Ukonwabele Ukutya Kwakho! Koeksisters

Ukonwabele Ukutya Kwakho!
That’s ‘bon appetit’ in Xhosa. Nothing
transports us to another place quite as well
as food. New fragrances, colours and taste
combinations show us how different life can be
in another country and culture.
Photo by Arnold Goodway
Some of the fundraising ideas on page 9
mentioned preparing South African food…
here’s one popular recipe.
Koeksisters
Syrup Coated South African Donuts
Ingredients
for the dough:
• 300g self-raising flour
• 200g corn flour
• pinch of salt
• 50g unsalted butter
• 25g baking powder
• 1\4 cup sugar
• 200ml milk
• 50ml cream
• 2 eggs
Ingredients
for the syrup:
• 530ml water
• 800g sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2.5 tsp cream of tartare
• 1tsp ginger
• 1 tblsp lemon juice
• 1 cinnamon stick
Method for the syrup
(prepare the syrup the day before for best results)
In a pan, heat up the water. Add the sugar, salt, cream of tartare,
ginger, lemon juice and cinnamon stick. Bring to the boil and then
reduce to a simmer. Stir occasionally. Simmer for 10 minutes. Allow
to cool. Transfer to the fridge.
Method for the dough:
Add the dry ingredients to a bowl and mix them together. Add the
milk, butter, eggs and cream, mixing it all together. Knead with your
hand for a couple of minutes. Wrap in cling film, and store in the
fridge for 30 minutes. Roll out to a 1cm thickness. Cut into strips. To
plait, tuck three strips together at the top. Fold the outer strips over
into the middle, repeating until you reach the end and tuck them
together.
Method to fry:
Heat up half a pot of oil on a low flame. Place the bowl of syrup in
a larger bowl of ice to keep it well chilled. Deep fry the koeksisters,
don’t put too many in at once. When golden, transfer to the syrup
using a slotted spoon, draining off as much oil as you can.
Leave to soak in the syrup for a while. Transfer to a cooling rack.
Cool completely before eating.