Merry Christmas every one, would just like to thank everyone whose supported me this year, and hope to have your support going on to 2014! Next year promises to be full of new experiences and excitement, with loads more I'll be sharing. Hope you all have a fabulous Christmas and a Prosperous New Years!  See you all again in 2014! Happy Holidays! 

This coming week will be dedicated to building up my Ingredients list on my website, starting with all the different types of rice. And if you think you know your rice, then think again! This list of different types of rice will "BLOW" your mind! Don't believe me? Just wait and see. These are but a few of the many different rice strains you can get! So keep an eye out for that, and brush up on your rice knowledge! 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This recipe I'm posting today is a traditional one, with no fancy extra ingredients that will win you the "Checkers Boerewors of the Year". But feel free to start off with this as a foundation and play around with it, make it your own. Every weekend in South Africa, hundreds and thousands of families partake in what we call the "Braai", to others it is known as the BBQ. This is a good time for us as it's a time where families and friends get to relax with a ice cold beer, my favourite's being Black label and Castle Light, and enjoy good food as well a big screen in the outdoor lapa or stoep (veranda) watching a good rugby game. The gentlemen would stand around the braai where every single one of them will check the meat (they can't help it) and the ladies would be busy in the kitchen making potato salad, beetroot salad and mielie pap. Once all the food is cooked and ready to be eaten, its all laid out on a big table where everyone can help themselves. It's when everyone all comes together and talks about anything and everything. And by this time they have had a few and the conversation is flowing and everyone's just having a great time! Braai is a really big thing here in South Africa, we have a national Braai Day as well as a song just for Braai Day, I'll place a link at the bottom for the song. 

Recipe 

• 2kg Lean Beef (you can either buy the meat and mince it yourself or ask your butcher to mince it for you) 
• 1kg Fatty Pork (you can either buy the meat and mince it yourself or ask your butcher to mince it for you) 
• 45g Coriander Seeds (toasted and roughly ground ) 
• 5ml Cloves (toasted and finely ground)
• 2 tbs Salt
• 1 tbs Black Peppercorns (toasted and finely ground) 
• 2ml Ground Nutmeg
• 10ml All Spice (toasted and finely ground) 
• 10ml Brown Sugar 
• 125ml Red Wine
• 90g Casings 

Method 

1. If you have chosen to mince the meat your self, place the chunks of meat through your meat mincer at quite a coarse grain. 
2. Once all of your meat has been minced place all of your dry ingredients with the meat and mix well . Add the red wine and mix in thoroughly.
3. Allow for meat to rest for about 30 minutes in the fridge.
4. Now using your sausage stuffer attachment place the casing around the nozzle and add you minced meat. Slowly start to stuff your casing making sure to create a thick sausage.  
5. Cook on a open fire for best taste. Enjoy. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

Here it is, my rusks recipe I promised you earlier today. I'm going to give you two different variations today, one is a very popular flavour amongst South Africans and the other one is more of a personal preference. The first recipe is a Buttermilk Rusk recipe and the second one is a Walnut and Dried Fig recipe. If I were to have the buttermilk rusk I would go with coffee instead of tea and visa versa with the walnut and fig rusk. You can make these rusks look rustic just for you and your family or you could make them nice and edgy for a High Tea party on a Sunday Afternoon.   

Buttermilk Rusks:  (this is for a large batch, they are easily stored in an air tight container or glass jar.) 

Ingredients 

• 1.5 kg Plain White Flour
• 400g Sugar 
• 20g Honey
• 375g Soft Butter 
• 4 Large Eggs 
• 500ml Buttermilk
• 1 tsp Salt 
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract 
• 4 Lavender Sprigs (If you would like, you could use this for a nice High Tea party as well) 

Method

1. Place the flour, sugar and salt into a mixing bowl and then add the butter, start to rub the butter into the dry ingredients till it resembles sand.
2. Mix all your wet ingredients together and give it a good whisk so everything is well mixed together (if you're using lavender, place butter milk and lavender into a pot and place onto medium heat. Once it starts to simmer remove from heat and allow to infuse for 20 minutes. Once 20 minutes have passed strain butter milk and allow to cool before adding to the other ingredients). 
3. Now add your wet ingredients to the butter and flour mix and knead till you have a smooth dough.
4. Take a large shallow oven tray and grease well with butter ( should be about 3 cm deep).
5. Now take enough dough to fill the whole tray about 2 cm high, flatten with your hands so its even through out the whole tray. 
6. Now using a knife, cut rusks of 1 cm by 3 cm (or which ever size you prefer). 
7. Place into preheated oven of 180˚C/356˚F for 45 minutes or till golden brown.
   
8. Once ready and out of the oven, allow to cool,  then cut rusks again and place onto wire cooling racks. Place back into preheated oven of 100˚C/212˚F (or the lowest temp your oven can go) for  6 - 8 hours (over night if lower than 100˚C) 
   
9. The final product should be completely dried out and hard, perfect for soaking up some coffee or tea. 

Walnut and Dried Fig
Ingredients

• 1 kg Plain White Flour
• 375 g Soft Butter
• 250 g Walnuts (roughly chopped) 
• 200 g Dried Figs (roughly chopped) 
• 3 Large Eggs 
• 300 g Sugar 
• 50 g Honey
• 200 ml Buttermilk
• 200 ml Milk
• 1 tsp Salt 
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract 

Method 

1. Place the flour, sugar, walnuts and salt into a mixing bowl and then add the butter, start to rub the butter into the dry ingredients till it resembles sand.
   
2. Mix all your wet ingredients together as well as the figs and give it a good whisk so everything is well mixed together (allow for mix to stand for 5 minutes just so that the figs re hydrate a little bit). 
3. Now add your wet ingredients to the butter and flour mix and knead till you have a smooth dough (while you knead you might find that the walnuts and figs tend to fall out, don't worry about that just stick them right back in). 
4. Take a large shallow oven tray and grease well with butter (should be about 3 cm deep).
5. Take enough dough to fill the whole tray about 2 cm high, flatten with your hands so its even through out the whole tray. 
6. Now using a knife, cut rusks of 1 cm by 3 cm (or which ever size you prefer). 
7. Place into preheated oven of 180˚C/356˚F for 45 minutes, or till golden brown.
   
8. Once ready and out of the oven, allow to cool, then cut rusks again. Place onto wire cooling racks and place back into preheated oven of 100˚C/212˚F (or the lowest temp your oven can go) for  6 - 8 hours (over night if lower than 100˚C) 
   
9. The final product should be completely dried out and hard, perfect for soaking up some coffee or tea. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This is similar to rusks, which is also a favourite accompaniment with a hot beverage like coffee or tea.  They are easy to make and you can make them a healthy snack if you a bit of a health conscious person. It's also easily stored, so making them in bulk and placing in big glass jars work great for adding something to your kitchen. 
There can be enjoyed fresh out of the oven or double bake to dry them out like rusks.

Ingredients 

• 420g flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 60 ml sugar
• 10g instant dry yeast
• 60g butter (soft)
• 1 egg
• 125 ml milk (1/2 cup)
• 80 ml water
• 10 ml aniseed 

Method 

1. This is a flaky pastry so you going to add al the dry ingredients and butter first and rub the butter into the dry ingredients. 
2. Once the mixture resembles that of sand add in your milk water and egg and combine to form a dough
3. Knead the dough till the surface is smooth like the inside of your lower arm. 
4. Allow to proof for 45 minutes (make sure it is covered and in a warm place.
5. After 45 minutes divide the dough into 30-40 g portions and shape into balls. 
6. Place the balls into greased bread tin and brush with egg mixture on top to give a shine finish,  allow to proof for another 45 minutes.
7. Once proofing is done place into 180C/356F preheated oven for 30 minutes till golden brown
8. If you wish to double bake them, break up the mosbollitjies and place onto large baking sheet and place into 100C oven for 4-5 hours or place into warming rack for 8-10 hours. 

Cape Malay people have blessed South Africa with this wonderful dish I'm about to give you the recipe for today. But before I do that I'm going to tell you a bit about these wonderful people. The Cape Malay people were fist brought to the South African shores back in the early 16th century to be used as slaves for Dutch Master. They were settled in the souther point of South Africa, as this was the VOC (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie)  trading point where the Dutch East Indian Company ships would pass by either on the way to Asia or back home. The Cape Malay community is a divers collective of people ranging from Western Africa all the way to Malaysia. They were exiled from their countries by the Dutch Masters for resisting the change the Dutch brought to their country. Then shipped off to the Cape of Good Hope and used as slaves here in the plantations to produce enough supplies for the ships when they passed by. Due to the vast cultural diversity between the "Cape Malay" people, they where able to create their very on style of cooking. Marring the deep rich flavours of Western African with the Aromatic flavours of East Asia together to give us a unique flavour profile you can only fine in South Africa. This unique flavour can still be found in Cape Town where the Cape Malay people are still living, giving us the opportunity to experience something unique.  For more history on the Cape Malay people simply click on the buttons below. 

When you make this dish it is best served a day or two after it has been made so that the flavour are able to combine properly and the pickling liquid is well absorbed by the fish. It is also better to use a firm meaty fish to use as it will be able to last longer with out falling apart. Im using hake today in the recipe but other good fish for this is sea bass, yellow tail and kingklip. If you pan on storing the fish for long periods of time, please ensure that the container you are using has been properly sterilised and has a air tight seal to prevent the fish from going off. If all of the criteria are met, you will be able to store the fish for about 4-6 months. 

Hope you all have prepared your vetkoek dough and are ready to fill them with this great flavour packed filling. This Bobotie dish is usually served with a helping of yellow rice. But today I have decided to pair it with this wonderful deep fried dough. You can adjusted this dish to be served for hors d'oeuvres or starters, it could also be made into mains. There are also several different ways of plating this dish. Just be creative and adapt it to which ever occasion you wish to use it for. There are a few changes I have made to the traditional method of making this dish, but I have found that it just delivers a but more of a rounded flavour profile. 
Please remember that feed back is always welcome and appreciated.  If you have made this dish please also feel free to share your final product by posting photos on my Facebook page. 

Ingredients 

• 700g lean beef minced meat
• 300g lamb mince meat
• 1 large onion (finely chopped)
• 1 large carrot (finely chopped)
• 6 pepper corns 
• 4 bay leaves 
• 2 tsp mild curry powder 
• 1/2 tsp turmeric 
• 1 tsp coriander seeds 
• 1 tsp cumin seeds 
•   3 all spice berries 
  
• 2 cloves
• 2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped) 
• 80g flaked almonds (toasted) 
• 2 tsp apricot relish (if you do not relish you can also use dried apricots which you have to soak)
• 1 tsp apricot jam
• 2 slices white bread 
• 3 eggs 
• 250 ml fresh cream 
• 50 g of raisins
• 50g sultanas 
• 20 ml red wine vinegar 
• 15 ml butter 
• Salt 

Method: Preheat oven to 180C/356F

1. Place the coriander, cumin, all spice, pepper corns, and bay leafs into a heated pan and roast till it is lightly toasted to release the essential oils. Then remove and place into pestle and mortar (or coffee grinder) and grind into fine powder and add to curry powder and turmeric. 
2. Soak the bread in the cream
3. Place a heavy based pan on a high heat and then add a bit of oil to heat up, once hot add in the minced meat and cook till well caramelised (if your pan is not big enough to fit all the meat at once then rather cook half at a time to prevent meat from boiling/steaming).
4. Once caramelised add in the apricots relish and apricot jam along with the raisins and sultanas. 
5. Once the meat is done, remove and allow to rest in a bowl. 
6. Now using the same pan, add in the butter and then the onions, carrots, garlic and the spice mixture. Cook until the onions and carrots are soft and then add to the meat. 
7. Place the pan back onto the heat and then add the vinegar to deglaze pan and add to the meat and vegetables.
   
8. Now that everything is ready for the oven, add the soaked bread to the mixture (keeping the cream behind) and mix well to incorporate everything together. 
9.  Add the cream and eggs into a bowl and season, mix well.
10. Place everything into a shallow oven proof dish and then pour the egg and cream mixture over the top.
11. Place into the oven for 30-35 minutes till the egg custard has set. 
12. Once it is done, you can now fill your perfectly deep fried vetkoek with the beautiful minced filling. 

Today I decided to bring you two different South African dishes and pairing them together. Vetkoek is a deep fried pastry which is enjoyed with several different types of fillings. Some of these fillings include savoury minced meat with peas, potatoes and carrots. You can also find this loved deep fried pastry at the street venders which pair it with "russian sausages", polony  and if you have a sweet tooth you can also get it with apricot jam and butter. And because this addictive pastry is so versatile I've chosen a slightly sweet but savoury filling to go with it. Bobotie is a base of minced meat, enriched by a sweet savoury curry flavour which is topped with a silky smooth egg and cream mixture. Some of the other key ingredients in this dish is the raisins, sultanas  and almonds. But enough about that, lets get to the important part, the recipe and how to make this wonderful dish. I will first be posting the Vetkoek recipe and then later today I will post the Bobotie recipe, so keep an eye out for that. For those who do not know what Vetkoek means, if roughly translated it means "Fat cake". I saw some one that translated it to meaning "fat cook", which is incorrect. 

 Ingredients 

• 1kg flour
• 670g water
• 50g yeast (fresh) 
• 10g oil
• 10g vinegar 
• 8g salt
• 8g sugar

Method

1. Place all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and bring together till you have a dough ball
2. Now start kneading the dough till you have a full gluton development (this should take 5-6 minutes in mixer at medium speed and about double that if doing by hand) The dough should be stretchy with out tearing. 
3. Now place dough into bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to bulk ferment(proof) for 2 hour, degassing at 1 hour intervals.
4. In the mean time heat up your deep frier or pot with thermometer to 170C/338F ( vegetable oil is perfect to use) 
5. Once hour has passed, portion the dough into 80-100g portions (depending on how big you would like to have your vetkoek) and then shape into balls or rectangle( which ever you prefer) 
6. Once proofing is done place portioned dough into hot oil and allow to fry till each side is a deep golden brown. If your oil is too hot you will not be able to cook the whole vetkoek all the way through. If this does happen simply preheat your oven to 180C and finish them off in the oven. If your oil is too cold your vetkoek will absorb a lot of oil and that won't be pleasant to eat. So make sure your oil is at the right temperature. 

There are three different cakes I hold near and dear to my hear and carrot cake is one of those. And not to brag, but I do think this is one of the best recipes for carrot cake out there. What makes it that little bit more decadent you may ask, well its the banana I use in the recipe. I also just like the texture this cake has with big chunks of pecan nuts riddling the cake. Then comes the sweet tangy cream cheese frosting, not to much and not to little but just the right amount. Finished of with some fresh fruits and a sprinkle of pecan nuts. It's truly in my opinion everything you could want in a cake, but then again that's just me! 

Ingredients 

• 187.5 ml oil 
• 2 eggs
• 187.5 ml caster sugar
• 100ml pecan nuts (you can really use any nut you prefer, still want to try it out with pistachios)
• 375 ml plain flour
• 5ml vanilla extract
• 5ml baking powder
• 5ml bicarbonate of soda
• 2ml salt
• 2ml mixed spices
• 5ml cinnamon
• 2ml nutmeg
• 125ml banana 
• 250 ml fine grated carrots 

Method : preheat oven to 160C/320F

1. Place the oil, eggs, vanilla and eggs into mixing bowl and mix well till you have a thick light consistency.
2. Now add in all of your dry ingredients( includes nuts) which you need to sift at least once.
3. Mix till till everything is well incorporated
4. Now you can add in your carrots and bananas, give it another good mix 
5. Grease your cake pan with silicon paper on the bottom, then place into your preheated oven of 160C/320F for 30-35 minutes, it should have a nice golden top. 
6.  Once out of the oven allow to cool and then place into fridge while you prepare your frosting 

Ingredients for Frosting 

• 230 g sugar 
• 90g water 
• 5ml lemon juice 
• 150g egg whites 
• 120g caster sugar 
• 250g soft butter 
• 250g cream cheese (unsalted) 
• 500g white chocolate 
• zest of one orange 

Method 

1. Place the large amount of sugar, water and lemon juice into a pot and bring to the boil, continue to boil till the syrup is at 114-116C/237.5-240.8F ( this is known as soft ball stage) 
2. Place your white chocolate over a bain marie to melt, water should not be boiling to rapidly but just be simmering to create steam. ( if its too hot the chocolate can burn and you wont be able to use it! Also don't move it around too much, just stir every now and then) 
3. While waiting for your stock syrup to reach soft ball stage whip up your egg whites, when you reach medium peak stage start to add in the smaller amount of sugar ( it must be caster sugar) 1 tsp at a time while whisking till you reach stiff peak stage. 
4. Once syrup is at soft ball stage, start to pour it in at a slow steady rate into your mixing bowl with the meringues while mixing at the same time. End result should be a glossy meringue with stiff peaks. ( this is known as a boiled meringue or Italian Meringue) 
5. Remove the meringue from the mixing bowl and place soft butter and zest into bowl and mix till pale in colour. 
6. Now add you cream cheese and  pour your melted chocolate into the bowl with the butter and whisk well. ( your chocolate should not be straight of f the bain marie into the butter, it should have been off for at least 1 minute) 
7. Now 1/3 at a time fold in your Italian Meringue to create the final product. 
8. Allow to rest in the fridge for 5 minutes then your ready to frost your cake! 

So, heres that sneak preview I promised you guys of what is to come on the 26th of January 2014.  So to make sure you don't forget the date please click on the button below and RSVP to my event on my Facebook Page and also feel free to invite other people you might think would be interested. Remember I will only be putting this booklet up for a certain time period before removing it again!