Sweet & Sour Sauce for Pork

 

INGREDIENTS:

Oil for frying

1 yellow pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 x 410g can pineapple pieces, drained

Combine together:

1 TBS cornflour mixed with 4 TBS water

3 TBS white wine vinegar / apple cider vinegar

3 TBS brown sugar

3 TBS orange juice

3 TBS sherry / red wine vinegar / white wine

2 TBS (light) soy sauce

2 TBS tomato paste

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the onion and pepper. Fry until soft. Add the pineapple pieces and stir through.

2. Add the sauce mixture and stir to combine. Stir until sauce thickens.

Mia's Orange & Thyme Cake

 Absolutely divine! 💞 

Image by Foodiegirl 

INGREDIENTS

175 g butter

175 g caster sugar

175 g flour 

3 eggs

5 ml baking powder

30 ml buttermilk

Grated rind of 1 orange 

4 sprigs of thyme, finely chopped 

Sauce

4 oranges' juice 

100 g brown sugar 

100 ml water 

4 sprigs of thyme, finely chopped 

DIRECTIONS 

1.    Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius 

2.     Cream caster sugar and butter and beat until fluffy 

3.     Beat in eggs 1 at a time 

4.     Sift the dry ingredients and fold in with the orange rind and finely chopped thyme 

5.    Add buttermilk and fold in gently 

6.    Bake in preheated oven until golden brown - about 20 minutes, depending on your oven 

7.    In the meantime, heat all the sauce ingredients in a small saucepan

7.    Take cake out of oven, poke holes all over with a skewer and pour warm sauce over to seep in 

☝NOTES

• Use an electric beater!
• You can either make a cake or cupcakes 
• Be sure to add all of the sauce, the cake is supposed to be very moist
• Decorate with thyme and orange slices if you like 

No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Quick and easy and delicious! 

Preparation Time:    5 minutes

Total Time:              20 minutes 

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter

2 cups granulated sugar (white or brown)

1/2 cup milk

4 TBS unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 creamy peanut butter

2 tsp vanilla essence 

3 - 3 1/2 cups Jungle Oats

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Add the butter, sugar, milk and cocoa powder in a saucepan

2. Bring to a rolling boil, and boil for 1 minute

3. Stir in the peanut butter, vanilla essence and oats and mix well

4. Drop spoonfuls of mixture onto parchment paper (baking paper)

5. Let cool until set, about 10 - 15 minutes, or pop into the fridge 

👀NOTES

• Use quick cooking oats if preferred
• Replace the peanut butter with desiccated coconut 
• Use 1/4 cup peanut butter and 1/2 cup desiccated coconut for variation 

Pickling Spice

 

Shake together: 

2 TBS mustard seeds

1 TBS whole all spice berries 

2 tsp coriander seeds 

1 tsp chilli flakes 

1 tsp crushed garlic powder 

Now add and shake: 

1 tsp ground ginger

Then add and shake: 

2 bay leaves, crumbled (dried) or fresh, torn

Then add 6 whole cloves and 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half and shake again. 

Seal the jar and shake again. 

Will keep up to 1 month in sealed jar. 

To make things interesting, add a tsp ground turmeric to the mix for lovely yellow eggs.

Pickled Eggs

 What do you do when you have extra eggs on hand? You pickle them! They are absolutely divine on their own, in a salad, with meat, a sandwich or anything you can think of. The recipe can easily be doubled or tripled.

Ingredients:

6 hard boiled eggs, peeled 

Brine:

1 cup water

1 cup vinegar

2 TBS salt

2 TBS sugar

4 tsp pickling spice

1 bay leaf

Extras

1 onion, sliced into rings

1 garlic clove

METHOD

1. Put a few eggs into a clean glass jar and add some onion rings. Add more eggs and top with onion rings. Add the garlic clove. Repeat layering until jar is full. Put to the side. 

2. Put all the brine ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Then let simmer for about 5 minutes. Let cool. 

3. Pour brine over eggs and seal. Put into fridge and leave for 3 days before consuming. The flavour will develop more if left for a week or two. 

4. The eggs will keep well for a couple of weeks, but are so divine they will be finished long before that! 

NOTES:

For the best flavour, leave in fridge unopened for 1 - 2 weeks. 

The eggs can be kept for 3 to 4 months in the fridge. 

In case of any mold or darkening of the eggs, discard immediately. This is usually due to the jar not sealed completely. 

To jazz things up, a tsp or two turmeric can be added for lovely yellow eggs. Or even curry powder should you want curried eggs. 

A sliced chilli or two will add a nice kick if you'd like a bit of a bite. 

Oxtail Stew

Serves 4 - 5
 

INGREDIENTS

1.5 kg oxtail
Flour
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste 
25 ml oil
50 ml butter 
2 large onions, chopped                                                
3 stems celery, chopped
2 large carrots, sliced in rings
2 large garlic cloves, crushed

2 - 3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
300 ml oxtail/beef stock

1/2 c red wine
1 can diced Italian tomatoes
2 TBS tomato paste 
2 bay leaves 
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 - 1/2 tsp dried chilli (optional)

1 TBS Worcester sauce

1 tsp paprika
2 tsp brown sugar 

Add water if necessary 

10 minutes before serving time, add a can of butter beans / some frozen peas (optional)

METHOD

1.  Mix together the salt and black pepper and flour and add the meat and combine well, toss off excess flour
2. Heat the oil and butter in a large pot and brown the meat; remove from pot and keep aside
3. Sauté the onion, celery, carrots and garlic for three minutes in the same pot
4. Add the oxtail, stock, can of tomatoes, wine, tomato paste, bay leaves, oregano, thyme, chilli and brown sugar and stir well. Add potatoes.
5. Check for seasoning and add more salt if necessary
6. Heat to boiling point and put on the lid and let simmer on low heat for 3 - 4 hours until the meat falls off the bone
7. Stir through from time to time and add water if necessary
8. Serve with rice or mashed potatoes or samp, and some crusty bread if you like 

Variations:

• Substitute the stock for (more) red wine, or dry white wine if preferred
• Fresh herbs are always best, so use that if you can
• You can also add the zest and juice of half a lemon for a bit of zing! 
• For a Jamaican twist add 1 tsp Allspice / Cloves 
• For a more umami flavour add 2 TBS soy sauce

Moroccan Spice Mix

Photo by Foodie Girl on Stocksnap

INGREDIENTS

1 tsp ground Cumin
1 tsp ground Ginger
1 tsp ground Turmeric
3/4 tsp finely ground  Black Pepper
1/2 tsp ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground Coriander
1/2 tsp ground Cayenne
1/4 tsp ground Cloves 
1/4 tsp ground Nutmeg

• Mix all the spices together in a small bowl using a teaspoon
• Rub liberally over poultry or beef before frying 
• You should use about a tablespoon or so in a dish; keep the rest in a tightly sealed glass jar until further use

Best ever Hummus recipe

With compliments to Inspired Taste (www.inspiredtaste.net) for truly the best ever hummus recipe :) and also so easy to make and absolutely divine ;) 

This is truly the best hummus recipe I have ever made and this is also the only one I make nowadays!

Makes 6 servings or about 1 1/2 cups 

INGREDIENTS

1 can chickpeas
1/4 cup (60ml) fresh lemon juice (1 large lemon)
1/4 cup (60 ml) tahini paste 
1 small garlic clove, crushed
2 TBS olive oil + extra for serving 
1/2 tsp ground cumin
salt to taste
2 - 3 TBS (30 - 45ml) water 
Dash ground paprika for serving

METHOD
1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the tahini and lemon juice and process for 1 minute, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process for 30 seconds more. This extra time helps "whip" or "cream" the tahini, making the hummus smooth and creamy. 

2. Add the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin and a 1/2 tsp of salt to the whipped tahini and lemon juice. Process 30 seconds , scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process another 30 seconds or until well blended.

3. Open, drain and rinse the chickpeas. Add half of the chickpeas to the food processor and process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl, then add the remaining chickpeas and process until thick and quite smooth; 1 - 2 minutes. 

4.  Most likely the hummus will be too thick or still have tiny bits of chickpeas. To fix this, with the food processor turned on, slowly add 2 - 3 tablespoons of water until you have the perfect consistency. 

5.  Taste for salt and adjust as needed. Serve hummus with a drizzle of olive oil and dash of paprika if desired. Store homemade hummus in an airtight container and refrigerate up to one week. 

Blade Steak Stew - Daktari Style

This is my recipe, adapted from a couple of recipes on the web and giving it a bit of a South African twist, using spices we use around here. This recipe serves 2 - 3 people. Daktari Farm is where I live :)

INGREDIENTS

Cooking oil

500g blade steak, cut into smaller pieces

1 large onion, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

3 small bay leaves/2 large bay leaves

Few sprigs of fresh thyme

Garlic flakes

1 cup oxtail stock

1 can whole peeled tomatoes

1 sachet tomato paste

Shisanyama seasoning*

Flippen Lekka Spice*

200 g exotic mushrooms, sliced

2 TBS Worcester Sauce

Salt & Pepper

METHOD

1. Heat a little bit of oil in a pot and fry the meat pieces until browned; remove from the pot

2. Add the onion and fry until soft, add the carrot, bay leaves, thyme. Saute for a minute or two until soft. Add the mushrooms and stir in and saute for a minute or two until combined 

3. Add the meat and stir well; add the canned tomatoes; tomato paste; oxtail stock; Worcester sauce; salt and pepper; a good sprinkling of Shisanyama seasoning and Flippen Lekka Spice, and garlic flakes

4. Stir well and cover with a lid and let simmer for 1 and a half hours

5. Serve with rice and salad

Notes:

To substitute the Shisanyama seasoning and Flipppen Lekka Spice you could use something like a spicy barbecue spice; although the Shisanyama would be difficult to substitute as it is a truly South African spice mix with unique ingredients:) 

Neil's Waffle Recipe

Another great recipe from Neil! 

Ingredients

3/4 cup (100 g) flour 

1/4 cup (30 g) cornstarch

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 TBS sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup (250 ml) milk

1/3 cup (80 ml) vegetable oil

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla essence

Method

Whisk the flour, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. 

In another bowl or large measuring jug, whisk the milk, vegetable oil, egg and vanilla together until blended

Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and whisk until just mixed. Set batter aside for 10 - 15 minutes - to give the baking powder time to activate

Heat the oven to 100 degrees Celsius. 

Heat your waffle iron and pour the batter onto the heated waffle iron (about 1/2 a cup) and cook until the waffles are crisp and golden

Immediately put the cooked waffles directly on the oven rack to keep it warm and crisp

Serve with syrup/butter/jam/cheese/berries, or cream or ice cream! 

Avocado Dip

I am not sure who's recipe this is, but I found this handwritten on a piece of paper in one of my mom's cookbooks.  

3 avocado's 

125 ml mayonnaise

45 ml lemon juice

2 ml Tabasco sauce

10 ml salt

1 ml black pepper

2 cloves of garlic

10 ml onion juice

2 ml paprika

1 ml cayenne pepper

5 ml sugar

30 ml chopped chives

1. Liquidize all the ingredients except the chives, until thick and creamy

2. Garnish with chives

(Image borrowed from Pixabay)

Butternut Soup

This is the butternut soup my mom always made. She was a member of the "Fynproewersgilde" in Stellenbosch and this is where this recipe comes from. Very easy to make and absolutely delicious! 

60 g butter

2 large leeks, chopped

2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped into chunks / 4 small potatoes

2 large Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and chopped *

1 kg butternut, chopped into chunks 

1 liter chicken stock

250 ml cream

salt & pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Heat butter in a large pot and sauté potatoes, leeks, apples and butternut  until soft

2. Add chicken stock and heat slowly to boiling point

3. Reduce heat immediately and simmer until vegetables are just done. (About 20 min). Add salt & pepper.

4. Leave to cool a bit and liquidize; adding most of the cream

5. Add a little drizzle of cream on top just before serving

6. Garnish with fresh parsley or marjoram/oreganum when serving 

(Image borrowed from The Spruce)

NOTES & OPTIONAL IDEAS:

• Substitute the Granny Smith apples with 4 small Golden Delicious Apples
• Add a heaped tsp of curry powder & 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• Add the juice of a small lemon 
• If you can't get hold of leeks; use a bunch of spring onions / chives
• It's not crucial to peel the apples; I prefer to just chop them into pieces 

Denver Chocolate Pudding

This is my sister Landi's all time favourite chocolate pudding. It's real easy to make and absolutely divine! This original recipe makes a rather small pudding, but it's very easy to double. 

Image from "thedailydish.us"

Sift together:

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup flour

1/8 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder 

Melt together over hot water:

2 TBS butter

1 ounce unsweetened chocolate OR 3 TBS cocoa powder 

Add to flour mixture

Stir in 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 tsp vanilla essence 

Pour batter into buttered baking dish about 9 x 9 inches (22 cm x 22cm)

Over the top scatter, without mixing:

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

4 TBS Cocoa 

Pour over the top 1 and a 1/2 cups cold water / coffee

Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees F (180 degrees Celsius / Gas 4)

Sweetcorn Fritters

Serve as a meal on it's own and have fun trying different toppings or serve as a side dish. To make things a bit more interesting you can add an extra can of drained whole kernel corn or even use fresh corn on the cob! 

Serves 4 - 6

Cooking time: about 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

410 g can cream-style corn

2 eggs

125 ml flour

Salt and pepper to taste

(1 finely chopped chilli – optional) / chilli flakes 

Oil for frying

METHOD

1.    Mix together the cream-style corn and eggs

2.    Add the flour and mix well and season with salt and pepper

3.    Heat some oil in a (non-stick) frying pan over medium heat, and fry spoonfuls of batter until golden brown; don’t overcrowd the pan

4.    Drain on kitchen paper and serve with toppings of your choice

Suggested toppings:

Fried bacon and maple syrup or honey

Smoked trout and sour cream

Soft egg and roasted cherry tomatoes

Grated very mature cheddar cheese, fried bacon and maple syrup (my favourite!!)

Drizzled with sweet chilli sauce

Crumbled Feta Cheese

Guacamole & Sour Cream

Satay Peanut Sauce & Marinade for Chicken - Two Versions

This is a nice and easy satay sauce you can use for pork or chicken. This is the one we make every time we want to have chicken satay (recipe from Australian Women's Weekly  - From the Shelf). 

I have adapted it a little bit. 

The second recipe is also delicious, and handy when you don't have coconut milk around. The sesame oil makes all the difference! 

Photo by Tim Sullivan at StockSnap

700 g chicken breast fillets cut into strips

SATAY SAUCE - WITH COCONUT MILK

1 TBS peanut oil

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp sambal oelek

1/3 cup crunchy peanut butter

160 ml chicken stock

125 ml coconut milk

2 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp soy sauce 

splash of fish sauce 

Cooked white rice

METHOD

1. Heat oil in medium saucepan; cook onion, curry powder and sambal oelek, stirring, until onion is soft. 

2. Stir in peanut butter, stock, coconut milk, sugar and sauce; bring to a boil. 

3. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until sauce thickens. 

For the chicken:

Season the chicken strips with chicken seasoning or spice you prefer and fry in a pan until done. Keep aside. 

Serve chicken with sauce and white rice.

VERSION 2: WITHOUT COCONUT MILK

500 g deboned chicken pieces, cut into smaller pieces

1 TBS soy sauce

1 TBS sesame oil

1 TBS maizena (cornflour)

3 TBS water

2 TBS oil

chives / spring onions 

SAUCE

1 small onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, chopped/minced

1 TBS oil

1 tsp sambal oelek / curry

2 TBS smooth peanut butter

1 TBS soy sauce

1 TBS lemon juice

1/2 cup water

Optional extras: 

1/4 tsp chili flakes

dash of fish sauce

1 tsp brown sugar

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp ginger

Add with the sambal oelek

METHOD

1. Combine the soy sauce, sesame oil, cornflour and water and pour over the chicken pieces. 

2. Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan and stir fry the chicken pieces for 2 - 3 minutes or until just done. 

3. Pour the satay sauce over and heat until boiling. Turn off the heat and dish up! 

SAUCE:

1. Heat the oil in a small saucepan and add the onion and garlic. Fry until onion is transparent. 

2. Add the sambal oelek (or curry) and fry for 1 minute. Add the peanut butter, soy sauce, lemon juice and water and heat again until boiling. 

Serve as is or with basmati rice or udon noodles.