Each of these picture tell a story of my time in Kuwait up until this point. I will add more photos as they come along. I have put short description below some of the picture so you can get some sort of an idea what the mean. Only thing that could have possibly made this whole experience more rewording is if there was someone to enjoy them with me. Hope you enjoy having a look though all of these and keep an eye out for more post tonight. 

Good Evening everyone, hope you are all well. Things have been a bit quiet these few days but I am happy to announce that the book is finally done and will be available for download on my website. There will be two download options, one document will have images with the recipes and the other won't (so if your cap is restricted you might want to download the one without pictures). Hope you all enjoy the book and let me know what you think of it.  You can find the download file on the Recipes Page.

Edited by: Monique Boaventura 

Potatoes and onions are two ingredients which don't always get the respect they deserve. These two ingredients are almost always the basis of most dishes. The potatoes are used as the starch component on the plate, which serves as the delivery and bulking component of the dish. The onion being the base of most sauces out there, forming the foundation of the sauce, and we all know if you don't have a good foundation, you're going to run into trouble later on. So I decided to make these two the working horse of the kitchen and the stars of the dish today. Using only a few herbs to add a bit of flare and a dash of wine and cream for a bit of body. This is a great hearty dish, perfect for a cold summers day. I've also paired the soup with the crunchy element of potato tuile's, to add a different texture and colour to the plate. For the garnishes I've used a sprig of Rosemary and some Oregano flowers just to bring a bit of green to the party.  Some chopped chives or even spring onions sprinkled over the top would also do wonders to the presentation of the dish. 

Ingredients 

• 6 Medium Sized Potatoes 
• 2 Large White Onions 
• 1 tsp Chopped Rosemary
• 1 tsp Chopped Thyme
• 1 tsp Oregano 
• 1 tsp Smoked Paprika 
• 1/2 Chilli Flakes
• 1/3 tsp Ground Black Pepper
• 125 ml White Wine
• 500ml Vegetable or Chicken Stock
• 50ml Cream (optional) 
• Salt to taste
• 4 tsp Butter
• Baking Paper/ Silicone Paper 
• Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Lemon Juice
• 3 Bay Leaves 

Method 

1. Place large pot on your stove on a high heat and preheat your oven to 180C/356F. Add 2 tsp butter and a good dash of olive oil in the pot (the base of the pot should be covered with oil and butter ).
2. Cut 5 of the 6 potatoes into small cubes, leaving the skins on. Then place into pot once hot, stir every minute ( don't worry if they stick to the pot, just let them caramelise and then they will come off the base). 
3. Slice your 2 onions and place into the pot with the potatoes after 10 minutes. 
4. Add your herbs and spices and constantly stir, you will notice that a layer of caramelised ingredients will form on the base of the pot. Add a 1/3 of the wine and scrape the layer off the base. This will continue and every time simply add the wine to remove before it becomes burnt. Do this about 6-8 times and this will give your soup a lovely amber colour at the end (if your run out of wine, simply use the stock).
5. After repeating the deglazing process 8 times add in the remainder of your stock (it should at least cover the potatoes, if not simply top off with water) and allow to simmer till the potatoes are soft and tender. 
6. Now take a hand blender and blend your soup until smooth, then continue to simmer for another 20 minutes ( if you do not have a hand blender, place small amounts at a time into your blender. If you don't have a blender either, simply use your hand mashers and roughly mush the potatoes.) 
7. Melt 2 tsp of butter, season with salt and pepper then add 2 tsp of oil. Place into a bowl and use for your potato slices you're about to cut. 
8. Take the remaining potato and cut into thin as possible slices and place the slices into the seasoned melted butter. 
9. Get a oven tray and line with one layer of silicon paper. Place your potato slices onto the paper taking three slices and laying them down so that they over lap each other slightly. 
10. Place another layer of silicon paper over the top and then another baking tray on top to press them down. Place into oven and bake until golden brown on the bottom. Remove and take off the paper to use as a garnish in the soup when serving. 
11. After your soup has been simmering for 20 minutes and you would like to add some cream, now is the time. Add the 50 ml of cream and stir, allow to simmer for 5 more minutes and then your soup is ready to serve. 
12. Garnish with some chive, spring onions or even some fresh herbs. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This sauce can be made and used with many different proteins or stir-fry dishes. It's a very simple and easy recipe to follow, and can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 weeks (ensuring the container which is being used is properly sterilised).

For the wine I used a good quality Merlot, it has a lower tannin count than other more full bodied red wines such as Cabernet or Sauvignon. The tannin in wines are what give the wine the bitter and woody puckering sensation. With less tannin in the Merlot, it allows for the fruity essence of the wine to be more present, making it perfect for the sauce. 

Ingredients 

• 12 Ripe Plums (skin and seeds removed)
• 2 Granny Smith Apples or any dessert apple (peeled and cored)
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• Juice of one Orange
• 1-3 tbs Sugar (Depending on the sweetness of the plums and apples add sugar accordingly)
  
• 200 ml Water 
  
• 20 ml Red Wine (fruity wine works best - optional)  

Method 

1. Place a medium to large sauce pan on a high heat and allow to heat up, once hot add in your wine if you chose to add the wine (this just burns off some of the alcohol).
2. Add your peeled and cored apples as well as your peeled and pitted plums which you have cut into medium size pieces. 
3. Allow to cook in the wine till it becomes some what sticky.
4. Add your sugar, lemon juice, orange juice and salt, and allow to reduce once more to a stick consistency. 
5. Next add your 200 ml of water and turn the heat down to a simmer. Once the apples are soft place mixture into blender (or simply use a hand blender) and blend until smooth. 
6. To ensure there are no impurities, pass through a sieve once and place back into the pot and onto a medium heat ( unless you are happy with the consistency).
7. Allow to reduce down till it coats the back of a spoon and is at a correct sauce consistency.  
8. Allow to cool before placing into storing containers and then place into fridge until needed. 

Edited by: Monique Boaventura

This is a simple, quick and easy recipe to follow. It's healthy and packed with lean protein. This is something I would personally cook for myself when at home as it tastes amazing. I will also be posting the recipe for the plum sauce tomorrow or later this evening. This recipe is suitable for one portion, simply double or triple it accordingly. 



 Ingredients

• Ostrich Fillet (serving size should be 250g)
• 6 Baby Carrots
• 8 Sugar Snaps (fresh peas in the pod)
• 3 Baby Radishes (cut into 1⁄2)
• 6 Button Mushrooms
• 2 tbs Plum Sauce ( you can get it at the convenience store, but if you'd like a recipe for plum sauce just let me know)
• 2 tsp Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp Lemon Juice

Method

1. Place a big pot of water on a high heat with 3 tbs salt. Once it starts to boil add in your vegetables and boil till ready (a sharp knife should be able to cut into it and slip out when taking it out, rather under cook it a bit than over cooking it). Once ready to be taken out, place into a big bowl with iced water to stop the cooking.
2. Place the plum sauce, soy sauce and lemon juice into a small sauce pan and heat until plum sauce melts, give sauce a good whisk and keep on low heat.
3. Place a pan onto a high heat and pre-heat your oven to 200˚C.
   
4. Place a small amount of oil into the pan, season your ostrich fillet with salt and pepper and allow the pan to heat up until it starts to smoke.
5. Once pan is smoking place your ostrich fillet into the pan and allow to cook for 3-4 minutes on each side (only turn once and don't mess with it too much when it's in the pan).
6. Once its been in the pan for 7 minutes (3.5 minutes on each side) transfer into the pre-heated oven for 4 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and brush on the plum sauce and allow to rest for 3 minutes.
8. While the meat is resting, using the same pan used for the searing of the ostrich, place a bit of oil in the pan and a small cube of butter. Allow to heat up and then add in your vegetables so they can heat up again and get some colour. Season vegetables with salt and pepper.
9. When plating the meal, pour a bit of the plum sauce over the ostrich.

www.chefdewet.co.za 
Twitter: @ChefDewetV 


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

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. 

So many people I know go crazy for a good Eggs Benedict. I've chosen to post a recipe today for the eggs Benedict, starting from the base to the topping! There are three different Benedict's, well at least three different traditional variations. Firstly there is the Eggs Benedict, which includes Gypsy Ham  with a two poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. Secondly there is the Eggs Royale, this is a more dressed up Benedict, it has smoked salmon in the place of the Gypsy Ham and also has the poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce. Then last but not least, we have the eggs Florentine, this Benedict is served with a spinach  base.
All of these different Benedict's are all traditionally served on a English muffin which is split in half and then place onto a pan or flat top with butter to crisp up.  But now days we get a lot more variations of this morning delight, some of the others I've heard of is using bacon or parma ham. One thing which I have noticed when I go to restaurants in South Africa is that the Chefs name there Benedict's incorrectly, I don't know if they do this for the people so that they know that its still a Benedict that they ordering or just out of ignorance. 

Ingredients for English Muffin

• 680g plain flour
• 360g water (40C/104F)
• 30g yeast (fresh)
• 50g egg
• 55g sugar
• 10g salt 
• 85g butter (soft)
• polenta and butter for pan frying 

Method

1. Mix 2/3 of the flour and all the other ingredients except for the butter together and allow to rise for 2 hours. (this mixture is known as a Barm: liquid mixture, which the English used.) 
2. Once time has pasted, add in the rest of the flour  and knead till smooth dough is formed.
3. Now you place in the butter and work it into the dough (this is a very messy procedure but do not add any extra flour, just keep working the dough till it is fully incorporated)
4. Now set aside and allow to proof for another hour
5. Once proofing is done, portion your dough into 60-80g portions and then roll into tight little balls. 
6. Now that you have finished rolling out all of the balls, take a ring mould(you can also place the ring mould straight into the pan while hot and skip a step) and sprinkle a little but of polenta on the base and then place the ball into the mould and flatten into the ring mould. (sprinkle some more polenta on top as well, do this with the rest of the balls.) 
7.  Place a pan onto a medium heat with a bit of butter and then place the shaped dough into the pan and cook for about 2-3 minutes( the bottom should be golden brown) on each side. 
8. Then there you have it, now just allow to cool down. 

Ingredients for Hollandaise

• 2 egg yolks 
• 250g butter 
• 5ml reduction ( 175ml white wine vinegar, 6 peppercorns, 1 bay leaf, 20g chopped onions) 
• pitch of cayenne pepper
• pitch of salt
  
• 2 tsp water 

Method 

1. Place butter into a pot and then place onto medium heat and allow to melt and for milk solids to drop down to the bottom. (when your butter stops to make noise and there is little to no foam, your butter is ready) Take off the heat and gently pour the clear liquid into another container, being careful not to get the milk solids from the bottom. 
2. Now place another pot onto the heat with the reduction ingredients and reduce down to 5ml.
3. You are going to need a bain marie as well as a mixing bowl which you can use over heat. ( to make a bain marie place a large pot with water 1/3 full and place onto heat, once starting to boil turn down to lowest heat. Your mixing bowl should be able to fit on top of pot.) 
4. Place egg yolks into mixing bowl with water and whisk well, then add in the reduction and place over bain marie (making sure that the bain marie is just producing stream and not at a rumbling boil, and having all of your ingredients within arms length) now you need to whisk the whole time till your egg yolks reach a pail white foamy texture (also known as a sabayon) 
5. Once your yolks are a sabayon, slowly start to add in your clarified butter at a steady stream whisking continuously (if your mixture becomes runny, take off the heat and place onto counter and continue to whisk till thickens again and then back onto heat) till all the butter has been added in. ( If you are struggling with the whisking, you can use a hand blender or electrical whisk) 
6. You can now add in your cayenne pepper and salt. For a different flavour profile add a bit of lemon to break through the fatty sauce and you can also add some mustard. Also make sure you place the finished sauce away from heat otherwise you have the risk of the sauce splitting. 

Now that you have all your required ingredients ready, you are now able to construct your very own home made Eggs Benedict and enjoy it in the comfort of your own home.