Eggplant Stacks

I once wanted to make something with an eggplant and didn't have much ingredients around, so I came up with this and this is still a family favourite today! In Afrikaans we call it "Eiervrug Hopies".  It's lovely for a light lunch or just as an accompaniment to any dish. 

Ingredients:

Eggplant
Cheddar cheese, sliced or grated
Tomato, sliced
Robertson's Garlic & Herb Spice 
Robertson's Garlic Flakes (if preferred)
Butter 


Method:

1. Slice the eggplant in slices and arrange on a baking tray

2. Top each with a tomato slice

3. Sprinkle some grated cheese over or top with a cheese slice or two

4. Season to taste 

5. Dot with butter

6. Bake in the oven at 180°C for about 15 minutes or until cheese has nicely browned and  eggplant is cooked through


Notes:
- You can use any cheese you prefer; like Emmentaler cheese or even a Creamy Blue
- You can also add sliced mushrooms if you prefer

Cape Velvet Cream Liqueur

This is it! This is that home-made version of Cape Velvet Cream you have been looking for! There are so many recipes out there for Cape Velvet and they are all almost the same, but with a few differences in quantities and ingredients. But I believe THIS one is the closest to the real thing!  Enjoy! 


INGREDIENTS
1 tin Condensed Milk
250 ml Cream
250 ml Brandy (any you prefer, but I like to use KWV 3 or 5 Year)
12,5 ml Vanilla Essence
5 ml Caramel Essence
12,5 ml Instant Coffee dissolved in boiled water (enough to cover the coffee)


METHOD

1. Combine all ingredients - stir well / blend with electric blender 
2. Pour into a glass (wine or brandy) bottle 
3. Keep in the fridge and shake before use
4. Enjoy neat or with crushed ice

Haddock with Sour Cream

This is the only way I'll eat Haddock. Say no more. 


Haddock with Sour Cream
Serves 3 - 4


INGREDIENTS
500 - 600g Frozen Haddock Fillets (or Oak Smoked Haddock fillets)
250 ml Sour Cream
10 ml Paprika*
2 ml Mustard Powder
Salt & Pepper* 
Breadcrumbs (store bought, unflavoured)
125 ml - 250 ml grated Mozzarella Cheese 
Butter 


INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C
2. Place haddock fillets in a single layer in a square or rectangular baking dish
3. Season to taste
4. Grate the mozzarella cheese and keep aside
5. Combine sour cream; paprika and mustard powder and pour over the fish fillets
6. Sprinkle the cheese over the fish fillets and sprinkle the bread crumbs over
7. Dot with butter (about 4 TBS)
8. Put in the oven and bake uncovered for 30 minutes or until done
9. Serve with a garden salad and steamed vegetables

Notes:

-If preferred, 'regular' paprika can be substituted by Smoked Spanish Paprika, but only use 1,5 ml

-If you don't want to go the salt & pepper route, use Garlic & Herb seasoning by Robertson's or Ina Paarman's Fish Spice instead

Curry Pasta Salad

A family favourite! We usually serve it at a braai, but also when there's meat for dinner. For a less 'sweet' version, add some peas and chopped red onion instead of the raisins and pineapple pieces. 

Serves 3 - 4 

INGREDIENTS

• 200 - 250g pasta, cooked, like Farfalle (bow-tie) or Fusilli (corkscrew) or any shape you prefer (cooled)
• 50g raisins
• 1 tin (410g) sliced peaches, drained
• 1/2  tin (204g) pineapple pieces, drained*
• ½ green (or yellow or red) pepper, sliced into strips

SAUCE

• 250 ml mayonnaise
• 30 ml (2 TBS) milk
• 15 ml (1 TBS) curry powder
• 30 ml (2 TBS) chutney

- Combine the pasta, raisins, peaches, pineapple pieces and green pepper together in a bowl.

- Combine the ingredients for the sauce and pour over the pasta salad and mix well.

- Not strictly necessary to add the pineapple pieces. I normally make it without.

- Serve cold. The longer it stands the better the flavours develop. 

Sundowner Chicken Wings

These chicken wings are baked in the oven instead of done over the coals. Sticky and sweet and really nice! Good for 'n light lunch served with a crisp white wine and garden salad on the side. 


INGREDIENTS

• 16 chicken wings
• 125 ml lemon juice
• 125 ml apricot jam, melted
• 80 ml chutney
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 onion, finely chopped

METHOD

• Place chicken wings in oven dish
• Mix rest of ingredients and pour over chicken
• Marinade for at least an hour
• Bake chicken wings in an oven heated to 160° for about an hour, uncovered, until done and golden brown

Buffalo Wings

Where I got this recipe, I honestly can't remember! It was sometime during my student days in the 1990's whilst looking for some nice marinade for chicken wings for a braai, but ever since that day this is the one I make when I have chicken wings, and there's a braai going on! Fast forward to 2026....these days we have air fryers! 190 for 20 minutes, flip halfway.


INGREDIENTS

• 20 chicken wings
• 3 TBS tomato paste
• 2 TBS mustard, prepared or shop bought e.g. Steers Mustard Sauce
• 5 TBS honey OR 3 TBS chutney if using Hot (otherwise use 5 normal)
• 3 TBS Worcester Sauce
• Good splash Tabasco Sauce, or lemon juice if you prefer it without a bite
• Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
• Garlic flakes to taste
• Paprika to taste

Mix together all the ingredients for the sauce, and pour over chicken wings.

Coat well, using your hands to rub the sauce onto the wings. 

Marinate for at least 2 hours, covered with cling wrap in the fridge, or even overnight for better flavour.

Baste frequently with remaining sauce during the braai.

Sticky and sweet with a nice bite!

Bobotie

This is my mom Kristie's Bobotie recipe. I don't know where she got the recipe, but this is the one she has always made us, and I just love this and it's also my favourite to make!




INGREDIENTS

• 1 kg mince meat
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 slice white bread, soaked in milk 
• 1 TBS sugar
• 3 tsp salt
• ½ t black pepper
• 1 - 2 TBS curry powder
• 3 TBS lemon juice
• 2 green apples, grated
• 2 TBS Chutney
• ½ cup raisins
• 1 TBS Turmeric 
• 1 TBS Worcester sauce
• 1 TBS Tomato Sauce
• 1 TBS Soy Sauce
• 2 -3 Bay leaves

• For the topping:

• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tsp Paprika

METHOD

• Preheat the oven to 180°
• Brown the meat in a little oil, add the onions and fry until onions are soft, for about 5 minutes
• Add the grated apple
• Squeeze out the excess milk from the bread and break up the bread and add (leaving out the milk)
• Add the sugar, salt and pepper, curry powder, lemon juice, chutney, raisins, turmeric, Worcester sauce, tomato sauce, Soy sauce
• Stir well to combine and let cook for a few minutes
• Grease an oven dish, pour in the mixture and add the bay leaves on top, pressing them into the dish so that half of the bay leaf sticks out
• Bake in preheated oven (180°) for 40 minutes and remove from oven
• Mix the beaten eggs, milk and paprika and pour over the dish
• Return dish to the oven and bake for about 15 minutes more 

Additional extras:

Serve with banana slices fried in butter; desiccated coconut, and chutney on the side if preferred

Beef Goulash

There are so many recipes for Beef Goulash, and I've tried out a few, but always come back to this one, which is simple and easy to make, and caters for most tastes. Nothing weird here! Personally I don't like caraway seeds which is an always present ingredient in traditional types of goulash. So, this one does not have caraway seeds and instead of tomato puree, I  added tomato paste.




Beef Goulash

Serves 3 - 4

Ingredients

2 TBS Olive oil

500 – 700g beef, cut into chunks

Plain flour

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 red pepper, deseeded and thinly sliced

1 sachet Tomato Paste (about 2 TBS tomato paste)

¼ tsp Smoked Spanish Paprika (or 1 TBS Robertson’s Paprika)*

3 small tomatoes or 2 large tomatoes, diced

80 ml dry white wine

½ cup beef stock

2 TBS flat leaf parsley, chopped

Himalayan Rock Salt & Black Pepper

150 ml sour cream

METHOD

·         Heat 1 TBS of olive oil in a heavy based saucepan or wok

·         Sprinkle the meat with a bit of flour and brown well, in batches, and set aside

·         Add the remaining oil and add the onion, garlic, red pepper and fry until softened, about 5 minutes

·         Return the beef to the pan; add the tomato paste and paprika. Cook, stirring, for a minute or two

·         Add the tomatoes, white wine and stock. Cover and cook on gentle heat for about an hour, removing the lid after 45 minutes

·         Sprinkle the parsley over and season with ground salt and freshly ground black pepper

·         Stir in the sour cream and serve, with rice or mash

Notes:

*The smoked Spanish paprika really gives a lovely smoky flavour to the dish, but can be overpowering if you add too much, so be careful.  ‘Regular’ paprika works just as well, plus you can add more!

*This is a very saucy dish, so serve some crusty bread on the side  to mop up juices if you prefer!

Sauces

I've always been interested in 'what sauce goes with this dish or that dish'. I like making sauces and to try out new ones. Here I'll share some of my favourites with you. Let me start with a simple sweet tomato sauce for pasta, where my inspiration comes from Jamie Oliver (Dinners with Jamie), one of my all time favourite chefs.This is just easy, fast and satisfying. And of course, delicious. 


Easy Tomato Sauce for Pasta


Ingredients
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, skinned and finely chopped
Butter
Olive Oil
2 x tins Italian whole peeled tomatoes
Balsamic Vinegar
Sugar


Method

• Heat a good drizzle of olive oil and a tablespoon of butter in a saucepan
• Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft for about 5 minutes on low to medium heat 
• Add the two tins of tomatoes, but do not break the tomatoes up at this stage. Let them simmer slowly for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally
• Then gently break them up with a spoon, and add a good sprinkle of Balsamic Vinegar and 1 tsp of sugar
• Stir well to combine and let simmer for a minute or two
• Adjust seasoning carefully with freshly ground black pepper and ground sea salt or, my favourite, (pink) Himalayan Rock Salt
• Serve with pasta and freshly grated Parmesan cheese or Pecorino cheese

NOTES:

An idea is to sprinkle some grated cheese on top (combine the pasta and tomato sauce) and bake in an oven on 180°C for a few minutes until cheese is melted.

Add a pinch of dried Oreganum (Oregano) or Sweet Basil, if you like a more herby taste to your tomato sauce.




Caramel Sauce
This recipe comes from my mom's friend Patsy, and I just think this is the best caramel sauce ever! Absolutely divine and not for people on a diet! 


1 ½ Tbs butter
½ cup syrup

½ cup sugar

½ cup cream

•  Put the butter, syrup and sugar in a small saucepan
• Combine well and heat over low heat stirring frequently
• Add cream slowly, while stirring all the time to avoid it burning
• Serve hot with Ice Cream

·         

Uncle Pietro's Sauce for Beef Tongue

(to serve with cooked, sliced beef tongue)

Ingredients

4 onions, sliced

1 tin sliced mushrooms

½ cup Mrs Ball's chutney

½ cup All Gold Tomato Sauce

Method

1. Fry the onions until soft
2. Add the mushrooms, chutney and tomato sauce
3. Let cook through until well combined and done

Mexican Chicken with Mango Salsa

A delightful summer lunch or dinner dish! Perfect for those hot days and you don't want to spend hours in a hot kitchen. Serve with a salad of your choice. 

Serves 3 – 4

Ingredients

4 – 6 Skinless, boneless chicken breasts – cut into bite size pieces

Mango Salsa:

1 mango, finely chopped

1 tomato, finely chopped

1 red onion, finely chopped

Lemon or lime juice

250 ml Sour Cream (or to preference)

1 pack Poppadum's (there's 10 in a packet) (plain or spiced)

Spice to coat chicken (eg. Spicy Chicken or Chicken Braai Marsala)*

Butter

Mint leaves to garnish*

  

Method

1.      Rub spice onto chicken pieces. Fry chicken in butter until done

2.      Combine mango, tomato and onion in a bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice

3.      Fry poppadum's in very hot oil for 3 seconds, drain on kitchen paper

How to Serve

·         Spoon some chicken pieces on a poppadum

·         Then add salsa

·         Top with sour cream and garnish

*You can use any spice you prefer, it doesn't have to be hot! Regular chicken spice works well.

*If you don't have mint, you can also use parsley or coriander

Aunt Sonja's Beef Stroganoff

Enough for 4 people

1 kg topside cut into strips or cubes

2 onions, sliced in rings

1 punnet mushrooms, sliced

1 tin creamed mushrooms

1 – 1 ½ cups Lieberstein, or any other white wine you prefer

250 ml Sour Cream

1 – 2 TBS mustard*

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Cooking oil

METHOD

• Fry the onions in a little bit of oil until soft, add the meat and fry until meat is browned
• Add the wine and let simmer until meat is soft
• Add the sour cream, mustard and mushrooms and creamed mushrooms
• Simmer until mushrooms are done
• Add salt and pepper to taste 
• Serve with rice, pasta or couscous

*Prepared mustard or "ready made" e.g. Steers' Mustard Sauce