The Baobab

Recipes

Unable to find a shop to sell you that special something or you simply like Cooking but can't find that recipe Grandma used? Then try one of these...

Avocado Ritz

• 3 ripe avocado's
• 300g of shrimps, well drained
• Seafood sauce
• Juice of 1 small lemon
• Salt
• Cayenne pepper
• Iceberg Lettuce Leaves
• Chopped parsley

Cut the avocado's in half and remove the stones. Dip the edges in lemon juice. Season with salt and Cayenne pepper. Place avocado's on a bed of lettuce leaves. Fill with shrimps and spoon seafood sauce on the top of each one. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

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Bilitong

• 3 parts of freshly crushed coriander to one of salt.
• Pepper to taste.
• Add enough white vinegar to make a runny paste then add some Worchester sauce for flavour.
   

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Butternut Soup

Great to serve it as a starter before a good roast beef or lamb.

• 2 medium butternuts
• 1 apple
• 2 medium onions
• 50g butter/margarine (4T)
• 7 ml medium curry powder (1 ¼ t)
• 40 g cake flour (4 T)
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• 2 chicken stock cubes
• 750 ml boiling water (3 c)
• 500 ml milk (2 c)
• 7 ml salt (1 ½ t)

Peel, seed and dice the butternuts. Peel, core and chop the apple. Peel the onions and chop roughly. In a large saucepan, sauté the chopped onions in the butter/margarine. Add the curry powder and fry the mixture lightly. Add the butternut and apple and sauté the mixture for a while. Add the flour and nutmeg and stir-fry lightly. Dissolve the chicken stock cubes in the boiling water. Add the stock, together with the milk, and salt, to the butternut mixture. Boil, with the lid on, over moderate heat until the butternut pieces are soft. Stir the mixture occasionally. Purée or blend until smooth. The colour of the soup should be a deep yellow and the texture creamy. Serve the soup hot. Each bowl of soup may be garnished with a teaspoon of cream and a little finely chopped parsley. For an interesting variation, replace the nutmeg with a little finely grated orange rind and add a few shreds of orange rind to the garnish. Makes 2 litres (8 cups) of soup

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Bobotie

• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 slice bread
• 1 tbsp. curry powder
• 1 1/2 tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 C golden raisins
• 3 tbsp. chutney
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric
• Juice and grated rind of 1/2 lemon
• 6 almonds, quartered
• 1 egg
• 4 bay leaves

Preheat the oven to 350. Sauté the meat with onions until brown. Pour off grease. Soak the break in half of the milk then mash with a fork. Combine all the remaining ingredients except the egg, remaining milk and bay leaves. Spread the mixture in a greased casserole and tuck in the bay leaves here and there. Bake for 1 hour. Remove the bay leaves. Then beat the egg with remaining half cup of milk and pour over. Return to oven for another half an hour. Serve with steamed rice and chutney.

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• 2 kg of chuck beef (fat and gristle removed)
• 750 de-boned thick rib of pork
• 200 g of pork fat (spek)
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 2 tablespoons salt
• a good pinch of nutmeg
• ½ cup vinegar

About 90g of pork casings (ask your butcher for some or ask him where you can buy it) How to Make It Cut the meat and spek into small cubes. Sprinkle the seasoning over the meat (not the vinegar Penny), mix well and then mince together. Add the vinegar and mix lightly, but thoroughly. Stuff into casing and refrigerate for 24 hours in a covered, non-metal container. (Optional: You can experiment by adding additional ingredients. For a lovely curry flavour add a tablespoon of curry powder to the above recipe. For a great garlic flavour add finely crushed and chopped garlic and for a sharper taste add more vinegar). Do not overcook sausage. About 12-15 minutes over slow coals should do well.

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Buttermilk Pudding

• 30 g butter or margarine
• 160 g sugar
• 2 eggs, separated
• 15 g flour
• 1 ml salt
• 1 ml vanilla essence
• 250 ml milk
• 250 ml buttermilk (cultured is ok)

Cream butter and sugar. Beat egg yolks one by one into creamed sugar and butter. Add the flour, salt and milk alternately to the batter, mixing well after every addition. Add vanilla essence. Fold in stiffly beaten whites and bake one hour in deep bowl at 180 degrees C. Serve with strawberry sauce of your choice.

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Caramel Sauce

• 250 ml sugar
• 500 ml water
• 500 ml milk
• 30 ml margarine
• 20 ml cornstarch mixed to a paste with water

Cook together and add one teaspoon caramel essence before serving over pumpkin fritters.

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Chicken Curry Potjie

A great way to be able to entertain and still enjoy a great meal by simply adding all the ingredients into a huge pot over the fire place and leaving to simmer.

• 2kg skinless chicken thighs or breasts
• 3 large grated onions
• 5 skinless tomatoes
• 1 large tin tomato paste
• 4 heaped teaspoons masala
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 dessert spoons crushed garlic
• 1 table spoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon fennel
• 2 large sticks cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 litre red wine
• 6 Large potatoes cut in half

Sauté your onions and garlic until soft, then add the spices and let simmer for a couple of minutes. Add tomatoes and tomato paste together with some red wine – simmer for about 5 minutes. Add chicken pieces and potatoes with a little more wine. Place the lid on your potjie, simmer on a low heat for about 45 minutes, checking the liquid level regularly, adding more red wine when needed. About 15 minutes before you are ready to eat add sugar to taste. Serve on a bed of rice, cooked together with mustard seeds, turmeric and onion flakes for added flavour.

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Crumbly Maize Porridge

• 500 ml water
• 3 ml salt
• 700 ml maize meal

Bring the water to the boil. Slowly add the maize meal until it forms a pyramid in the middle of the saucepan . Put on the lid and allow to simmer until a "skin" has formed around the maize meal. Stir with a fork till fine and crumbly. Put the lid back on and simmer over LOW heat until done. Stir once or twice to break the lumps. (It takes about 30 - 40 minutes.)

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Curried Carrot Salad

• 2 kg carrots
• 1 kg onions
• 1 litre white vinegar (4 c)
• 800 g sugar (4 c)
• 150 g seedless raisins (1 c)
• 15 ml salt (1 T)
• 5 ml whole cloves (1 t)
• 5 ml black peppercorns (1 t)
• 50 ml cornflour (3 T)
• 50 ml curry powder (3 T)

Peel the carrots and slice thinly. Cover the slices with water and boil till just soft. Peel and halve the onions. Slice thinly. Cover the onions with boiling water and leave to stand for 15 minutes. Drain the carrots and onions. Add the white vinegar, sugar, raisins, salt, cloves and black peppercorns to the vegetables and bring to the boil. Mix the corn flour and curry powder with 250 ml (1 c) water. Add the curry mixture to the carrot mixture and boil for about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Spoon the hot curried carrots into clean hot jars and seal immediately. Makes 3,5 litres (14 c) curried carrots

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Custard Sago

• 200g sago (1 c)
• 2.5 litres milk (10 c)
• 2 eggs
• 60 ml water (¼ c)
• 30 g custard powder (4 T)
• 2 ml salt (½ t)
• 15 ml butter/margarine (1 T)
• cinnamon sugar

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Koeksisters

• 9 oz of brown sugar
• 1/4 pint water
• cinnamon
• 1 oz butter
• 1 egg
• 6 oz self raising flour
• oil for frying.

Dissolve the sugar in the water. Add sprinkle of cinnamon with a piece of lemon. bring to the boil then allow to cool, discarding the lemon. Add the butter, beat in the egg and get it creamy. Sift the flour and mix with the butter/sugar mix until smooth. Roll into a 9' square and cut into 18 pieces ( 3'x11/2'). Cut two slits in each piece but leave them joined at the top, so it looks like a thing with three legs. Plait the legs and pinch at the ends to seal. Heat oil to 350 F and fry for 4-5 minutes, dip in syrup and serve hot.

Recipe 2

The secret of the crisp syrupy outside of Koeksisters is that they are taken straight from hot oil and dipped into ice-cold syrup. This seals the syrup outside and leaves the inside dryish in contrast.

To make the syrup

• mix a litre of sugar
• 5 ml cream of tartar
• 2.5 ml tartaric acid
• 5 ml vanilla essence or grated orange rind or cinnamon, or 1.5 ml ginger
• 500 ml of water.

Bring mixture to the boil and allow it to simmer for about 10 minutes or until syrupy. Set syrup aside to cool. It is advisable to make the syrup first and leave it overnight in the fridge.

To make the batter

• sift 500 ml flour
• 10 ml baking powder
• 5 ml salt into a mixing bowl

Cut or rub 70 ml of margarine or butter into the dry ingredients. Beat an egg thoroughly and add it to 80 ml of milk. Add the egg and milk to the flour mixture, handling as little as possible. Put the dough in the fridge for at least one hour. Roll out the dough to a thickness of 4 mm. Cut into strips about 8 cm long and 2.5 cm wide. Cut each strip into three lengthways, leaving one side uncut. Now plait the three pieces and press ends together firmly. Pre-heat a deep pan and remove syrup from the fridge. The hot fried Koeksisters must be dropped into the cold syrup. The syrup will warm up about halfway through, so divide it into two bowls. Deep-fry Koeksisters until golden brown, drain for a few seconds on absorbent paper and dip into cold syrup.

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Marinade

• 2 huge onions, chopped
• 1 huge clove of garlic, crushed
• 15 ml oil
• 250 ml beef broth
• 125 ml wine vinegar (white for mutton, red for steak)
• 250 ml tomato ketchup
• 15 ml Worchester sauce
• 5 ml salt
• 2 ml Tabasco sauce
• 15 ml brown sugar
• 1 ml ground cloves
• 1 ml ground ginger
• 30 ml fruit chutney
• 30 ml dark brown sherry (optional)
• 125 ml milk

Mix all ingredients and use as marinade. If used for sauce over patties, please cook till onions are done, or else you can sauté the onions and garlic before putting it into the marinade, and only heat up the sauce before serving it with the burgers. If used for marinade, put meat overnight in it and remove just before barbecuing it over hot coals. Baste frequently while roasting it over coals. If used to make a leg of lamb in the oven, put the leg of lamb in it and bake in sauce till tender and done. Serve this with maize bread and a green salad.

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Mealie Meal Porridge

• 200 g (400 ml) maize meal
• 1 litre boiling water
• 8 ml of salt
• 125 - 250 g bacon
• oil
• 1 x 285 g tin creamed mushrooms (or fresh sautéed mushrooms)
• 100 g (250 ml) grated cheddar cheese
• 50 ml cream or evaporated milk (optional but very good)
• 2 onions, cut and sautéed in butter or margarine
• 1 X 410 g tin tomatoes, chopped

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Prepare the maize porridge using the maize meal, boiling water and salt. In the meantime fry the bacon until crisp and crumble it. Add oil to the bacon fat to make 50 ml and pour into a casserole of about 22 cm in diameter. Layer the maize porridge and remaining ingredients alternately in the casserole. Pour over the cream and bake for 45 - 60 minutes. (The maize meal can be made in the microwave as follows: Stir the maize meal and salt with a fork into the boiling water and microwave for 10 minutes at 100% power. Stir frequently to prevent the forming of lumps.

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Melktarts

Pastry:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 egg (take 1 egg, beat it up a bit and then use half of this)
• 2 oz butter
• 1/4 cup sugar salt

Beat together butter & sugar. Add egg, and then add in dry ingredients. You should get a crumbly mix. Press this into a pie dish and bake at 350F for 20 minutes.

Filling:

• 1/2 eggs (you use the other half of the egg that contributed to the pastry)
• 1/4 tablespoons flour
• 1/4 tablespoons cornflower
• 1/2 cups milk (this is 1 pint)
• 1 tsp. vanilla flavouring
• 1 tsp. butter

Boil the milk. In another bowl/pot (depending on whether you are using a microwave or cooker), beat the egg and sugar. Add the flour & cornflower to the egg/sugar mixture and beat this together. Add the milk and cook till it thickens. (This works well in a microwave oven). Remove from heat and add vanilla & butter. Beat well, and pour into the baked shell. Sprinkle with cinnamon or nutmeg, and cool. (This is best refrigerated.)

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Monkey Gland Steaks

(makes 8 servings)

• 1/2 a Cup of Water.
• oil for frying
• 1 large onion diced
• 2 large tomatoes diced (canned tomatoes work just as well)
• 1 cup of ketchup
• 1/2 cup of Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
• 3/4 -1 cup of chutney
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• 2 Tblsp. vinegar
• 1 tsp. Tabasco sauce

In a heavy skillet, heat oil. Sauté onions and garlic until soft. Add remaining ingredients, mix well and simmer for a few minutes. Fry the steaks separately. When done frying spoon the sauce over the steaks. Serve with rice.

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Oxtail Potjie Kos

A meal cooked in an iron pot over the fire. The way to cook a potjie is usually very slow. Many types of meat can be used for a potjie but here is the one for- oxtail.

• 2 large oxtails, cut into joints
• 1/3 cup cooking oil
• 2 large onions, sliced into fairly thick rounds
• 6 bay leaves
• 4 chopped cloves of garlic
• 4 large carrots, scraped and cut into chunky wheels
• the juice of one lemon
• 6 cloves
• a good grind of black pepper
• a dash of Worcester sauce
• salt
• 6 potatoes, peeled and halved
• 1/3 cup of brandy
• water to cover

Heat the oil in the pot, then brown the meat quickly over high heat with the onion. Add bay leaves, garlic, cloves, lemon juice, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and carrots. Add enough water barely to cover. Let it simmer away very slowly for four hours, then add the potatoes and the brandy and let it simmer until the potatoes are done and the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender. Serve with rice, crispy fresh bread and green salad.

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Potjiekos

• A little cooking oil
• Any kind of beef, lamb/mutton, chicken, even fish. Cheaper cuts of meat are better as this dish is cooked for hours.
• Thickly slice any kind of vegetables that are available. Pumpkin, squash, zucchini are good, potatoes, yams, tomatoes, beans etc.
• Wine (red or white) for cooking (and drinking).
• Whatever spices and herbs are around. Salt & pepper, coriander is good, turmeric, curry if you like etc.

Make a little fire. It must be very low. Brown chunks of meat or chicken in the pot. Then pack the meat at the bottom of the pot. In layers pack the other sliced vegetables, potatoes should be at the top, seasoning each layer as you pack it in. Pour wine over the layers. Cook this over the very low fire for 4 to 6 hours without stirring, sipping wine with your friends while you solve the world's problems and while they till you what you've left out of the pot. Now and then add a bit of wine knowingly to the pot, just to make your friends think you know what you're doing. Serve over rice and you'll realise that life is good when you do things this slowly.

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Pumpkin Fritters

• 4 c cooked mashed pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1 c flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 30 ml (2 tablespoons) heaped of sugar

Combine all ingredients, making a soft batter and fry spoonfuls in shallow oil till both sides are lightly browned. Drain on paper and serve warm with cinnamon sugar or caramel sauce.

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• 2 cups unbleached white flour
• 2 cups whole wheat bread flour (coarsely ground if possible)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2 tsp. pure almond extract

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly mix the dry ingredients. Combine all the wet ingredients, pour them into the dry ingredients, and stir until you have a soft dough, similar to biscuit dough. Turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and roll or pat it to about a 1/2 inch thickness. Cut the dough into rectangles about 2 by 4 inches. Bake the Rusks about 2 inches apart on buttered baking sheet for about 25 minutes until the tops are crisping and browning a little. Now, eat a few "soft" Rusks warm from the oven. Loosely pile the Rusks on a baking sheet and keep them in a 200 degree oven all day or all night (about 12 hours) to dry. The finished Rusks should be very dry and hard. Cool and store in an airtight container. Rusks will keep for weeks.

Variations
Oatmeal-Raisin Rusks: Reduce the white flour to 1 1/2 cups and add 2 cups rolled oats and 1/2 cup currants or chopped raisins.
Almond Rusks: Add 1 cup chopped almonds and omit the cinnamon.
Peanut Rusks: Add 1 cup coarsely chopped peanuts.
Anise Rusks: Omit the cinnamon and almond extract and add 2 tsp. pure anise extract or 1 Tbsp. anisette.

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Smoked Salmon Pate

• 250g smoked Salmon
• 250g cream cheese
• 15ml (1 Tablespoon) lemon juice
• Pinch of Ginger powder
• 10 ml (2 teaspoons) tomato paste
• 2.5 ml (half a teaspoon) sugar
• Black pepper
• Half a small chopped onion
• 125ml (half a cup) of fresh cream

Remove all skin and bones and flake the fish. Blend all ingredients except the cream in a food processor. Whip the cream and fold into the mixture. Press into a mould of your choice. Gives between 8 and 10 servings. This should keep for about a week in the fridge. Do not freeze it.

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Sosaties

• 1 leg of lamb or mutton (beef may also be used)
• 1 kilogram pork
• 2 big onions
• 15 ml mild curry powder
• 7.5 ml turmeric powder
• 30 ml sugar (brown of white)
• 15 ml cornstarch
• 500 ml vinegar (if it is to strong, it may be diluted with water)
• 125 ml stewed dry apricots of apricot chutney
• a few crushed lemon leaves
• salt and pepper

Cut the meat in 2" cubes. Cut onion in slices and put in a pot with a little water. Cook for about 5 minutes till glassy but still crisp. Drain the rest of the water, add 30 ml of oil or fat and sauté onions till lightly brown. Add 250 ml water and simmer till soft. Mix the curry, turmeric, cornstarch, sugar, 5 ml of salt and vinegar and add to onions. Mix in the apricots or chutney. Cook for about 3 minutes and remove from heat. Add the leaves and allow to cool completely. Pour the sauce over the cubes of meat and marinade for about 24 - 48 hours, stirring it around once or twice. Season meat with about 10 ml of salt for each 500 g of meat. Skewer the cubes of meat onto thin sticks. Use about 6 cubes for each skewer, and alternate the mutton and pork. Roast over open coals or in oven. Heat the sauce, cook for about 2 minutes and serve with Sosaties. Chutney can be served with this as well. (Mutton chops can also be marinated in this sauce and roasted or grilled. Please be careful as not to do this over to hot coals as it burns easily. Also very nice if served with cooked rice) Makes about 10 - 12 portions

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Souskluitjies

• 120 g cake flour
• 10 ml baking powder
• 2 ml salt
• 15 g butter
• 1 egg
• 125 ml milk
• butter
• cinnamon sugar

Sift the dry ingredients together and mix in the butter with fingers till it resembles breadcrumbs. Mix egg and milk and add to above. Boil water (must be about 3 cm deep) with a pinch of salt in a casserole with a lid. Use a teaspoon dipped in boiling water to put spoonfuls of the dough into the boiling water. Cover with tight fitting lid and cook slowly for 10 minutes (please don't peek, as this will cause the dumplings to "fall down" and become rubbery) Remove from heat, pour into a serving bowl and put dots of butter on top. Sprinkle a lot of cinnamon sugar over and serve with vanilla custard.

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Spicy Lentils

• 2 cups orange lentils
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 Cup vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1" piece fresh ginger, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp. ground coriander seed
• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds, crushed
• 1 tsp. cardamom seeds, crushed
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1/4 C canned tomatoes, or fresh ones, peeled.

Dissolve salt in enough boiling water to cover lentils. Add lentils and cook until tender. Drain and mash with potato masher. Heat oil in a skillet and fry onions and garlic until onions are golden. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for a few minutes. Stir in lentils and heat until thick. Serve hot.

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Steak Pasties

Unlike a previous pasty recipe, this does not have gravy.

• 1 lb. finely-chopped round steak
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, cleaned, chopped
• 2 large potatoes, peeled, sliced
• 1/3 cup chopped rutabaga
• salt and pepper to taste (enough pepper to 'show' in the mixture)
• butter
• 2 recipes of pie crust (not sweet).

Mix meat and vegetables together in a large bowl. Prepare crust, and roll into pie-sized circle. Place a sop (approximately 1 cup) of meat/vegetable mix on one side of crust. Place 1 large (heaping?) tsp. butter on top of mix. Fold over crust, trim, and crimp or roll. This will look like a crescent-shaped meat pie now. Vent top and bake at 375 F until crust is golden. Serve with ketchup for authentic Rhodesian taste.

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Tomato Frikkadels

• 4 medium tomatoes
• 2 large onions
• 30 ml sunflower oil (2 T)
• 1 kg minced beef
• 50 g oats (½ c)
• 125 ml milk (½ c)
• 30 ml brown vinegar (2 T)
• 15 ml Worcestershire sauce (1 T)
• 10 ml salt (2 t)
• 1 ml pepper (¼ t)
• 125 ml water (½ c)
• 30 ml cream of tomato soup powder (2 T)

Preheat the oven to 180 °C. Peel the tomatoes and onions and chop roughly. Braise in the sunflower oil until soft. Mix half of the tomato and onion mixture lightly with the minced beef and the oats. Add the milk, brown vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper and mix together well. Shape large frikkadels (can be shaped into round balls or flattened with a fork) from the mixture and place them quite close together in a shallow, ovenproof dish with a volume of about 2,5 litres. Mix the water and soup powder and pour it over the frikkadels. Cover the dish. Bake for an hour. Spoon the remaining tomato and onion mixture over the frikkadels. Makes 14 large frikkadels.

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Tomato Sauce

• Sauté 3 chopped onions and 2 - 3 chopped fresh tomatoes till tender then add:
• 1 c (250 ml) tomato sauce
• 80 ml vinegar (one third of a cup)
• 80 ml Worchester sauce
• 30 ml sugar
• 125 ml (half a cup) water
• 2,5 ml (half a teaspoon) dry mustard powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook for about 2 minutes and thicken with corn flour mixed to a soft paste with cold water.

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Vetkoek

Fill it with mincemeat, cheese or any thing else that comes to hand.

• 250ml (1cup) cake flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 125 milk
• 125 ml oil for frying

Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. beat egg separately and add to flour. Add milk and mix until smooth heat oil in frying pan and drop a tablespoon of the mixture into oil. Don't make more than four at a time. Fry for two to three minutes on one side, then turn and fry for one minute on other side. Serve hot.

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Yellow Rice

• 250 ml uncooked, parboiled rice
• 1 litre boiling water
• 30 ml yellow sugar
• 1 piece of cinnamon
• 5 ml salt
• 30 ml ground turmeric
• 125 ml seedless raisins
• 15 ml butter or margarine

Wash rice. Add all the ingredients to the boiling water, except the raisins, butter and sugar. Add rice slowly to boiling water and cook for about 20 minutes over high heat. Drain the water and steam cook the rice with the raisins and cinnamon stick for 1 hour over boiling water. Remove the stick of cinnamon and mix in the butter and the sugar. Serve warm with Bobotie.

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