over a medium heat, fry the ginger, chilli and garlic for a minute or so to release the flavours, stirring all the time.

Add the peanuts, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar and baby marrows.

Stir-fry until the marrow pieces are al dente – crisp and not soft. This takes only a few minutes. Serve immediately.

Serves 3–4

Mom’s Irish Bake

This is similar to traditional Irish colcannon, with a South African accent! The potato and cabbage quantities can be changed: Mom never weighed anything, and with this I simply eyeball the ingredients and take as much as I think I need. Annie

about 1 litre (4 cups) finely sliced cabbage

about 700 g (about 5 medium) potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped

about 250 ml (1 cup) chopped spring onion

60 ml (¼ cup) soft butter

45 ml (3 Tbsp) milk

5 ml (1 tsp) cumin seeds

salt and white pepper to taste

250 ml (1 cup) grated Cheddar cheese

Lightly boil the cabbage for a few minutes until it wilts, and then drain, retaining the water. Boil the potatoes in the same water (add more if necessary) until tender. Drain.

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Put the potatoes in a bowl and mash roughly, then mix in the cabbage, spring onion, butter, milk and cumin seeds, and season to taste. (You’ll need about 5 ml salt, and Mom used white pepper.)

Put the mixture into a greased oven dish and lightly fork the cheese into the top layer – not right through – leaving some cheese on the top.

Bake for 30 minutes and serve hot.

Serves 4–6

Crusty Roast Potatoes

I know this is scarcely a recipe, but this is how our mother made roast potatoes, and how we make them. This should result in a really crisp, brown outside and a soft inside – but it must be emphasised that a lot depends on the type of potato. The best potatoes for oven roasting are the yellow types, like Astrid (hard to find), and the floury types that flake a little when cooked. Annie

6 very large or 12 smaller potatoes

about 30–50 ml canola or sunflower oil (but, if you can get it, duck fat makes the best roast potatoes!)

salt to serve

Preheat the oven to 200 ºC.

Peel the potatoes and cut the larger ones in two. Boil them in unsalted water until the outsides start to flake a little and the potatoes are almost cooked. Do check on them: some could fall apart if cooked for too long.

Lift out with a slotted spoon and place in a large bowl. If you’re not sure of the type of potato, and yours seem to stay firm with a smooth outside, shake them in a colander so they flake a little, or scrape with a fork.

Add enough oil to the bowl, then either shake or use a wooden spoon to toss the potatoes carefully so they are coated in oil. Tip into an ovenproof dish.

Do NOT use salt at this stage.

Bake for an hour or more (it could be nearer to 2 hours), until the potatoes are dark golden brown and crusty on the outside. Never cover them at any stage. Try to serve them as soon as possible to maintain that crispiness.

Serve salt separately.

Serves 4–6

Baked Sweet Butternut

Kids will love this; it tastes almost like pudding! It’s very good with pickled or smoked meats. Annie

750 ml (3 cups) cubed butternut

3 eggs

100 ml sugar

75 ml (5 Tbsp) melted butter

125 ml (½ cup) coconut milk

3 ml (½ tsp) ground cinnamon

a pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Boil the butternut cubes in lightly salted water until tender, but not mushy. Drain well and put into a bowl.

Beat the eggs and sugar together well. Add to the butternut, and add the remaining ingredients. Stir through lightly.

Pour into a greased ovenproof dish and bake for 40–45 minutes, until slightly puffy and set.

Serves 4

Simple Summery Salad

Healthy, tasty and pretty! There are good commercial vinaigrettes available. Amounts are not precise: I rarely measure salad ingredients. Annie

250 ml (1 cup) small red ripe cherry tomatoes

250 ml (1 cup) chopped cucumber

125 ml (½ cup) finely sliced sweet onion

1 yellow pepper, seeds and ribs removed, chopped small

125 ml (½ cup) pitted and halved Kalamata olives

about 2 handfuls sliced rocket leaves (You can substitute fresh green roughly chopped Italian parsley for the rocket or some other deep green lettuce leaves.)

100 g goat’s cheese

freshly ground black pepper to taste

vinaigrette (not mayo!) for dressing

Rinse and prepare the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, yellow pepper, olives and rocket, and mix lightly in a bowl.

Crumble in the cheese and season with the pepper. Add just enough vinaigrette to coat the ingredients lightly. ‘Decant’ the salad into a salad bowl.

Serve with crusty Continental-style bread.

Serves 4

Stewed Green Beans

This is another old farmstyle recipe, especially useful when green or runner beans are older and not tender enough to be steamed whole anymore. Quantities are not of great importance, except that it must be a bean dish and not a potato dish! Nicely mushy and comforting, this is a regular on our menus. Annie

500 g green beans, topped and tailed, and chopped crosswise into thin rounds

about 125 ml (½ cup) water

1 medium potato, peeled and sliced

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

3 ml (½ tsp) sugar

3 ml (½ tsp) salt or to taste

3 ml (½ tsp) white pepper

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg or to taste

a knob of butter

Put the beans in a pot with the water. Add the potato and onion, and sprinkle over the sugar. There’s no need to mix the vegetables, just bring it to the boil, turn down the heat and put on a lid.

Simmer gently until the vegetables are tender.

Using a potato masher, mash the vegetables until mushy. If too much liquid is left in the pot, drain it off gently by holding a sieve in one hand and tilting the pot over the sink.

Season with the salt, white pepper and nutmeg. You could use black pepper, but we find that old-fashioned white pepper suits this dish better. Add a knob of butter and fork through. Tip into a serving dish, cover, and keep warm until ready to serve.

Serves 4

Bok Choy, Potato and Onion Fry

Bok choy (an Oriental cabbage with thick white stems and loose, large leaves; not to be confused with Chinese cabbage) is often available fresh at my nearest supermarket, and it’s always crisp. It’s a pity not more people buy it; perhaps it’s because they are uncertain about how to prepare it. This is one way, and it makes a really good and nutritious side dish. Strangely enough, Oriental seasonings also seem to suit it better than just plain salt and pepper! Zuri

1 head bok choy

1 large onion, preferably red, peeled and finely chopped

2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped

30 ml (2 Tbsp) oil

15 ml (1 Tbsp) balsamic vinegar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) freshly grated or chopped fresh ginger

5 ml (1 tsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

5 ml (1 tsp) sea salt flakes or soy sauce

freshly ground black pepper and ground nutmeg to taste

Bok choy has thick, fleshy white stems ending in large green leaves. The stems should be firm and white when you buy it. Cut off only the thick root end of the head of the bok choy, and separate the stems. You’ll need to cut off more stem as you go. Wash well. On a work surface, slice the bok choy from roots to tips so you have white slices and green sliced leaves.

Fry the onions and potato in the oil over a high heat, stirring, until they soften. Add the balsamic vinegar and stir through. Add more oil if necessary.

Add the ginger, garlic and salt or soy sauce, and stir.

Add the sliced bok choy, turn the heat down to medium and stir to mix. Fry without a lid to prevent the liquid shedding. Turn the heat down low and test the bok choy stems after about 7 minutes: it’s nice if they’re not completely soft. There might be some liquid from the leaves now, but that’s fine.

Flavour with black pepper and nutmeg, to taste, and serve.

Serves 3–4

Baked Leek Dish

This is a very versatile and adaptable side dish. You could bake it as a pie, with a pie crust. You could make a rich cheese sauce instead of the simple white sauce given here. Fried, crumbled bacon can be added to the feta, which can be substituted with another cheese. The spices are absolutely crucial to the flavour. Zuri

500 g leeks, cleaned then weighed

3 sweet eating apples, peeled, cored and sliced

salt and coarse black pepper to taste

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg or to taste

5 ml (1 tsp) sugar if necessary

100 g feta, patted dry

5 ml (1 tsp) chopped fresh garlic

5 ml (1 tsp) fennel seeds

5 ml (1 tsp) cumin seeds

5 ml (1 tsp) Tabasco sauce or 3 ml (½ tsp) dried chilli flakes

375 ml (1½ cups) milk

30 ml (2 Tbsp) cake flour

2 ml extra salt

dried mixed herbs or barbecue spice for sprinkling

Young leeks are nicest for this dish, but any leeks will do. Slice the leeks vertically, open the leaves and clean well under running water. Drain very well and slice into 5 cm lengths. Parboil for a couple of minutes and drain well.

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Grease an oven dish of about 18 × 18 cm and layer the apples on the bottom. You should have at least two layers, otherwise use an extra apple. Season very lightly with salt and pepper, and sprinkle over the ground nutmeg. If you use Granny Smith apples, which are quite sour, also sprinkle over the sugar.

Crumble over the feta and the garlic. Layer the drained leeks over that. Sprinkle with the fennel and cumin seeds, and again season lightly with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Sprinkle over the Tabasco sauce or chilli flakes.

Measure the milk into a saucepan, add the flour and whisk until it comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from the heat: it contains no butter and can burn easily. Add the extra salt and stir in.

Ladle this sauce over the leeks and sprinkle the top with dried herbs or barbecue spice.

Bake for about 45 minutes.

Serves 3–4

Mushroom Kebabs for the Braai

I first tasted these at a Saturday farmers’ market. The lady who sold them had several types of mushrooms on her skewers, and grilled them over coals. So use as many different kinds of mushrooms as you can find, but even one type will still taste good. These make an excellent side dish, especially for a braai, and are great if you have a vegetarian on hand! They’re quick and easy: simply grill along with the meat. I invented the marinade, as I did not have the original recipe. Zuri

4–6 long, thin skewers

500 g mushrooms

plain or Vietnamese basil leaves, if available*

75 ml (5 Tbsp) olive oil

45 ml (3 Tbsp) apple cider vinegar

10 ml (2 tsp) sugar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) coarse-grained mustard

10 ml (2 tsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

3 ml (½ tsp) sea salt flakes

Soak the skewers in water while you prepare the mushrooms.

Clean the mushrooms. I have not tried to reconstitute dried mushrooms for this, but I think that will work as well. Cut large mushrooms like oyster mushrooms into smaller pieces.

Skewer the mushrooms and basil leaves, alternating them as you go. Grilled mushrooms do shrink, so pack the skewers generously.

In a bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients.

Put the mushroom skewers into a suitable container and drizzle over the marinade. Leave at room temperature until needed, turning over at least once before using.

Grill with the meat on the braai, drizzling over the leftover marinade. Don’t worry if the oil in the marinade makes the flames flare up: it adds to the flavour! On hot coals or charcoal they take only a few minutes. Don’t try to get them too tender or they’ll break up. Turn them gently with tongs.

These can also be grilled in the oven.

Makes 4–6 skewers

*At the market, something green was skewered between the mushrooms, which I was told was Vietnamese basil. This was new to me, so I bought some to taste, but haven’t seen it since. It has a lovely herby taste! You could improvise with another herb, such as sage leaves, if you like.

Scrumptious Baked Pumpkin Slices

This is the way my late mother-in-law, also a formidable cook, oven baked her Boer pumpkin. It’s almost a dessert, and is lovely and chewy! But do use a ‘dry’ pumpkin, not a green watery one. Zuri

10 slices unpeeled Boer pumpkin, 1.5 cm at thick end

10 ml (2 tsp) butter, per slice

10 ml (2 tsp) dark brown sugar, per slice

ground cinnamon to taste

fine table salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 160 ºC.

Remove the seeds and arrange the pumpkin slices along the length of an ovenproof dish, overlapping slightly – or in a round dish, again overlapping.

The quantities given are guesstimates, so you may need more butter and sugar. Spread the butter over each slice as you would butter bread. (And please, no margarine!) Sprinkle the sugar over each slice, and then sprinkle the entire dish lightly with the cinnamon and salt.

Bake until the pumpkin peel is tender and wrinkled, and the sugar has melted – about 45 minutes or more. Please use your own judgment, as pumpkins vary.

The peel will be soft and will taste a bit like toffee!

Serves 4

Grape, Blue Cheese and Walnut Salad

This is very simple to put together. The grapes provide the counterpoint to the salty blue cheese. Here a vinaigrette dressing would not work as well as a creamy one. This mild-tasting salad works well with chicken and fried fish fillets. Annie

Dressing:

125 ml (½ cup) fresh cream

20 ml (4 tsp) Dijon mustard

a pinch of sea salt flakes

Salad:

about 150 g mixed green salad leaves

200 g plump white seedless grapes

125 ml (½ cup) chopped spring onions

50 g walnuts, left whole or halved

80 g blue cheese, crumbled into bite-sized pieces

8 piquanté peppers, drained and sliced

Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a bowl and leave to stand. It will thicken.

Tear up the salad leaves and put them on the bottom of a suitable dish. Try to include slightly peppery rocket leaves as well.

Arrange all the other ingredients on top of the greens.

Drizzle over some of the mustard-cream dressing and serve the rest separately.

Serves 4–6

Please note that weights and measures for salads are never set in stone, so use as much or little as you like of all ingredients. Another way to serve this salad is to arrange individual portions on side plates and garnish to your taste, with maybe a few extra spring onion sprigs or fresh sprouts.

Heirloom Onion Salad

I remember this traditional salad so well from Christmas dinners and family get-togethers. The task of peeling the small onions, a rather eye-stinging job, was usually given to us children, and we’d sit outside on the kitchen steps with bowls in our laps, as fresh air helped! Only in later years did I discover that the job is much easier if you leave the onions in boiling water for a few minutes. Then the skins slip off quite easily. Annie

1–1.25 litres (4–5 cups) small or pickling onions, peeled

Dressing:

2 eggs

125 ml (½ cup) sugar

a pinch of salt

white wine vinegar or grape vinegar to taste

5 ml (1 tsp) dry mustard powder

Boil the peeled onions in lightly salted water until tender, but not soft – they must not fall apart. Drain well, cover and cool.

To make the dressing, beat the eggs very well. Add the sugar and salt, and beat again until thick and creamy. Now start adding the vinegar slowly, tasting until you have the exact sweet-sour balance you prefer. Then whisk in the dry mustard.

Pour the dressing into a small saucepan, preferably a double boiler, and heat gently. Stir continuously until the dressing thickens, but don’t let it reach boiling point. This will take quite a while; you’re recreating an old recipe – there was a lot of time then to cook with love! When ready, it should thicken to the consistency of mayonnaise. Remove from the heat immediately. Do not let it cook, as the dressing will split.

Pour the hot dressing over the cooked onions and mix in gently. Cool and serve at room temperature. This is excellent with roasted, smoked or salted meat.

Serves 6

Potato and Vegetable Fritters

Simple and economical, this side dish goes well with all meats. The Cheddar can be substituted with goat’s cheese or Parmesan. The recipe makes eight quite large fritters. You can make them smaller to serve as a snack with chilli jam. Annie

250 g (1 large or 2 smaller) potatoes, peeled and grated

100 g baby marrows, peeled and grated

100 g carrots, peeled and grated

½ medium onion, peeled and grated

zest of 1 lemon

100 ml cake flour

5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder

125 ml (½ cup) grated Cheddar cheese

3 spring onions, finely chopped

125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped mixed fresh herbs, such as basil, parsley, mint, chives, origanum or marjoram

sea salt flakes and black pepper to taste

2 eggs, beaten

oil for shallow frying

Drain the grated vegetables in a sieve over a bowl for at least 30 minutes to get rid of excess liquid. Press on the veggies and then transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the lemon zest, then add the remaining ingredients, except the oil, and mix very well.

Heat a heavy-bottomed pan until hot, then add enough oil for shallow frying and fry spoonfuls of the mixture over a fairly high heat, until brown on the bottom. Turn over and fry the other side before removing from the pan. Keep warm and serve as soon as possible.

Serves 4–8

Fried Cucumber with Ginger and Chilli

This is another recipe using cucumber. It makes a surprisingly tasty hot side dish. Zuri

1 large English cucumber, washed and dried

45 ml (3 Tbsp) butter

7 ml (1½ tsp) finely chopped deseeded fresh red chilli

20 ml (4 tsp) finely chopped fresh ginger

15 ml (1 Tbsp) dry sherry

5 ml (1 tsp) sea salt flakes or to taste

Cut the cucumber across into 4 chunks, then cut each chunk into thick fingers.

Heat the butter in a frying pan, add the chilli and ginger, and fry, stirring, for a few moments to release the flavour.

Add the cucumber fingers all at once and, with a spatula and spoon, toss well.

Turn the heat down to low, put on a lid and fry gently for about 15 minutes, until the cucumber is almost transparent. The cucumber will not shed liquid during frying.

Add the sherry halfway through cooking and toss to mix in. Stir and toss often, to help the ginger and chilli adhere to the cucumber fingers.

Sprinkle with the salt and pour into a serving dish, scraping all the ginger and chilli bits from the pan into the dish. Serve hot.

Serves 3–4

Waterblommetjie Stew

Not enough people make use of this nutritious seasonal wild green, which becomes fairly widely available during late winter and spring. Waterblommetjies are the buds of a type of water lily that grows on ponds and dams in the Boland, and are picked just before the small white flowers open. Try it as a side dish with any meat. Zuri

1 × 500 g punnet waterblommetjies

250 ml (1 cup) water

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

juice of ½ lemon or a small bunch of wild sorrel*, chopped

3 ml (½ tsp) white pepper or to taste

a little chopped fresh chilli (optional)

about 5 ml (1 tsp) extra salt

grated zest of 1 lemon, about 15 ml (1 Tbsp) (optional)

butter to taste

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg or to taste

Before you buy, check the punnet you pick up. The waterblommetjies should be green and fresh-looking. They might have a few ‘freckles’ on the fleshy leaves, but that’s fine. There should be no slimy water on the bottom of the punnet.

Leave the waterblommetjies to soak in a bowl of lightly salted cold water for a while. Take out and trim off the brown stem bits and very hard, older outer leaves, if there are any. Break the larger ones into 2 pieces.

Put in a pot and add the water and salt. Bring to the boil, put on the lid and simmer on low heat for about 8 minutes. Cooking time is hard to predict, so check them: the waterblommetjies should be tender, but not mushy or completely falling apart.

While it’s cooking, squeeze over the lemon juice or add the wild sorrel, and add some white pepper to taste. If you like the idea of a bite, add some chilli. Add the extra salt and the lemon zest if using.

Drain before putting in a serving dish, dot with butter and sprinkle with nutmeg.

Serves 4

*Wild sorrel is a weed with a little yellow flower and a sour taste. My grandmother used it in her waterblommetjie stew. Wild sorrel grows among vine rows in the Boland in spring.

Simplest Sun-ripe Tomato Salad

In summer and early autumn nothing can compare with the combination of vine-ripened tomatoes and sweet onions. This is so simple that we hesitated to include it, but if you have the very best ingredients available, this is still the most enjoyable salad! Annie

4–5 large red, vine-ripened tomatoes (your own are best!)

1 large sweet onion (like Texas Grano), peeled

5–7 ml (1–1½ tsp) sea salt flakes (we use Maldon or Himalayan Crystal Salt)

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

a handful of fresh basil leaves, torn into ribbons

Wash and dry the tomatoes, but don’t peel. Slice each in half, and then in half again, until you have small chunks. Slice and chop the onion in the same way.

Mix the tomatoes and onion in a round salad bowl. Add the salt, pepper and basil, and mix well. Leave to stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.

Eat as is, with no dressing, to taste the great flavours. Then fight over the delicious mouthful of tomato liquid that collects at the bottom of the bowl!

Serves 4–6

Bacon and Potato Pie

This is a really original side dish. To be honest, the mushrooms ‘disappear’ in the final product, but lend flavour! Vary the basic recipe to your taste, by adding more cheese, maybe some chopped chillies, or some more seasonings. Great to prepare beforehand and then shove into the oven. It’s tasty with any meat or a braai. Zuri

500 g streaky rindless bacon

3–5 fairly large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

375 ml (1½ cups) grated mature Cheddar cheese

salt and pepper to taste

garlic powder to taste

250 g large brown mushrooms, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 150 ºC.

In a radial pattern, line a pie plate or glass tart dish (mine measures 17 cm across the bottom) with the bacon. The bacon should overlap on the bottom of the dish and there should be a generous overhang, which will eventually be folded over the potato filling. Make sure there are no empty spaces on the bottom or sides; rather patch with bacon so the dish is completely covered.

Layer the potato slices on the bottom, then add the chopped onion and cheese, and continue until you have used up all the potatoes. Season each layer very sparingly with salt and pepper and a sprinkle of garlic powder. You will probably get 2 or 3 layers of potato.

Place the chopped mushrooms on top and season to taste. Fold over the overlapping bits of bacon and use what was left to cover the top completely.

Bake for 2 hours or until the bacon changes colour slightly.

What I like to do after removing the pie from the oven, is to take an ordinary, washed, builder’s brick, cover it with a double layer of foil and lay it on the potato pie. I then turn it every now and then so that each part of the pie gets weighed down. It takes about 5–10 minutes. I then pour off all the unwanted liquid and fat.

Keep warm and slice to serve.

Serves 6–8

Rocket and Avocado Salad

This is a deceptively simple yet wonderful salad. In fact, it makes a perfect, sophisticated starter. Pine nuts are expensive, but it’s worth keeping a bag in the fridge or freezer. One doesn’t need to use a large amount at a time. Our Creamy French Vinaigrette on page 182 is a must with this! Zuri

45 ml (3 Tbsp) pine nuts

about 50 g rocket (If using baby or wild rocket, either use whole or torn up. If using garden rocket, you may need to strip the leaves off the stems.)

1 large or 2 small perfectly ripe, creamy avocados, sliced

a good handful of Parmesan shavings

creamy French vinaigrette (see page 182)

coarse black pepper to taste

balsamic reduction to garnish

sea salt flakes to serve

First toast the pine nuts: heat a small pan until quite hot, add the pine nuts and, with a spatula, keep them moving, as they burn very easily. Shake the pan and stir the nuts until they are light brown. Remove from the heat and decant into a bowl, as they’ll keep on toasting if kept in the hot pan.

Use the rocket to make a bed for the avocado on either a large platter or individual side plates. Arrange the avocado slices on the rocket and scatter over the Parmesan shavings.

Drizzle lightly with creamy French vinaigrette and season with black pepper. Then distribute the toasted pine nuts evenly over the salad.

Dot some balsamic reduction around the edges of the platter or plates before serving. Serve with the sea salt flakes in a separate container.

Serves 3

Calamari Salad with Avocado

This is an easy starter or lunch salad made with calamari. Serve with crusty bread and chilled wine. Zuri

oil for frying

500 g cleaned calamari rings

2 ripe, firm avocados

sea salt flakes to taste

about 60 ml (¼ cup) chopped spring onions

Dressing:

2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

50 ml water

60 ml (¼ cup) sugar

125 ml (½ cup) fresh lemon juice

100 ml virgin olive oil

5–10 ml (1–2 tsp) finely chopped deseeded chilli

a pinch of coarse black pepper

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely grated lemon rind

10 ml (2 tsp) grainy mustard

15 ml (1 Tbsp) Thai fish sauce

a pinch of turmeric

Mix and beat the ingredients for the dressing. Taste for seasoning and add more sugar if necessary. Put the dressing in a serving dish.

Heat the oil in a frying pan until quite hot. Add the calamari (in 2 or more batches if necessary) and, stirring, fry for no more than 2–3 minutes or until the rings turn opaque. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen towels.

As soon as you’ve cooked the calamari, peel the avocados and cut into chunks, and lightly sprinkle both the avocado and the calamari with sea salt flakes. Add the calamari, avocado and spring onions to the dressing, and toss carefully to coat.

Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Serves 4

Stuffed Chicory Leaf Salad

This salad is simple, but very crispy and fresh-tasting. Quantities cannot be exact: if you don’t have enough tiny bits to fill all the chicory leaves, chop up more. You can vary the filling for the boat-shaped leaves, but keep it colourful. Use any good vinaigrette or make your own. Zuri

1–2 chicory heads

a handful of ripe cherry tomatoes, finely chopped or 1 large ripe tomato, finely chopped

1 red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped

1 green pepper, deseeded and finely chopped

1 yellow pepper, deseeded and finely chopped

125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped cucumber

about 125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped spring onions

50–60 g Gorgonzola or other soft, creamy blue cheese

150 g baby lettuce leaves

vinaigrette for drizzling

Chicory should be very clean, unmarked, white and ending in pale yellow leaf points. Only remove the 2 outer leaves. Break open the leaves, cutting off the stem ends where necessary. When the leaves become too small, use the second chicory head.

Combine the tomatoes, peppers and cucumber in a bowl. Add the spring onions and crumble in the blue (soft) cheese. Mix well.

Spread the baby lettuce leaves on a platter, arrange the chicory leaves in a wheel shape on top and fill each with the finely chopped vegetables.

Drizzle vinaigrette over the entire salad, making sure that the vegetable bits in the chicory boats glisten.

Serves 4–6

Easy Lunch Salad on Skewers

It’s a hot day and a few friends will be coming for lunch. This easy salad, served with crusty bread and wine, is ideal to literally skewer together! Taste and look will depend on the quality of your ingredients: no pink plastic ham, no industrial mozzarella! By all means, use a shop-bought pesto: we like Ina Paarman’s. Zuri

12 wooden skewers

24 small pickling onions

24 ripe cherry tomatoes

24 chunks or balls good-quality mozzarella cheese

about 125 ml (½ cup) pesto (If the pesto is quite firm, first whisk in a little fruity extra-virgin olive oil.)

24 slices Black Forest or other good-quality ham

garden rocket and/or cos (Romaine) lettuce leaves

sea salt flakes to taste

vinaigrette for drizzling

balsamic reduction for drizzling (optional)

Peel the onions and drop them into boiling water. Boil only until they lose their firmness; they should not start shedding leaves and go soft. Drain.

Put the onions, tomatoes and mozzarella into a bowl and toss with the pesto.

On each skewer, place 2 onions, 2 tomatoes, 2 mozzarella chunks/balls, and 2 folded slices of ham.

Arrange the salad leaves of your choice (dark green leaves look nicest, and can be shredded if you like) on 6 pretty plates. Arrange 2 skewers across the lettuce and lightly sprinkle over a little sea salt flakes. Drizzle each with a little vinaigrette, to make the leaves glisten.

If you keep part of the plate visible, you can drizzle a swirl of balsamic reduction in the empty space.

Serves 6

Something Sweet

We don’t really eat a lot of desserts and cakes. Our desserts are more often a last glass of wine and a cheese and fruit platter.

This is in direct contrast to the habits of our grannies and mother! As far as we can recall, Mom always made a dessert for our midday (main) meal. In winter it was usually a baked pudding and in summer some cooling sweetness, such as canned peaches with custard. But we do love a really good sweet treat now and then! Not all our favourites are included here, as some are well known and appear in many other recipe books.

Tropic Aroma Cake

If ever there was an heirloom recipe, it’s this one! Mom used to make it often and it was our favourite, along with her chocolate cake. It cannot be claimed that she invented the recipe. We think the original came from an ancient Royal baking powder pamphlet. A small problem here is that we have the recipe in old-fashioned measures, so I’ve put the approximate metric equivalents in brackets. Annie

2½ cups (625 ml) cake flour

4 tsp (20 ml) baking powder

½ tsp (3 ml) salt

1 tsp (5 ml) ground nutmeg

1 tsp (5 ml) ground cinnamon

¾ cup (180 ml) shortening or butter

1¼ cups (312 ml) sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup (250 ml) milk

1 Tbsp (15 ml) cocoa powder

1 Tbsp (15 ml) warm water

Icing:

3 Tbsp (45 ml) soft butter

3 cups (750 ml) icing sugar

5 Tbsp (75 ml) cocoa powder

2 tsp (10 ml) vanilla essence

5 Tbsp (75 ml) strong coffee (you can use milk instead for a lighter taste)

Preheat the oven to 190 ºC. Grease three cake layer tins well. It’s best to line the bottoms with baking paper and grease that as well.

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon into a mixing bowl.

In a separate bowl, cream the shortening or butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the beaten eggs and beat very well.

Fold in half of the sifted dry ingredients, then add the milk and mix well. Fold in the rest of sifted dry ingredients.

Fill two of the greased cake tins with this batter, keeping back a third. Tap the tins lightly on the counter to remove the air bubbles.

Mix the cocoa and water, and stir into the remaining batter, but don’t mix. Just swirl it around. Scrape this marbled batter into the third cake tin.

Bake the layers for about 20 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Turn out onto a rack and cool. In the meantime, make the icing.

Cream the butter, adding the icing sugar and cocoa very slowly and beating very well until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla essence. Add the coffee (or milk) 1 Tbsp at a time – you might not need all 5 – until the mixture is soft enough to spread.

Spread the icing between the cake layers, saving some for the top. Sandwich the layers together, using the marbled layer as the centre one and ice the top.

Serves 8

Best Carrot Cake Ever

There are hundreds of carrot cake recipes, but this one, tweaked through trial and error is, to my mind, the best of them all. Zuri

500 ml (2 cups) cake flour

20 ml (4 tsp) baking powder

10 ml (2 tsp) ground cinnamon

5 ml (1 tsp) ground mixed spice

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

250 ml (1 cup) sunflower oil

3 jumbo eggs

10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla essence

500 ml (2 cups) sugar

250 g canned crushed pineapple*

500 ml (2 cups) finely grated carrot

375 ml (1½ cups) desiccated coconut

125 ml (½ cup) roughly broken walnuts

Preheat the oven to 190 ºC. Grease a fairly large cake tin (I prefer a 23 cm-square one). Line the bottom with baking paper and grease that as well.

Mix the flour, baking powder and spices in a bowl; there’s no need to sift.

Beat the oil, eggs, vanilla essence and sugar very well in a large mixing bowl, until creamy and light in colour. The sugar will not dissolve completely.

Stir in the flour mixture alternately with the rest of the ingredients.

Mix well with a wooden spoon or electric mixer. The batter will be fairly runny.

Pour the batter into the prepared tin. If using a square tin, it’s a good idea to cover the corners with pieces of foil to prevent burning.

Bake for about 70 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Turn out onto a rack and cool.

A cream cheese icing is nicest on carrot cakes.

Serves 10–12

*The 440 g can will give you about 250 g crushed pineapple after draining off the liquid. Let the liquid drain off by itself in a sieve, and do not press on it, as the pineapple should still be slightly juicy.

Mom’s Chocolate Cake

Four or five decades ago, every Friday was baking day in most households in the Hex River Valley, but we’re sure the habit has been retained on many farms. Friends did not phone to make appointments: they simply dropped in for tea or coffee over the weekend. Any housewife worth her salt had a cake or tart or other homemade treat ready for her guests, and so did our mother. We consider this Mom’s best chocolate cake – and in later years, so did our husbands and children – so this was always a special request to Mom when we visited! Annie

125 ml (½ cup) cocoa powder

125 ml (½ cup) hot water

500 ml (2 cups) cake flour

5 ml (1 tsp) bicarbonate of soda

5 ml (1 tsp) cream of tartar

7 ml (1½ tsp) salt

5 ml (1 tsp) ground cinnamon

3 ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg

a pinch of ground cloves

125 g butter

375 ml (1½ cups) sugar

2 eggs, well beaten

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

125 ml (½ cup) buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease two cake tins well. Line the bottoms with baking paper and grease that as well.

Stir the cocoa powder into the hot water.

Sift the dry ingredients up to and including the cloves into a mixing bowl.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light, pale and fluffy. Whisk in the well-beaten eggs, then add the cooled cocoa mixture and the vanilla essence. Whisk.

Add the sifted dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, and mix to a smooth consistency.

Divide the batter between the cake tins and bake for about 25 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Turn out onto a rack and cool. Ice with any preferred icing.

Serves 8–10

Annie’s Chocolate Torte

This is simply a luscious one-layer, brownie-type torte. It is very versatile and can be served with ice cream, sprinkled with Cointreau or Grand Marnier, or piped with cream. It is essential to use the best-quality 70% chocolate you can find. Note that I weighed the ingredients in this case. Annie

200 g dark (70% cocoa solids) chocolate, broken up

200 g butter

4 jumbo eggs

200 g castor sugar

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

50 g cake flour

150 g ground almonds

a pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease a springform or loose-bottomed cake tin. Line with baking paper and grease that too.

Put the broken-up chocolate and butter in a small pot, and heat very gently, stirring now and then, until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. You can also do this in a glass or metal mixing bowl over boiling water, being careful that the water does not touch the bottom.

While this mixture melts, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla essence together with electric beaters until frothy and pale, and almost like custard.

Cool the chocolate mixture down somewhat by stirring and lifting with a spoon, then add it to the egg mixture and fold in carefully.

Mix the flour, almonds and salt together, then fold into the chocolate mixture until smooth and even in colour.

Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for 40–45 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few fine crumbs only.

Cool slightly, then remove from the tin and set on a plate. Decorate as desired.

Serves 10

Granny Greta’s Roly-poly Pudding

This is the way our mother and our maternal granny, who lived in the Langkloof, made roly-poly. Most people use less butter and bake the roll without cutting it, but our families agree that Ouma’s version is the best of them all! Annie

500 ml (2 cups) cake flour

15 ml (1 Tbsp) baking powder

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

125 g butter

2 eggs, beaten

a few tablespoons milk

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

apricot jam for spreading (Mom believed in homemade jam, thick with fruit!)

Syrup:

375 ml (1½ cups) boiling water

250 ml (1 cup) sugar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) butter

5 ml (1 tsp) lemon zest

15 ml (1 Tbsp) lemon juice

Preheat oven to 180 ºC. Grease a fairly large, rectangular ovenproof dish.

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl, and rub in the butter. (This can also be done in a food processor.)

Add the beaten eggs and then just enough milk – tablespoon by tablespoon – to make a fairly soft, but pliable dough. (In a food processor, as soon as a firm ball forms that is not sticky, but rather soft, the dough is ready.)

On a floured surface, roll out the dough to a rectangle – pat it into shape with your fingers.

Spread the dough with apricot jam, not too thickly. From one of the long sides, roll it up like a Swiss roll. Some of the jam will ooze out; no matter.

Cut the roll into 2 cm slices with a serrated knife (again, the jam will ooze out a little). As you cut, pack the slices, cut-sides up and quite close together, in the greased dish. Scoop up the jam that oozed out and simply plonk it back on the slices.

To make the syrup, mix the boiling water, sugar, butter, lemon zest and juice in a pot, and stir until the sugar dissolves. Ladle the syrup over the slices, keeping back about 1–1¼ cups. This is later used as extra sauce.

Bake the pudding for 40–45 minutes.

When the sizzling pudding comes out of the oven, pour some of the extra sauce over each slice: it will be absorbed.

Serve the pudding warm, with any leftover sauce, custard, cream or ice cream.

Serves 6–8

Velvety Cornflour Pudding

This is one of those simple puddings; quick to make, with no pretence to being anything special. It’s real comfort food from childhood days. Annie

30 ml (2 Tbsp) cornflour

500 ml (2 cups) milk

3 eggs, separated

60 ml (4 Tbsp) sugar

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

a pinch of salt

apricot jam

Preheat the oven to 140 °C.

Slake the cornflour in a little of the milk and bring the rest of the milk to the boil in a saucepan.

Stir in the cornflour and keep stirring until it becomes thick and smooth. Remove from the heat.

Beat the egg yolks with 30 ml (2 Tbsp) of the sugar until thick and creamy. Add this to the milk mixture, and then stir in the vanilla essence and salt. Return to the heat and keep on stirring while bringing it back to the boil. Cook for a minute or two.

Pour the mixture into a round 18–19 cm-diameter ovenproof dish. Dot the surface with apricot jam.

Beat the egg whites until stiff and slowly add the remaining sugar (or more, if you like your pudding really sweet). Beat until thick and glossy.

Pile the meringue onto the pudding, spreading it right to the edges.

Bake until the tips of the meringue turn light brown, so you will need to watch it carefully!

Serves 4

Saucy Chocolate Pudding

This was (and still is) the all-time favourite winter pudding of my childhood! It’s bliss for chocoholics: a crisp top with a decadently rich sauce underneath. Don’t even think about kilojoules when you make it. Just enjoy it! Apart from the scrumptious result, you need only one mixing bowl, so it’s very little trouble to make! Annie

250 ml (1 cup) cake flour

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

30 ml (2 Tbsp) cocoa powder

185 ml (¾ cup) sugar

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

45 ml (3 Tbsp) melted butter

125 ml (½ cup) milk

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

Topping:

125 ml (½ cup) brown sugar

125 ml (½ cup) white sugar

60 ml (¼ cup) cocoa powder

250 ml (1 cup) cold water

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Sift the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, sugar and salt together in a large bowl.

Add the melted butter, milk and vanilla essence, and mix well.

Pour the batter into a 6–8 cm-deep round or square ovenproof dish and level out.

Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the top, then the white sugar, followed by the the cocoa powder. Do not mix.

When the oven has reached the correct temperature, carefully pour the water over the top of the pudding.

Bake for 35–45 minutes (watch the top: it will rise slightly), then remove from the oven. The crust hardens on standing for a while.

Enjoy with custard or ice cream, or as it comes.

Serves 4–6

Tsitsikamma Fruit and Nut Meringue

This is a totally decadent treat, rumoured to have originated with a hotel chef in the Tsitsikamma. However, the original recipe is not available and this is my own version. It is over-the-top delicious. Don’t worry that it is almost impossible to remove from its tin in neat squares: it does not matter! Garnish with thin slices of preserved green figs and a maple-flavoured syrup – or think up your own cheffy garnish! Zuri

400 g castor sugar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) cornflour

5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

8 jumbo egg whites, at room temperature

10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla essence

250 g dates, chopped

125 g Italian biscotti/amaretti/boudoir biscuits/similar, roughly crushed

200 g roasted cashews, chopped

cocoa powder, sweetened whipped cream, honey or maple syrup, green fig or watermelon preserve to serve

Preheat the oven to 110 ºC. Grease a Swiss roll tin with butter. Line the tin with baking paper and grease that too.

Combine the sugar, cornflour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.

Whisk the egg whites with the vanilla essence until soft peaks form, then add the sugar mixture little by little, beating well to incorporate the sugar. By the time all the sugar has been added, the meringue should be thick, glossy and a little hard to handle. Fold in the dates, biscuits and nuts.

Using a spatula, spread the mixture evenly in the prepared tin. Due to its nature, the mixture, will not rise evenly.

Bake for about 1¼ hours: the meringue should be crisp on top and a very pale golden colour. Remove from the oven and cool in the tin.

To serve, cut the meringue into squares using a serrated knife and use an egg lifter to remove the squares. It’s easier to start in the centre and work your way outwards, but be prepared for the gooey, soft inside to cause the crisp top to crack. Dust cake plates with cocoa powder. Place a square of meringue slightly to one side, top with whipped cream and drizzle with maple syrup or honey. Finish off with thin slices of green fig or watermelon preserve.

Serves 8–10

Apple Tart

This recipe was given to me by the wife of one of my husband’s colleagues at the time. I cannot remember her name, but her recipe has become a firm favourite in our family. Annie

125 g butter

125 ml (½ cup) sugar

1 egg

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

500 ml (2 cups) cake flour

a pinch of salt

3 ml (½ tsp) vanilla essence

Filling:

125 ml (½ cup) sugar

250 ml (1 cup) water

5 ml (1 tsp) grated nutmeg

5 ml (1 tsp) ground cinnamon

15 ml (1 Tbsp) butter

125 ml (½ cup) raisins or sultanas

15 ml (1 Tbsp) cornflour

1 × 385 g can unsweetened pie apples

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix well. Now add the baking powder, flour, salt and vanilla essence, and mix well to form a smooth dough.

Neatly press the dough into a pie plate, but keep back some of the dough to grate over the top. Place this dough in the freezer to make it easier to grate later.

To make the filling, bring the sugar, water, spices and butter to the boil in a saucepan, and then add the raisins or sultanas.

Mix the cornflour with a little water and add to the saucepan, stirring until thickened. Remove from the heat and cool for a while.

Spread out the apples on the raw dough and pour over the sauce. Grate over the reserved dough.

Bake for about 45 minutes until golden brown. To make sure it’s baked all the way through, be sure to test with a skewer. I once took it out and ended up with a raw centre! Serve warm with whipped cream.

Serves 6–8

Buttermilk Pudding

This is a real oldie, but one that shouldn’t be forgotten. It’s equally delicious eaten plain or with custard. Annie

100 g soft butter

250 ml (1 cup) castor sugar

4 jumbo eggs

10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla essence

250 ml (1 cup) cake flour

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

500 ml (2 cups) buttermilk

cinnamon sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs, one by one, beating well after each addition. Then beat in the vanilla essence.

Sift the dry ingredients together and fold into the butter mixture alternately with the buttermilk.

Pour the mixture into a 15 × 20 cm ovenproof dish and sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar.

Bake for 45–60 minutes until set and golden.

Serves 4–6

Nuts and Coconut Baked Pudding

This pudding forms a lovely nutty cake layer on top with a chewy pudding layer below. It can be mixed in a few minutes in a food processor. Annie

325 ml (1 cup + 5 Tbsp) full cream milk

250 ml (1 cup) castor sugar

250 ml (1 cup) desiccated coconut

125 ml (½ cup) cake flour

100 g pecan nuts, broken up

67 ml (4½ Tbsp) butter

4 eggs

10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla essence

5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

Preheat the oven to 160 ºC. Grease a roomy, square ovenproof dish.

Add all the ingredients to a food processor and whizz until very smooth. Pour the mixture into the greased dish.

Bake for about 45 minutes until the top is golden brown and firm to the touch – but test with a skewer before removing from the oven.

Serve hot or warm with sweetened whipped cream or with ice cream.

Serves 6

Tannie Joubert’s One-bowl Cake

For years, when we lived in Gauteng, I could not get my mother’s cake recipes to work. I tried the adjustments for baking at high altitude, but it didn’t really help. Eventually I asked an old lady for foolproof cake recipes: she had lived in Johannesburg all her life. She gave me two. They never flopped and were so easy. This is the chocolatey one, and yes, it works at any altitude! I’m giving it as she gave it to me, with approximate metric conversions in brackets: they rarely used scales in those days! Zuri

11/3 cups (approx. 333 ml) castor sugar

1½ cups (375 ml) cake flour

½ cup (125 g) soft butter

3 eggs

½ cup (125 ml) milk

3 tsp (15 ml) baking powder

1 tsp (5 ml) salt

3 Tbsp (45 ml) cocoa powder

1 tsp (5 ml) ground mixed spice

1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla essence

1 tsp (5 ml) instant coffee powder

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease a cake tin with butter. Line with baking paper and grease that too.

Put all the ingredients into a mixing bowl, more or less in the given order. Beat well with an electric mixer until creamy and smooth. (Tannie Joubert would have used a fork, of course!)

Ladle into the greased tin, tap to remove the air bubbles and bake for 35–50 minutes. I have never timed this properly, so do test with a skewer before taking it out of the oven.

Turn out onto a rack and cool before covering with butter icing.

The cake can be baked in two cake tins as well. Adjust the time accordingly, 25–30 minutes, but check with a skewer before taking it out of the oven.

Granny Greta’s Upside-down Cake

This irresistible cake won me a big prize in a competition some years ago, so it must be shared! The cake is made in two stages. Zuri

1 × 385 g can sweetened condensed milk

100 g slab milk chocolate with nuts, broken up

375 ml (1½ cups) cake flour

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

15 ml (1 Tbsp) baking powder

180 g soft butter

250 ml (1 cup) castor sugar

a squeeze of lime or lemon juice (optional)

2 eggs, beaten

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

175 ml buttermilk

Grease a cake tin with butter. Line the tin with baking paper and grease that as well.

Scrape the condensed milk into a small heavy-bottomed pot and add the chocolate. Melt carefully over a medium heat, stirring, until the chocolate has melted completely and is well mixed with the condensed milk.

Pour this mixture into the prepared cake tin, tilt to spread evenly over the bottom and allow to cool. Then put it in the fridge or freezer for a while. It should not freeze, just firm up. This happens quite quickly.

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into a bowl.

In a separate large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric beater until light and pale. A mere squeeze of lime or lemon juice helps the creaming process, according to Ouma Greta.

In another small bowl, beat the eggs and vanilla essence. Fold this into the creamed mixture. Alternately fold in the sifted dry ingredients and the buttermilk, then mix well. The batter should be fairly firm.

Ladle the batter onto the cold caramel mixture in the cake tin and even out the top with a spatula.

Bake for about 70 minutes, but test with a skewer through the centre after 60 minutes. When the skewer comes out clean, the cake is done.

Leave the cake in the tin to cool down for about 30 minutes, then put a cake plate on top of the tin and carefully turn it over. The cake should slip out of the tin and on to the plate with no trouble. Carefully remove the baking paper. There will be a few little air holes in the caramel top, which is normal. You could disguise them by garnishing the top with pitted black cherries and a dusting of cocoa powder.

Serves 8–10

Hungarian Walnut Torte

This is my take on the traditional Hungarian or Austrian nut torte. I add some butter, which is not traditional, but this makes the torte scrumptiously moist! It is literally made in minutes in a food processor. One caveat: do use very fresh walnuts, as old nuts will spoil the flavour. Zuri

nibbed or ground almonds for sprinkling (optional)

Torte:

90 ml (6 Tbsp) cake flour

250 ml (1 cup) castor sugar

4 jumbo eggs

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

60 g butter

5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder

10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla essence

150 g walnuts, broken up

Topping:

about 40 g butter

about 80 g dark (semisweet) chocolate, broken up

125 ml (½ cup) smooth apricot jam, softened

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease a loose-bottomed springform cake tin. If possible, sprinkle the sides of the greased tin with nibbed or ground almonds.

Place all of the torte ingredients in a food processor and process for 1–2 minutes until the nuts are very finely chopped and the mixture is smooth.

Pour the runny batter into the greased tin. Tap it a few times to flatten the batter and remove any air bubbles.

Bake for about 35 minutes. A skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.

Cool the cake slightly, then remove the sides of the springform tin, leaving the cake on the base.

To make the topping, put the butter and broken-up chocolate into a small pot over a gentle heat and stir to melt the chocolate. Spread the apricot jam over the torte and swirl the melted chocolate over the jam.

Serves 6–8

Nutty Meringue Slice

This is a delicious treat, ideal to serve with afternoon coffee or for book club! Annie

125 g butter

250 ml (1 cup) castor sugar

2 eggs, separated

125 ml (½ cup) cake flour

60 ml (¼ cup) cocoa powder

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

7 ml (1½ tsp) vanilla essence

100 ml milk

250 ml (1 cup) nuts (a pecan and almond mix tastes great), coarsely chopped

250 ml (1 cup) fresh cream mixed with 5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

cocoa powder for dusting

Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease a 30 × 20 cm biscuit or Swiss roll tin well with butter. Line the tin with baking paper, making sure there is a generous overhang to provide you later with a good grip to remove the cake, and grease that too.

Cream the butter with 125 ml (½ cup) of the castor sugar in a large bowl until pale and thick. Whisk in the egg yolks.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a separate bowl. Add the vanilla essence to the milk.

Fold the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture alternately with the vanilla milk.

Spread this mixture evenly into the prepared tin – it will be a very thin layer.

Whip the egg whites until stiff, then add the remaining castor sugar slowly, whisking until you have a glossy meringue. Spread this over the cake layer and sprinkle over the nuts. Do not mix in.

Bake for 20–25 minutes, but check, as times may vary.

Remove from the oven and cool the cake in the tin. Slide it out carefully onto a cake rack with the help of the paper overhang and perhaps a pizza lifter. If the cake cracks at any stage, it’s not a disaster, as the cream filling will hide the crack!

Halve the cake and place the bottom layer on a suitable platter.

Whip the vanilla cream until very firm. Put all the cream on the bottom cake layer and top with the second layer. Dust the top with cocoa powder before serving.

Serves 6–8

Mom’s Cream Puffs

This is Mom’s recipe, which I copied from one of her many recipe books. She was quite famous for her cream puffs. Others have tried the same recipe, Zuri and me included, but nobody can get them to be quite as puffy and golden as she did! She was always asked to make platters of these for birthday parties and other functions. Although she always used an egg custard filling, it’s just as delicious when made with a savoury filling, so the puffs are quite versatile. Annie

Choux pastry:

250 ml (1 cup) boiling water

125 g butter

250 ml (1 cup) cake flour

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

4 eggs, lightly beaten

10 ml (2 tsp) baking powder

Egg custard filling:

3 eggs, beaten

190 ml (about ¾ cup) sugar

45 ml (3 Tbsp) cornflour

a pinch of salt

375 ml (1½ cups) scalded milk

15 ml (1 Tbsp) butter

5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla essence

Preheat the oven 220 ºC. Grease a baking sheet.

Put the boiling water and the butter into a saucepan. Boil up well until the butter has melted, then add the flour all at once. Stir vigorously until a ball forms and then remove from the heat. Cool down well.

Using a wooden spoon, mix in the beaten eggs little by little. Beat very well after each addition. This requires quite a bit of beating! The amount of egg you use will be determined by the consistency of your dough: it should be able to hold its shape. If too runny, the puffs will spread instead of rise, so watch that carefully, and do not add all the egg at once. Next, add the baking powder and beat in very well.

Drop dessertspoonfuls of the dough onto the baking sheet about 4 cm apart and shape each with a wet spoon into a round shape.

Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180 ºC and bake for a further 25 minutes, or until puffed up and light golden brown. Poke a small slit in each hot puff to allow steam to escape. Allow to cool and slit each puff horizontally to fill.

To make the egg custard filling, mix the beaten eggs, sugar, cornflour and salt with an electric beater until light.

Pour this gradually into the scalded milk on the stove, keeping up a gentle heat and stirring until thick and smooth. Bring just to boiling point, then remove from the heat. Add the butter and vanilla essence and stir through.

Allow to cool and use to fill the puffs. Sift icing sugar over the puffs before serving.

Makes about 20 puffs

Dressings, Sauces and Other Goodies

We find all of these little recipes very nice and quite handy to have. Hopefully you’ll find a couple that you can use again and again.

Rich Mayo and Blue Cheese Dressing

Yes, this is rich, but it’s also so tasty and versatile! Use hot on plain steamed vegetables or cold on salads. You can even use it in the hollows of fresh pears as a starter or as a pasta sauce. Mayonnaises differ in taste: we prefer a tangy one like Woolworths Tangy Mayonnaise. A local blue cheese will be just fine. The sauce, covered and chilled, will last for days in the fridge. Annie

125 ml (½ cup) tangy mayonnaise

125 ml (½ cup) sour cream

250 ml (1 cup) crumbled and loosely measured blue cheese

1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed

lemon juice to taste (optional)

Combine all the ingredients in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over a low heat. Stir with a fork or whisk until the cheese has melted and the ingredients are smooth. Do not boil!

If using as a pasta sauce, season well with coarse black pepper and fork through hot, drained pasta. Add 125 ml (½ cup) finely chopped flat-leaf parsley and toss well.

Make about 1½ cups

Simple French Sauce

Sometimes all you want is a quick and simple basting sauce or dressing that will not mask the flavour of steaks, lamb chops or chicken. Unashamedly plain, this sauce can also be used as a salad dressing. Annie

125 ml (½ cup) olive oil

125 ml (½ cup) lemon juice

60 ml (¼ cup) castor sugar

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

10 ml (2 tsp) Dijon or other table mustard

3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1 small onion, peeled and very finely chopped or coarsely grated

Put everything except the onion into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the onion.

Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.

Makes about 1½ cups

Mint Sauce

Whenever there is roast lamb on the dinner table, there must be a bowl of mint sauce too! This is my mom’s simple recipe. We make it with fresh garden mint and keep it in a glass bottle in the fridge. Naturally, made with vinegar and sugar, it lasts forever. Best of all is that mint aids digestion! The quantities are more or less correct, but you can vary the sugar and vinegar to your taste. Annie

500 ml (2 cups) firmly packed fresh mint leaves

250 ml (1 cup) apple cider vinegar (Don’t use a sharp spirit vinegar.)

250 ml (1 cup) sugar

a pinch of sea salt

Wash the mint leaves and pat dry with kitchen paper. Slice the mint, held together in bunches, with a sharp knife. You could also snip the leaves with scissors.

Put the sliced leaves in either a bowl or jug and add the vinegar, sugar, and salt. It will take time for the sugar to dissolve, so keep it at room temperature and stir every now and then.

When the sugar has almost dissolved, pour the sauce into a sterilised glass jar with a screwtop lid and screw on the lid.

The sugar will eventually dissolve, but give the sauce a shake before each use. You will find that the mint strands are used up faster than the liquid, so by all means add more clean, snipped mint to the bottle when needed.

Makes about 2 cups

Gremolata

This is not new, or original, but it is an indispensable edible garnish that makes the plainest stew or casserole look and taste appetising! It is delicious on a pork or lamb stew or casserole. You may ask why we so often specify flat-leaf parsley. Also known as Italian parsley, it is easier to work with and more flavourful than the curly variety. If at all possible, try growing it from seed among your flowers or in pots or, best of all, in its own well-composted little patch. It’s an annual, but in moderate climates it can be cut back and will grow again. Annie

60 ml (¼ cup) very finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

30 ml (2 Tbsp) finely grated lemon zest

15 ml (1 Tbsp) very finely chopped fresh garlic

30 ml (2 Tbsp) olive oil

a good pinch of coarse black pepper

a good pinch of sea salt flakes

Mix all the ingredients together and use to top any meat dish. It’s also great on a mound of pasta. If not used immediately, cover and refrigerate. The flavours will meld nicely.

Makes about ½ cup

Light Avocado Sauce

The trend today is towards fresh, clean tastes that do not obscure the main ingredients. This avocado dressing is thinner than most, but has a pure avo taste. It is excellent with salads and fried or steamed fish, as well as with other simple foods, such as boiled potatoes, fish cakes and bruschetta. Avoid using the watery avocados; look for creamy ones, such as Hass and Fuerte. Zuri

1 large creamy, perfectly ripe avocado

100 ml virgin olive oil

30 ml (2 Tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon juice

20 ml (2 tsp) castor sugar

30 ml (2 Tbsp) plain low-fat yoghurt

5 ml (1 tsp) lemon zest

a pinch of freshly ground black pepper

5–10 ml (1–2 tsp) sea salt flakes (less if using table salt)

3 ml (½ tsp) Tabasco sauce

Scoop out the avocado flesh into a mixing bowl and whisk until smooth. Alternatively, do this in a blender.

Add the remaining ingredients and taste for seasoning.

Cover and leave for 30–60 minutes at room temperature, for the flavours to settle. The lemon juice will prevent discolouring.

Makes about 1½ cups

Lemon Sauce

This sauce is good on broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and baby marrows. Do taste it: you might want to add either more lemon juice or more sugar. Zuri

about 45 ml (3 Tbsp) butter

10 ml (2 tsp) cornflour

62 ml (¼ cup) freshly squeezed lemon juice

15 ml (1 Tbsp) coarse-grained mustard

15 ml (1 Tbsp) castor sugar

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

Melt the butter over a medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients, whisk well and bring to a simmer.

The butter might split, but this makes no difference to the taste. A splash of water will bring it back. Use to dress hot vegetables.

Makes about ½ cup

Tapenade Cream Sauce

This is great with fried fish, steaks, potatoes! Tapenade is available in small bottles at most good supermarkets and it lasts for ages in the fridge. You could also make your own. I had this sauce on fish in the South of France, but had to experiment at home to approximate the same taste. Zuri

250 ml (1 cup) good dry white wine (a nice Sauvignon Blanc will do)

100 g sweet onion, very finely chopped

60 ml (¼ cup) crème fraîche or thick sour cream

60 g cold butter, cut up

60 ml (¼ cup) black olive tapenade

Put the wine and finely chopped onion in a small pot, and simmer over a medium to high heat until the wine has reduced to about ¼ cup. This takes 10–15 minutes.

Whisk in the crème fraîche over the heat, but not actually simmering it.

Whisk in the butter, followed by the tapenade. Remove from the heat.

Use hot or warm, sparingly, as suggested.

Makes about ¾ cup

Braveheart Hot Chilli Sauce

We are regularly served a hot sauce like this at a fish restaurant, and its bite is really nice with crumbed calamari and battered fish. This is great with meat too, for any chilli aficionado! I have even used it to enhance a Thai-style stir-fry. Feel free to adjust the ingredients to taste and wear surgical gloves when working with chillies! Store the sauce in the fridge and stir before use. Zuri

45 ml (3 Tbsp) deseeded and finely chopped red and green cayenne or any other hot chilli

45 ml (3 Tbsp) extra-virgin olive oil

15 ml (1 Tbsp) lime or lemon juice

7 ml 1½ tsp) sugar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

7 ml (1½ tsp) salt

Mix everything in a clean, sterilised bottle and steep for at least 3 hours before using.

Serve individual portions in tiny bowls along with calamari, fish and prawns.

Makes about 120 ml

Rocket Pesto with Walnuts

Rocket (also known as roquette or arugula) is one of those greens halfway between vegetable and herb. It is extremely easy to grow from seed, but likes good soil and being kept damp. In very hot weather it goes to seed quickly, and then the leaves turn too bitter to use. Rocket does well in temperate weather, such as autumn or spring. The ‘tame’ garden rocket has large leaves, while ‘wild’ rocket has narrow leaves. I am addicted to it! It cannot really be cooked, but I use it in the nightly dinner salad, chopped up with cheese as a sandwich spread, with any egg dish, or sliced on pasta – and then there is this delicacy, which I can easily eat by the spoonful. This is great forked into hot pasta and it complements all egg dishes. Zuri

750 ml (3 cups) chopped young rocket leaves

60 ml (¼ cup) chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

100 g fresh walnuts, roasted

60 g Parmesan or pecorino cheese, roughly grated

90 ml (6 Tbsp) virgin olive oil

3 ml (½ tsp) sea salt flakes

3 ml (½ tsp) coarse black pepper

15 ml (1 Tbsp) lemon juice

Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and whizz.

This pesto should not be too smooth, but rather granular or rough in texture. If your processor has trouble processing it, add a little more oil.

Scrape the pesto into a bowl, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for a few hours for the flavour to develop.

It can be reheated gently in a warming oven and forked into hot spaghetti with extra Parmesan shavings on top. It’s also good on hot toast, served cold in avo hollows with Parmesan shavings, or dropped into a green salad with a teaspoon. Also try it in omelettes and scrambled eggs.

Makes about 2 cups

Basic Fish Stock

Use the heads and bones from very fresh fish. Such fish smell of the sea and never fishy, and can often be had for next to nothing from a fishmonger. Fish shops in cities get in very fresh fish overnight, on ice, from a coastal town. As most people request filleted fish, the heads and backbone go to waste. Prawn and lobster shells also make excellent stock, so never throw them away. Freeze them to make stock at a later date. This is not really a recipe, as I’ve never measured or weighed what I put in. Zuri

about 1½–2 kg or more fresh fish heads, trimmings, prawn shells, etc.

2 litres (8 cups) water

1 medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped

2 carrots, cleaned and roughly chopped

a handful of sliced celery

a handful of roughly chopped fresh parsley

juice of 1 lemon

strips of lemon peel

crushed lemon or bay leaves (optional)

some thyme, rosemary and marjoram stalks tied together with string

30 ml (2 Tbsp) chopped fresh garlic

5 ml (1 tsp) sugar

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

5 ml (1 tsp) whole peppercorns

Place all the ingredients in a large soup pot. Bring to the boil, turn the heat to low, put the lid on at a slant and let the stock simmer for about 45 minutes. If scum rises to the top, skim it off. (This can largely be prevented by rinsing the fish well before using.)

Then turn off the heat and leave for a while.

Place a large sieve or colander over a suitable container for draining the stock, but line the colander or sieve with rinsed, spotlessly clean kitchen wipes or a clean kitchen cloth (not the terrycloth ones, which are too thick). If available, muslin or cheesecloth is perfect.

Carefully let the stock drip through. (Annie and I usually wait until the fish heads have cooled down and then carefully pick off the bits of flavourful flesh and add them to the strained stock. It’s a messy, gluey job, but worth it! Just be careful to feel for scales and small bones before adding these bits and pieces.)

Cool the stock. If the taste is not perfect (it usually is!), remember that it is merely a base for a more interesting recipe, and the seasonings will be adjusted at that time. Freeze in suitable containers or Ziploc™ bags.

Makes about 2 litres (8 cups)

Creamy French Vinaigrette

This delicious and tangy vinaigrette is especially good when assertive salad ingredients are used, such as rocket, nasturtium leaves, avocado, onion, boiled eggs and ham. Annie

90 ml (6 Tbsp) fresh cream

10 ml (2 tsp) smooth Dijon mustard

5 ml (1 tsp) finely chopped fresh garlic

30 ml (2 Tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon juice

5 ml (1 tsp) castor sugar

3 ml (½ tsp) salt

a good pinch of white pepper

30 ml (2 Tbsp) extra-virgin olive oil

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and, using electric beaters or a whisk, whisk to a smooth consistency. It will thicken slightly.

Makes ¾ cup

Crème Fraîche

Theres’s no need to wonder where you can source crème fraîche if it’s not easily available. Simply make your own! Annie

250 ml (1 cup) fresh cream

30 ml (2 Tbsp) buttermilk

It’s best to sterilise a screwtop jar for this, as crème fraîche can keep for a very long time under the right conditions. Simply put a clean jar into a cold oven, heat the oven to 160 ºC and leave the jar at that temperature for at least 10 minutes. Remove with a dry cloth and keep covered.

When cooled down, add the fresh cream to the jar, then add the buttermilk and stir to mix. Screw on the lid and leave at room temperature to thicken. This can take from 12 to 24 hours, depending on the ambient temperature.

As soon as the cream has thickened, put it in the fridge. It will thicken even more on standing and can be kept for up to 2 weeks, maybe longer. You will notice an ‘off’ smell when it is no longer useable.

Thick crème fraîche is especially recommended for use in Granny Greta’s Sour Cream Pastry on page 46.

Makes 1 cup

Delicious Homemade Ricotta

Some time ago, the manager of a well-known supermarket chain told me they don’t stock ricotta any more ‘because there is no demand for it’. I threw a small tantrum, as there I was, after all, asking for it! Since then I’ve only found ricotta in small amounts in a very expensive deli. So I did some research and the result was this recipe, which makes delicious ricotta! And it can’t be easier. This is not the same way ricotta is traditionally made (from the whey that is left after making hard cheeses), but it tastes about the same, if not better, and can be used in the same way: for sweet fillings, savoury stuffings and tarts. Zuri

3 litres (12 cups) full-cream milk

375 ml (1½ cups) fresh cream

375 ml (1½ cups) Greek yoghurt

10 ml (2 tsp) salt

30 ml (2 Tbsp) fresh lemon juice (if necessary)

Before starting, find a squeaky-clean plain kitchen cloth (not terrycloth), wet it and wring it out well. (Use cheesecloth if you have it.) Line a large sieve with it, and set it over a suitable deep bowl. The ricotta curds must not touch the whey, which will drain out.

In a large soup pot, combine the milk, cream, yoghurt and salt. Bring this to the boil, stirring constantly with a whisk. It takes quite a while to come to the boil. The constant stirring is important to prevent the milk from burning at the bottom, which will be a disaster for your fresh cheese.

Boil the milk mixture for 2–3 minutes until it curdles. You’ll only see a fine curdling, not the large curds of cottage cheese. I have found that sometimes it does not curdle perfectly, maybe because of the additives in the yoghurt or cream. In that case, add the lemon juice and stir in with your whisk.

Remove from the heat. Let it cool a little and then pour into the cloth-lined sieve. It’s a large amount of liquid and you may have to get someone to empty the whey that runs out while you lift up the sieve.

Also, turn over the curds by tilting the cloth so it drains properly on all sides. As the ricotta thickens and drips out less whey, you can tip it into a very fine sieve if you have one and leave it to finish draining.

You should have a lovely, firm white ricotta after about 45 minutes. Cool, put into a suitable container, cover and keep in fridge. It will last 3–4 days, maybe a bit longer; smell it for freshness.

Makes about 900 g

Annie and I use ricotta for savoury fillings for sweet peppers and those long banana peppers, for desserts, and as a spread on bread. It can be flavoured with savoury, as well as sweet, ingredients. We find it far more versatile than cottage cheese.

Zuri’s Ever-changing Braai Sauce

I say ever-changing, because the quantities are so flexible! Years ago I simply put more or less the same ingredients in a blender until it tasted right to me. With great discipline I managed later to measure more accurately, because people wanted the ‘recipe’ and there was none! It is spicy and tangy, so if you prefer light seasonings on braai meats, this is not for you. It is, however, delicious on steaks and chops, and even on chicken. Brush on several times during braaiing. If you make a batch, keep it in one of those large old-fashioned canning bottles in the fridge; it lasts forever. Zuri

250 ml (1 cup) oil (use olive oil if you prefer)

250 ml (1 cup) apple cider vinegar or grape vinegar

180 ml brown sugar

15 ml (1 Tbsp) salt

100 ml tomato sauce (I only use All Gold)

125 ml (½ cup) chutney (Wellington’s fruity chutneys are nice)

30 ml (2 Tbsp) Worcestershire sauce

5 ml (1 tsp) Malay-style mild curry powder

10 ml (2 tsp) coarsely ground black pepper

15 ml (1 Tbsp) crushed coriander seeds

5 ml (1 tsp) ground cinnamon

10 ml (2 tsp) mustard powder or Dijon mustard

4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

10 ml (2 tsp) ground ginger

10 ml (2 tsp) dried thyme

Put all the ingredients into a blender or food processor and process until fairly thick and smooth. Taste for seasoning and add whatever you think is needed. Vary the taste by leaving out, for example, the Worcestershire sauce, and using lemon and orange zest instead.

This is a basting sauce, not a marinade, and it is brushed on while the meat is on the braai.

Keep in the fridge and shake to mix before each use. Don’t dip a brush into the bottle; rather pour out enough for each use into a small bowl.

Makes about 3 cups

Marinated Green Olives

This marinade has the ability to deliciously ‘soften’ and flavour the taste of olives. It’s easiest by far to use the ready-pitted olives, so you don’t have to battle to remove the pips! These olives taste wonderful and make a great addition to snack platters and salads. Do not discard the marinade after using the olives; use it over roast chicken or in a stew. Zuri

300–500 g drained green pitted olives

30 ml (2 Tbsp) coriander seeds, roasted and roughly crushed

½ lemon, sliced thinly and then halved again, pips removed

60 ml (¼ cup) fresh lemon juice

roughly grated zest of 1 orange (avoid the white pith)

75 ml (5 Tbsp) fresh orange juice

2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

4 sprigs thyme

1 fresh chilli, deseeded and chopped

15 ml (1 Tbsp) sugar

125 ml (½ cup) extra-virgin olive oil

Clean and sterilise a glass jar with a screwtop lid.

Put the drained olives in a glass or ceramic bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, except the olive oil, and toss well.

Transfer the olives and marinade to the jar and add enough olive oil to cover. Screw on the lid, shake and allow to marinate for at least a day before using. After opening, keep in the fridge and use within 4–5 days.

Makes 1 medium jar

Chinese Five-spice Powder

Spices and dried herbs lose their flavour fairly quickly. This mixture, often used in Asian recipes, can be made in a small amount and kept in a little bottle with a screwtop lid. Recipes usually only require 5 ml (1 tsp). Ensure that the spices you use to make this powder are fresh. Zuri

5 ml (1 tsp) fennel seeds

2–3 star anise, crushed

5 ml (1 tsp) ground cinnamon

2–3 ml (½ tsp) ground cloves

5 ml (1 tsp) mixed peppercorns (black, white and pink)

Dry-roast the fennel seeds and star anise for a few minutes in a small pan.

Use a coffee bean grinder to grind all the spices together until fairly smooth.

Store in an airtight bottle, out of the light.

Makes about 1½ Tbsp

Index

A

All-in-one roast chicken dinner 92

Annie’s bruschetta 15

Annie’s chocolate torte 159

Annie’s dumplings 39

Annie’s fish pie 56

Annie’s mince-stuffed green peppers 113

Apple tart 166

B

Baby marrows with Asian flair 126

Bacon and potato pie 146

Baked cucumber 120

Baked leek dish 133

Baked sweet butternut 130

Basic fish stock 181

beef

mince-stuffed green peppers, Annie’s 113

roast fillet family platter 114

roll, stuffed 109

stew in red wine with croutons 110

stir-fried strips with broccoli 112

Beef stew in red wine with croutons 110

Best carrot cake ever 156

Best shortcrust pastry ever 47

Biltong cheese-ball 23

Blue cheese tart with walnut topping 25

Bok choy, potato and onion fry 132

Braveheart hot chilli sauce 179

bread

French-style no-knead 44

fuss-free, Linda’s 42

olive and Cheddar holey 43

picnic 42

Brinjal dip 23

Broccoli soufflé bake 122

Brussels sprouts with bacon and pecans 120

Buttermilk pudding 167

Butternut soup 33

C

cake

carrot, best ever 156

chocolate, Mom’s 158

one-bowl, Tannie Joubert’s 168

tropic aroma 154

upside-down, Granny Greta’s 169

Calamari salad with avocado 148

Cape-style roast leg of lamb 104

Cheat’s easy pork terrine 97

Cheese-filled tortilla slices 22

chicken

à l’orange 79

breasts, feta-stuffed with bacon 81

curry, Malay-style 91

lemon, with olives 86

pie, my 88

roast, all-in-one dinner 92

roast, with honey-lemon marinade 83

spicy peanut 82

wings, tangy with coconut topping 84

with rosemary and roast garlic 87

Chicken à l’orange 79

Chicken liver pâté with port flavour 28

Chicken with rosemary and roast garlic 87

Chinese five-spice powder 188

Cooking fresh fish 50

Cool green summer soup 35

cream puffs, Mom’s 173

Creamy French vinaigrette 182

Crème fraîche 182

Crunchy prawns with sweet chilli sauce 63

Crustless asparagus tart 21

Crustless baby spinach tart 124

Crusty roast potatoes 128

Curried calamari stew 70

D

Deconstructed ratatouille 125

Delectable fish braai 68

Delicious curried fish 62

Delicious homemade ricotta 184

desserts, see Something sweet 152

dip, brinjal 23

dressing

French vinaigrette, creamy 182

mayo and blue cheese, rich 176

rocket pesto with walnuts 180

Dressings, sauces and other goodies 174

duck

breast with black cherry, port and redcurrant sauce 78

roast, with Van der Hum sauce 76

Duck breast with black cherry, port and redcurrant sauce 78

E

Easy lunch salad on skewers 151

Escargot starter in ramekins 26

F

Farmhouse lamb stew 107

Feta-stuffed chicken breasts with bacon 81

fish and seafood

calamari stew, curried 70

fish, baked with Thai-style sauce 59

fish, delicious curried 62

fish, fresh 50

fish braai, delectable 68

fish fillets in tomato cream sauce 54

fish fillets, lightly battered 55

fish fillets with Greek-style topping 53

fish pie, Annie’s 56

hake fillets with almond topping 58

mussel dish, harbourside 66

prawns, crunchy with sweet chilli sauce 63

prawns, old Cape spiced 65

seafood bobotie 72

trout with Van der Hum cream sauce 60

tuna muffins, tasty 67

Fish fillets in tomato cream sauce 54

Fish fillets with Greek-style topping 53

five-spice powder, Chinese 188

Four-cheese pie with piquanté peppers 18

French-style no-knead bread 44

Fried cucumber with ginger and chilli 142

G

Granny Greta’s roly-poly pudding 160

Granny Greta’s sour cream pastry 46

Granny Greta’s upside-down cake 169

Grape, blue cheese and walnut salad 139

Gremolata 177

H

Hake fillets with almond topping 58

Harbourside mussel dish 66

Healthy winter vegetable broth 34

Heirloom onion salad 140

Hungarian walnut torte 170

L

lamb

roast leg of, Cape-style 104

shanks with red wine sauce 102

stew, farmhouse 107

stew, spiced with dried apricots 108

Lamb shanks with red wine sauce 102

Lemon chicken with olives 86

Lemon sauce 178

Light avocado sauce 178

Lightly battered fish fillets 55

Linda’s fuss-free bread 42

Lots of side dishes 118

M

Malay-style chicken curry 91

Marinated green olives 188

meringue

slice, nutty 172

Tsitsikamma fruit and nut 164

Mint sauce 177

Mom’s chocolate cake 158

Mom’s cream puffs 173

Mom’s Irish bake 127

Mom’s quick savoury tart 22

Mushroom kebabs for the braai 134

Mushroom tart 20

My chicken pie 88

N

Nuts and coconut baked pudding 167

Nutty meringue slice 172

O

Old Cape spiced prawns 65

Old South African pork chop marinade 100

Olive and Cheddar holey bread 43

olives, marinated green 188

P

Pantry lore 10

pastry

pâté, chicken liver with port flavour 28

Peas mashed with mint 121

Peppery herbed baby potatoes 126

pesto, rocket with walnuts 180

Picnic bread 42

pork

belly, slow-roasted 94

belly, stuffed 99

marinade, old South African chop 100

roast, with grape sauce 98

shanks, stewed 96

terrine, cheat’s easy 97

Potato and vegetable fritters 141

pudding

buttermilk 167

chocolate, saucy 163

cornflour, velvety 162

nuts and coconut baked 167

roly-poly, Granny Greta’s 160

R

Rich chicken soup 33

Rich mayo and blue cheese dressing 176

ricotta, delicious homemade 184

Roast chicken with honey-lemon marinade 83

Roast duck with Van der Hum sauce 76

Roast fillet family platter 114

Roast pork with grape sauce 98

Rocket pesto with walnuts 180

S

salad

calamari, with avocado 148

chicory leaf, stuffed 150

grape, blue cheese and walnut 139

lunch salad on skewers, easy 151

onion, heirloom 140

rocket and avocado 147

summery, simple 130

tomato, simplest sun-ripe 145

sauce

avocado, light 178

braai, Zuri’s ever-changing 186

chilli, Braveheart hot 179

French, simple 176

lemon 178

mint 177

tapenade cream 179

Saucy chocolate pudding 163

Savoury bacon, onion and herb bread pudding 27

Scrumptious baked pumpkin slices 137

Seafood bobotie 72

Simple French sauce 176

Simple summery salad 130

Simplest sun-ripe tomato salad 145

Slow-roasted pork belly 94

Smoked salmon rolls 17

Snails with Camembert in phyllo pastry 16

soup

butternut 33

chicken, rich 33

dumplings, Annie’s 39

prawn and coconut cream, Thai-style 36

seafood, winter’s night 40

summer, cool green 35

vegetable broth, healthy winter 34

Spiced lamb stew with dried apricots 108

Spicy peanut chicken 82

starters

bacon, onion and herb bread pudding, savoury 27

biltong cheese-ball 23

bruschetta, Annie’s 15

cheese-filled tortilla slices 22

chicken liver pâté with port flavour 28

escargot in ramekins 26

four-cheese pie with piquanté peppers 18

smoked salmon rolls 17

snails with Camembert in phyllo pastry 16

Stewed green beans 131

Stewed pork shanks 96

Stir-fried beef strips with broccoli 112

stock, basic fish 181

Stuffed beef roll 109

Stuffed chicory leaf salad 150

Stuffed pork belly 99

T

Tangy chicken wings with coconut topping 84

Tannie Joubert’s one-bowl cake 168

Tapenade cream sauce 179

tarts, savoury

asparagus, crustless 21

baby spinach, crustless 124

blue cheese, with walnut topping 25

mushroom 20

savoury, Mom’s quick 22

tarts, sweet

apple 166

chocolate torte, Annie’s 159

walnut torte, Hungarian 170

Tasty tuna muffins 67

Thai-style prawn and coconut cream soup 36

Thai-style sauce with baked fish 59

Tropic aroma cake 154

Trout with Van der Hum cream sauce 60

Tsitsikamma fruit and nut meringue 164

V

vegetables and sides

baby marrows with Asian flair 126

baby potatoes, peppery herbed 126

bacon and potato pie 146

bok choy, potato and onion fry 132

broccoli soufflé bake 122

brussels sprouts with bacon and pecans 120

cucumber, baked 120

cucumber, fried with ginger and chilli 142

green beans, stewed 131

Irish bake, Mom’s 127

leek dish, baked 133

mushroom kebabs for the braai 134

peas mashed with mint 121

potato and vegetable fritters 141

potatoes, crusty roast 128

pumpkin slices, scrumptious baked 137

ratatouille, deconstructed 125

sweet butternut, baked 130

waterblommetjie stew 143

Velvety cornflour pudding 162

Venison pie 117

W

Waterblommetjie stew 143

Weights and measures 192

Winter’s night seafood soup 40

Z

Zuri’s ever-changing braai sauce 186

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

The question could be asked why we mostly use ml (millilitres) in our recipes, even sometimes for sugar and flour.

It is for purely practical reasons. We both have our measuring cups and spoons at hand, and it’s sometimes too much trouble to take a scale from a cupboard, especially when measurements and weights are not of prime importance, or when small amounts are used.

When measuring flour in a measuring cup, simply shake lightly to level the content. If using a metric spoon measure, scrape level. We also try to use rounded weights and measures and avoid fractions. To make multiples of 15 ml (1 tablespoon) clearer, we add the approximate tablespoons in brackets, for example 75 ml will also be indicated as 5 tablespoons. There’s no problem with using a trusty tablespoon; just make sure it holds 15 ml!

Where absolute accuracy is needed, we do use g (grams). Likewise, weight in grams is used where it is more applicable, such as the weight of meats, cans, butter or prepacked products, because the weight will be indicated on the container.

Please be careful not to confuse grams with millilitres.

Sometimes we use expressions such as ‘a handful of parsley’. This is approximately 125 ml or ½ cup.

Please keep in mind that ovens differ! For fan or convection ovens you should usually bake at 10 degrees lower than the recipe stipulates.

3 ml = ½ teaspoon

5 ml = 1 teaspoon

15 ml = 1 tablespoon

60 ml = 4 tablespoons or ¼ cup

125 ml = ½ cup

200 ml = ¾ cup

250 ml = 1 cup