BISCUITS, SCONES, CAKES AND SWEET TARTS

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In the days when everything was made at home, there were usually two baking days a week, when the housewife made all the bread, biscuits and other baked goods for the family’s consumption. In the towns, flour – a coarse wholewheat meal – was ground at the local mill, but on farms, it was ground by the farm workers. If a small quantity was needed, it was ground in a hand mill. Baking was generally done in an outside oven. The baking pans were put into the oven with a long-handled paddle and when the baked products were ready, they were removed with a curved iron instrument called a rabble. Later on, when the wood-burning iron range became the norm, baking was done inside the house, but the basic baking principles remained essentially the same.

OLD-FASHIONED GINGER BISCUITS

This was one of the staples of grandma’s day, when large batches were baked and stored for later use.

  1. Place all the ingredients, except the flour, in a fairly large saucepan and heat gently until the lard or margarine has melted. Remove the saucepan from the stove and stir in the flour, 30 ml at a time. Roll the mixture into walnut-sized balls and place, 5 cm apart, on greased baking sheets. Bake at 160 °c, above the middle of the oven, for approximately 10 minutes. Leave the biscuits on the baking sheets for a few minutes to firm, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.
  2. NOTE If preferred, the dough can be rolled out and cut with a biscuit cutter.

Makes about 50

TRADITIONAL SPICE BISCUITS

Another standard bake of yesteryear, these biscuits are very similar to the delicious soetkoekies which were decorated with red bolus.

  1. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, ginger, cinnamon and mixed spice into a mixing bowl. Cream the margarine and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition. Fold in the flour mixture and mix well. Roll the dough out to 5 mm thick on a lightly floured surface and cut out rounds with a biscuit cutter. Place the rounds on greased baking sheets and bake at 180 °C for approximately 10 minutes.

Makes about 100

HERTZOG COOKIES (HERTZOGGIES)

The story goes that General Hertzog was so fond of these cookies that they were given his name.

FILLING

  1. Cream the margarine or butter and sugar until light and creamy. Stir in the egg yolks and vanilla essence, blending well. Sift the flour and salt over the mixture, blend well and then stir in a little milk or water to make a fairly stiff dough. Roll out to about 5 mm thick on a floured surface and cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter. Line greased patty pans with the pastry rounds. To make the filling, gradually add the sugar to the egg whites, beating well to blend. Fold in the coconut. Drop a little apricot jam in the centre of each pastry round and spoon some coconut mixture over it. Bake at 200 °C for approximately 15 minutes, or until the pastry is lightly golden. Cool slightly in the pans, then cool completely on a wire rack. Store the cookies in an airtight container.
  2. VARIATION To save time, bake the dough and filling on a baking sheet and cut into squares.

Makes about 60

MACAROONS

Macaroons were among the special delicacies the early settlers prepared for the Christmas season, and they are just as popular today.

  1. Mix the almonds and the castor sugar together over low heat. Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form and stir into the almond mixture, off the stove. Fold in the almond essence and the salt. Spoon or pipe a little of the almond mixture at a time onto a baking sheet lined with greased baking paper. Bake at 150 °c for 20–30 minutes. Remove the macaroons from the oven while they are still warm, lift them from the baking paper and cool on absorbent paper. Store in an airtight container.

Makes 12–16

KRAPKOEKIES

These traditional Malay biscuits are spicy, with a subtle touch of Dried Naartjie Peel (page 97).

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Krapkoekies and Hertzog Cookies are long-established in our culinary repertoire.

  1. Cream the butter, oil and sugar until light and fluffy and the sugar has dissolved. Beat in the egg. Sift the flour, pinch of salt, cardamom, cinnamon and naartjie peel and add to the creamed mixture. Mix well. Add the coconut and mix to a fairly stiff dough. On a floured surface, roll out the dough to 6 mm thick, and scrape the top with a fork to make a rough texture. Cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter and top each with a piece of glacé orange peel. Place on greased baking sheets and bake at 180 °C for 12–15 minutes, or until golden. Cool the biscuits on wire racks.

Makes about 100

SCONES

Scones must be one of the most popular bakes ever – probably because they are quick to make and delectable served warm with butter and jam. The cooking methods vary, however, with some being griddle cakes cooked on a flat griddle over the fire rather than baked. Do not overmix the dough or bake scones for too long, or else they will be heavy.

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Scones with Fresh Apricot Jam (page 128) and Koeksisters

  1. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in the butter and rub in lightly with your fingertips until crumbly. Add the milk and mix lightly with a knife – do not knead. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and press into an oblong shape 20 mm thick. Cut into squares or cut out rounds with a biscuit cutter. Place on a greased baking sheet and brush the tops with extra milk or egg and milk. Bake at 240 °c for 10 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. Serve warm with cheese, or jam and cream.
  2. VARIATION Instead of 500 ml cake flour, use 250 ml cake flour with 250 ml unsifted wholewheat flour and omit the sugar. (Add the wholewheat flour after sifting the dry ingredients.)

Oblietjies

These Dutch rolled wafers, very similar to Brandy Snaps (page 97), were made from a French pastry, with cinnamon and naartjie rind added, and cooked in special long-handled oblietjie irons, which looked much like the old-fashioned waffle irons. They were served with honey and cream.

Makes 12

SCONES MADE WITH OIL

These easy-to-make scones were often referred to as ‘drop’ scones by our mothers and grandmothers.

  1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Combine the oil, egg and milk and cut into the flour mixture. Do not knead. Mix lightly, then drop tablespoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 240 °c for 10 minutes. Serve warm.
  2. VARIATION Add 125 ml grated Cheddar cheese after sifting the flour mixture.

Makes 12

CRUMPETS

The British served crumpets for tea, and they are still popular in many parts of our country.

  1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Beat the eggs and sugar together, then stir in the milk and butter. Fold in the flour mixture and stir well to form a smooth batter. Fry tablespoonfuls of batter on a hot griddle or in a heavy-based frying pan, turning once. Serve with butter, honey or jam and cream.

Makes 25–30

KOEKSISTERS

Koeksisters are the tamer cousins of Malay sweetmeats, often nut or fruit doughs either boiled or fried in fat and then preserved in honey or a thick syrup of concentrated fruit juices. These sweetmeats are heavily spiced and very sweet – too sweet for some tastes. Many expert koeksister-makers prepare the syrup the night before, so that it has plenty of time to chill.

SYRUP

DOUGH

  1. To make the syrup, heat the water in a saucepan, add the sugar and stir until dissolved (wash down the sugar crystals adhering to the sides of the saucepan). Add the cream of tartar, ginger and cinnamon and boil, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Do not stir. Remove from the stove and chill (see Note). To make the dough, sift the flour, baking powder and salt together into a bowl, then rub in the butter or margarine until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Beat the eggs and milk together and add to the dry ingredients. Mix the dough well, then knead it lightly for 2 minutes to make it pliable. Cover the basin with waxed paper and leave it for 1 hour. Roll the dough out to 7 mm to 1 cm thick. Cut the dough into strips 8 cm × 40 cm and make 2 vertical cuts in each strip, starting 5 mm from the top and cutting right down to the bottom. Plait the strips loosely and press them together at the loose end. Heat the oil to 190 °c and deep-fry the koeksisters, a few at a time, for 2–4 minutes. Remove from the oil, drain on crumpled brown paper or absorbent paper for about 1 minute, then dip them in the cold syrup for 30 seconds. Remove the koeksisters from the syrup and dry on a wire rack placed over a tray, to catch the drippings.
  2. NOTE As the syrup must remain cold, chill it in two basins and leave one in the refrigerator. Swap them as soon as the syrup being used starts to get too warm.

Makes about 24

WAFFLES

Old-fashioned waffle irons, which consisted of two patterned cast-iron plates on a hinge and with a long handle, were used to cook waffles over the open fire. They can be seen at numerous museums around South Africa. Electric waffle irons do the job in half the time, but not as decoratively.

  1. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together. Gradually add the milk, mixing well. Beat the egg yolks and add them to the batter. Fold in the melted butter. Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry and fold them into the batter Pour a thin layer of the batter into the waffle iron, close the iron and cook the waffles for approximately 5 minutes, or until done. Serve the waffles piping hot with honey or golden syrup and cream or ice cream.
  2. NOTE Waffles freeze very well. Interleave them with plastic and then overwrap them before freezing. To use the frozen waffles, grill them in the oven for a short while, or pop them into the toaster until they are hot and crisp. Do not thaw them at room temperature or reheat in the microwave oven – either of these will make them soggy.

Makes about 10

SPONGE CAKE

Recipes for sponge cake abound in the old cookery books, many of them using a large number of eggs. Tube pans were used for these light cakes, which had air beaten into the egg whites to make them rise.

  1. Sift the cake flour and salt together 3 times. Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry, then gradually beat in 100 g of the sugar and the cream of tartar mixture or lemon juice. Beat the egg yolks in a small bowl until thick and pale yellow. Add the rest of the sugar gradually, beating until the sugar has dissolved. Fold the egg yolks into the egg whites with a spatula or wooden spoon; do not stir. Sift the flour mixture over the eggs in thin layers, folding in lightly after each addition to ensure that the air in the egg mixture is not disturbed. Line the base of an ungreased tube pan or 2 layer cake pans with greased baking paper. Turn the batter into the pan(s) and tap them lightly on the table to break the bigger air bubbles. Bake at 160 °c for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until the crust is a light golden brown and the cake has shrunk from the sides of the pan and is springy to the touch. Invert the pan(s) onto a cooling rack and leave until almost cold before turning out to cool completely.

Serves 8–10

APRICOT POPOVERS (HANDTERTJIES)

These little mouthfuls of sheer bliss melt in your mouth.
  1. Chill the pastry for about 15 minutes, or until firm. Roll out to a large square on a floured surface and cut into 12 squares, 10 cm × 10 cm. Place 5 ml jam on one diagonal half of each square and fold it over into a triangle. Dampen the edges with water and press to seal. Place on greased baking sheets and bake at 180 °C for 30 minutes, or until lightly golden. Remove the tartlets from the oven, sprinkle with castor sugar and leave them to cool slightly.

Makes 12

DRIED NAARTJIE PEEL

  1. No well-stocked 18th or 19th century kitchen was without a jar of dried naartjie peel, which was used to flavour all kinds of dishes. To dry naartjie peels, remove the peel from the fruit in strips and dry them in the sun, or in the oven at 100 °c, until hard. Store in an airtight jar. Use the strips whole, or crush them first, as required in the recipe.

BRANDY SNAPS

My aunt was famous for two things: her Bobotie (page 45) and her brandy snaps. A variation of brandy snaps called Oblietjies (page 94) was brought to South Africa by the Dutch. The trick to making perfect brandy snaps is to bake only two or three of them at a time, and to work quickly so that they do not set before they have been properly shaped.

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Brandy Snaps with whipped cream and Waffles served with golden syrup.

  1. Place the butter or margarine, castor sugar, treacle and lemon juice in a saucepan and simmer over moderate heat until the butter has melted, stirring occasionally. Remove from the stove. Add the flour, salt and ginger and mix well. Drop 2–3 teaspoonfuls of batter, 12 cm apart, onto well-greased baking sheets and bake at 190 °c for about 5 minutes, or until a rich brown and well spread out. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow the brandy snaps to cool for no more than 1 minute. While still warm, wrap each biscuit around the handle of a wooden spoon to make a roll. Allow them to firm before removing from the handle and placing them onto a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining batter. Store in an airtight container until needed, then serve filled with whipped cream laced with brandy.

Makes 18

RICH CHOCOLATE CAKE

DATE AND NUT FILLING

CHOCOLATE BUTTER ICING

  1. Mix the cocoa to a paste with the water. Add to the boiling milk and stir until smooth. Allow to cool. Beat the butter and castor sugar until light and creamy and the sugar has dissolved completely. Beat in the vanilla essence. Beat the eggs until frothy and fold into the butter mixture. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together 3 times. Add a little to the butter mixture alternately with a little of the milk mixture and stir until smooth. Continue until all of the flour mixture and milk mixture have been used and the batter is smooth. Beat well and pour into 2 greased and lined 20 cm diameter cake pans. Bake at 190 °c for approximately 30 minutes, or until the cakes recede from the sides of the pans and are springy to the touch. Cool slightly in the pans, then turn them out onto wire racks and cool completely. To make the filling, mix the cocoa, sugar and water in a saucepan, then stir in the butter and dates. Simmer over moderate heat until the mixture is thick and smooth, stirring occasionally. Remove from the stove and cool for 2 minutes, then stir in the nuts. Spread this over 1 layer of the cake. Place the other layer on top. To make the icing, beat the butter or margarine until softened, then work in the icing sugar, cocoa or drinking chocolate and vanilla essence until smooth. Spread over the cake, make a pattern with a fork and leave the cake in a cool place until the icing has set.

Serves 8–10

SWISS ROLL (ROLKOEK)

This cake has been enjoyed by countless South Africans for generations.

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Swiss Roll and Apricot Popovers are both traditional South Africans treats.

  1. Sift the flour and salt together into a mixing bowl. Beat the egg whites in a large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold in the egg yolks and beat until thick and pale yellow. Gradually add the sugar and lemon juice, beating constantly. Fold in the flour mixture. Spoon the batter into a swiss roll pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Tilt the pan to spread the batter evenly. Bake at 200 °C for 10 minutes. Spread a damp cloth over a cooling rack and turn the cake out onto it. Spread apricot jam over the cake and roll it up from one short end, using the cloth as a guide. Remove the cloth and leave the cake to cool. Sprinkle with icing sugar if desired.
  2. VARIATION For a chocolate Swiss roll, add 45 ml cocoa powder to the flour and sift with the sugar. Add 50 ml water after folding in the sifted flour mixture. Use whipped cream instead of apricot jam when rolling up the cake.

Serves 6–8

RICH FRUIT CAKE

Every country has its traditional fruit cake. This is one of the best. Make the cake at least a month in advance, as it needs time to mature before using.

  1. Mix the raisins, dates, sultanas, currants, peel, ginger and cherries. Pour the brandy over the mixture and soak overnight. Heat 250 g of the sugar over moderate heat until it starts to brown. Add the boiling water and cool. Sift the flour, spices and salt together. Cream the butter with the remaining sugar. Add a little of the eggs to the creamed mixture alternately with the flour mixture, stirring constantly. Repeat until all the eggs and flour mixture have been added. Add the cooled syrup, then fold in the soaked fruit. Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in the coffee and add it to the batter with the nuts. Spoon the batter into a large, well-greased cake pan lined with aluminium foil. Cover with foil. Bake for 4–5 hours at 150 °c. Turn out and sprinkle with brandy, rum or Van der Hum liqueur. Store in an airtight container in a cool place, and sprinkle with brandy, rum or liqueur once a week. Leave to mature for at least a month.
  2. NOTES

Makes 1 large cake

SHORTCUST PASTRY

  1. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Cut or rub the butter or margarine into the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over the water and lemon juice. Press the dough together lightly, but do not knead. Wrap in wax paper or clingfilm and chill until needed.
  2. NOTE Bake at 200–230 °C for the length of time specified in the recipe.
  3. VARIATIONS

Makes 1 kg

QUICK FLAKY PASTRY

  1. Sift the flour, salt and cream of tartar together. Rub in the butter lightly with your fingertips. Cut in the iced water with a knife and place the pastry in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Roll the dough out on a floured board. Fold into an envelope shape (see Puff Pastry below) and roll out again. Repeat twice. Use the pastry immediately.
  2. NOTE If baking flaky pastry blind, bake at 240 °C for 10–15 minutes. If baking with filling, bake at 240 °c for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 190 °c.

Makes 1 kg

PUFF PASTRY

  1. Sift the flour and salt together twice, then rub in the lard with your fingertips. Cut in the iced water and brandy (or lemon juice or egg yolk) with a knife. Knead the dough lightly on a floured surface until smooth and elastic and small bubbles form on the surface. Work lightly and quickly to keep the dough cool. Roll the dough out to 5 mm to 1 cm thick on a floured surface. Dot a third of the grated butter over the dough. Fold the dough over from the corners, envelope fashion. Roll out the dough. Repeat, folding twice more. Wrap the dough in clingfilm or waxed paper and chill in the refrigerator before use.
  2. NOTES

Makes 500 g

MILK TART (MELKTERT)

This has to be the most famous South African sweet tart. Made correctly, it’s a sublime taste experience. The recipe can be halved, but it’s worth making two tarts rather than one. Milk tart also reheats very well.

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Milk Tart is the most well-known traditional South African sweet tart.

FILLING

  1. Line 2 pie plates with the pastry and make a raised edge for each. To make the filling, add the butter, salt and cinnamon to the boiling milk. Mix the custard powder, cornflour and flour to a paste with the cold milk. Stir in a little of the hot milk mixture. Stir the custard mixture into the hot milk, add 50 ml of the sugar and bring to the boil, stirring continuously. Remove from the stove when it has thickened and discard the cinnamon stick. Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Gradually beat in the remaining sugar. Beat the egg yolks lightly and stir in a little of the custard mixture. Stir the yolks into the custard mixture, then add the almond essence. Carefully fold in the egg whites. Pour the mixture into the pastry cases and bake at 200 °C for approximately 10 minutes. Lower the temperature to 180 °C and bake for a further 10–15 minutes, or until the filling has set. Cool slightly and sprinkle the tart with cinnamon sugar.

Makes 2 tarts

ALMOND TART

In his diary, Jan van Riebeeck records planting wild almond trees to form a hedge at the settlement. Wild almond are not edible, but the edible kind were also planted and harvested, and almonds were an important part of many dishes.

FILLING

  1. Line an 18 cm diameter pie dish with the pastry. To make the filling, melt the butter or margarine and sugar in a saucepan, stir in the semolina and cook, stirring, for a few minutes. Remove the saucepan from the stove, add the almond essence and stir to cool the mixture slightly. Add the beaten egg and baking powder and mix well. Spread the jam over the pastry. Pour in the filling and spread it out evenly. Bake the tart at 200 °C for about 30 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned.
  2. NOTE If preferred, use some of the pastry to make a latticework pattern on top of the tart. Brush with melted apricot jam to glaze.
  3. VARIATION Make a number of smaller tartlets instead of one large tart, if you prefer.

Serves 6–8

LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Instead of this egg, lemon and condensed milk filling, lemon curd is sometimes used for this pie.

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Clockwise from the top: Almond Tart, Lemon Meringue Pie and Date Loaf with cream.

FILLING

TOPPING

  1. To make the filling, beat the egg yolks, lemon rind and juice until thick and creamy. Beat in the condensed milk and pour the mixture into the pastry shell. To make the topping, beat the egg whites and castor sugar until stiff but not dry and spoon it over the lemon filling. Bake the pie at 180 °C for 25 minutes. Serve cold.

Serves 6

COCONUT TART (KLAPPERTERT)

Coconut and apricot jam are a favourite combination of ingredients to use in sweet tarts, in both the Malay and the Afrikaner communities.

FILLING

  1. Line a 22 cm pie dish with the pastry. To make the filling, spread the jam in the pastry base. Beat the butter or margarine and the sugar until light, making sure that the sugar dissolves completely. Gradually beat in the egg. Stir in the coconut and almond essence and mix well. Spread the mixture over the jam. Bake at 200 °C for 30 minutes.

Makes 1 tart

DATE LOAF

This loaf, served with cream instead of buttered, was my uncle’s favourite dessert. He was so fond of it that he begged my grandmother to let him have it before the meal, to make sure he had enough ‘space’ for it.

  1. Mix the dates, bicarbonate of soda, boiling water and butter or margarine and allow the mixture to cool slightly. Add the remaining ingredients and mix lightly, then pour the batter into a greased and lined loaf pan. Bake at 180 °C for 1 hour, or until the loaf recedes from the sides of the pan and feels springy to the touch. Cool the loaf in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Serves 6–8

BANANA LOAF

  1. Cream the butter or margarine and sugar until light and creamy and the sugar has dissolved. Stir in the bananas and beat to mix thoroughly. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift the flour and salt over the mixture and stir it in well. Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in the water and stir it into the mixture, then stir in the baking powder. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan and bake at 180 °C for about 45 minutes, or until the loaf recedes from the sides of the pan and is springy to the touch. Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then turn the loaf out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
  2. VARIATION Add 125 ml chopped pecan nuts or walnuts to the dry ingredients.

Makes 1 loaf