SOUTH AFRICA - Ostrich Omelettes in Oudsthoorn

Oudsthoorn in the Little Karoo is a town that grew in the boom years of the Ostrich empire. Around the turn of the century fashion houses all over the world were crazy for the feathers, and the area became full of Ostrich farms, generating a great deal of wealth allowing the Ostrich tycoons to build their own ‘Feather Palaces’. Nowadays, the feathers are not so popular for fashion, but a huge industry still exists for the ostrich meat – leaner and more protein than beef, and perfect for a Braai (South African BBQ)!!

On the road to Oudsthoorn

A new feather duster to do some cleaning when I get home!

An Ostrich egg is the equivalent to 24 hen eggs, making a HUGE omelette!!!

SOUTH AFRICA - Sophisticated Stellenbosh

Just outside Cape Town, lies the university town of Stellenbosch. Famous for it’s hundreds of vinyards you could spend a very drunken few days here!! We went on a tour, visiting 4 wineries  with 6 ‘samples’ in each. It was just as well there was cheese and chocolate to sample as well!!

Stellenbosch Farmers Market

So many cakes to choose from!!

Fancy some biltong?

Beer sampling - Naw, don't fancy that one much, lets try another!

Lots of posh wine and great views

Tasty goats cheese

Romantic cheese & wine

SOUTH AFRICA - Snoekies at Kalky’s

The Cape Peninsula lies just to the south of Cape Town, with the famous Chapman’s Peak Drive winding round the cliffs down towards Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope  (the most South Westerly point of Africa). We spent a few days down here hiking in the beautiful Table Mountain, and Silvermines National Parks, and visiting the beautiful beaches and fishing villages.

One of the Fishing ports was Kalks Bay, where every afternoon around 3pm the fleet of fishing boats return to harbour with their days catch, followed by the seals hoping for a tasty treat!

Coming in with the days catch

Off the boat and straight onto the market floor

Snoekies hanging up to dry

Fighting over the fish!

Don't mess with these ladies!!

 gutted and cleaned...

..and put on the plate!!

                                           Dean feasting on the days catch (Snoeke and chips) at Kalky’s

Some more seafood encounters -

Seafood Platter in Capetown

                                Hake, mussels, prawns, calamari, with smoked tuna and salmon

Sushi in Stellenbosch

SOUTH AFRICA - Cafe culture

Charly's Cafe - CapeTown

Another little café we stumbled across in the District 6 area of Cape Town is Charly’s. It has become something of an institution in Cape Town, serving up delicious cakes and coffees.
It started off as a dream of a young boy called Charly who at 16 was employed in a German bakery in a desert town, sweeping the floors and making puff pastry. He dreamed of owning his own café, and over time learnt how to bake from the German Master Baker. Meeting his wife and moving to Cape Town, the café began. It has become more and more successful, moving from the Waterfront to its own lovely pink Victorian house with Table Mountain as its backdrop. We visited on Valentine’s Day and the café was packed with couples buying bright red heart cupcakes and cakes dripping in chocolate.

Aaaww

Valentine's Day rush on heart cup cakes!

Away with the Fairies in Hogsback
Another lovely little café we stopped at after a hard day’s mountain biking in the town of Hogsback was Butterfly’s Bistro. Hogsback is a bit of an alternative town up in the hills. It’s scenery is said to have inspired J.R. Tolkien to write Lords of the Rings, and has a bit of a mystical feel about the place – The Granny Mouse House, Hobbiton and the Eco Shrine. Our hostel – Away with the Fairies had a 15 m high treehouse and a bath tub on the cliff top.

The crazy girls at Butterfly's Bistro

Their carrot cake sprinkled in Fairy dust.

SOUTH AFRICA - Koeksisters in the Cape

Koeksisters in the Cape

Now, if you’ve got a sweet tooth, then these are just for you!!

We found these delicacies mainly down towards Capetown and the Cape Peninsula.

The first ones we tried were the twisty version, chilled and drizzled in syrup, they were a bit sweet for my liking.

  

However, we then found this lovely little café in the BoKaap district of Cape Town that served up fresh Koeksisters. Similar to a donut with cinnamon and aniseed, and sprinkled with coconut they were delicious!!!

The Bo Kaap district is a colourful little area of Cape Town also known as the Malay district. During Apartheid, the coloured and Asian people lived in this area, not moved to the outskirts like the black population. Today it is the area where the majority of people are Muslim, with numerous mosques, Indian shops and cafes and beautiful brightly coloured houses.

District Six is another area of Cape Town steeped in history. It was originally where freed slaves, labourers, artisans and immigrants from all over the world settled in the Cape, and lively communities of Jews, Asians, Indians and Malays developed. As the more prosperous people moved to the suburbs, the area became neglected and run down.   In 1966, under the Group Areas Act of 1950, District 6 was declared a White Group Area. Its prime location was attractive for redevelopment, so the process of forced removals began. Bulldozers moved in, and over the next 16 years more than 60,000 people were removed and their houses flattened. The crazy thing is that since then, very little development has taken place and the majority of the land lies barren and empty!!

The District Six museum tells the story of the area. In the museum is a fantastic little tea room – Sweet Memories, selling coffees, teas, samosas and Koeksisters. Lining the walls are beautiful cloths embroidered with the favourite recipes of some the ladies who once lived in the district. Many of them are now employed in the museum and tea room.

From there I found a recipe for Koeksisters, which I’m sure will be very tasty!!

Koeksisters Recipe

500ml plain flour

100ml Self Raising flour

100ml sugar

5ml salt

10ml ground ginger

5ml ground cinnamon

5ml ground cardamon

10ml ground aniseed

1 egg

125ml sunflower oil

50ml cold milk

250ml hot water

20ml dried yeast

For syrup –

500ml sugar

750ml oil

150ml coconut

Method

Sift flour, mix with sugar and salt

Add spices

Rub in 125ml oil

Dissolve yeast with some water/mil
Mix water, egg, yeast mixture and remaining milk and mix with flour to make a soft dough

Rub oil over dough

Cover and set aside to rise again

Heat oil in saucepan and fry koeksisters for about 5 mins both sides

Drain

Meanwhile boil sugar & oil together to make syrup

Drizzle syrup over koeksisters and sprinkle with coconut.

Enjoy!!

SOUTH AFRICA - Melktert

Melktert (Milk Tart)

A favourite pudding is the Milk Tart. Similar in texture to an egg custard. Great with a good cuppa, and often served for afternoon tea. While staying at The Crags in Natures Valley, to shelter from the rain we stopped for tea and cake at the local dairy where all cakes in the tea room are made from the milk of their beautiful herd of Jersey cows.

 Recipe for Melktert

Filling

4.5 cups milk

1 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

1 dessert spoon butter

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

3 eggs

2 Tablespoon maizena

2.5 Tablespoons flour

3 teaspoons cinnamon

Pastry

0.5 cup sugar

2 cups plain flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 egg

4 oz butter

Pastry

Preheat oven to 150C.

Cream the butter and sugar in a small bowl with a mixer until smooth.

Add the egg and continue beating until light & fluffy.

Stir in the sifted flour, baking powder & salt to make a stiff dough.

Press into greased tins and bake in the oven till brown.

Remove and leave to cool.

Filling

Boil the milk, beat the eggs, add the sugar and beat well again.

Add the flour, maizena, and salt and mix well.

Pour in the boiled milk and stir until the mixture thickens. Lastly add the vanilla and a knob of butter to cool.

Pour into the pastry cases & sprinkle with cinnamon.

Put in fridge to set.

Here's a great web site with lots of South African recipes.

www.biltongbox.com

SOUTH AFRICA - Rusks (but not for the Babies!)

Buttermilk rusks

Another thing I've seen in many a shop in South Africa is rusks. Different from the baby rusks, similar to biscotti most people dunk them in their coffee and eat them. There are many different types, with Buttermilk rusks a favorite, but with seeds, nuts and fruit added make perfect breakfast on the run!

Apparently, originally prepared in South Africa by the Dutch for traveling long distances in a hot climate.

Perfect with a cuppa Rooibus tea!

Recipe taken from http://www.sa-austin.com

Ingredients

4 lbs Flour (All-purpose flour or Cake flour or even a mix of the two)

25 ml (1 tbsp & 2 tsp) Baking Soda

50 ml (3 tbsp & 1 tsp) Cream of Tartar

10 ml (2 tsp) Salt

500 grams (1 lb) Butter or Margarine (cold)

250 ml (1 cup) Sugar

3 Eggs

500 to 750 ml (2 - 3 cups) Buttermilk

1 Tbsp Aniseed (optional), or seeds, fruit (raisins, peel etc)

Method

Sift the baking soda, cream of tartar and 1 cup of flour together (repeat 3 times).

Sift all the dry ingredients together. If you are using aniseed, add it too and mix well.

Grate the butter into the mixture and rub (to mix) through with fingers.

Beat the eggs, add the buttermilk, mix and then add to flour mixture. Mix together so that mixture is little runny, but still can be kneed. Kneed lightly until all ingredients are mixed well.

Make little balls (slightly bigger than a golfball) with mixture and place them (touching) into a greased breadpan.

Bake for 25 - 30 minutes in the oven at a temperature of 400 °F.

When your rusks have cooled slightly, break (or cut) them into pieces and dry overnight in a cool oven by placing the rusks directly on the oven grills. (Set the oven on "Warm" only and keep the oven door slightly open by wedging a teaspoon into the door at the top.)

Handy Hints For Your Rusks

More or less sugar can be used, or can even be totally left out - if needed.

If more rough rusks are desired, replace half of the flour with wheat flour.

The butter or margarine can also be melted and then mixed with the egg and buttermilk mixture (it creates a finer texture).

The flour, baking soda and creme or tartar can also be replaced by Self Raising Flour.

SOUTH AFRICA - Roosterkoek

Roosterkoek is a grilled bread cooked over burning hot embers. We sampled some at a lovely farm Oude Bosch near Tsitsikamma on the Garden Route. You’ll also see them cooking away at streetside stalls with fillings of jam, cheese, boerewars and savoury mince. Texture like a crumpet they’re delicious warm!! .

Onto the grill they go.

cooking over the embers

Great with butter and jam!

But you can also have them with ....

Recipe for roosterkoek

6 cups flour

2 teaspoons salt

1 litre lukewarm water

10g yeast

8 teaspoons sugar

2 Tablespoons oil

Sift dry ingredients together. Add just enough water to form a slack dough. Knead well. Cover and leave to rise until double the volume.

Pull off pieces of dough, roll them into balls and flatten.

Cook over hot coals on braai grill.

Vetkoek

Similar to a Roosterkoek, but fried instead.

Ingredients:

500ml Cake Flour

20ml Baking Powder

3ml Salt

15-30ml Melted Butter or cooking oil

1 Egg

250ml Buttermilk

Cooking Oil for deep frying

Method:

Sift flour, baking powder and salt together

Beat butter, egg and buttermilk together. Now add this to the flour mixture & stir.

The dough should have a spongy texture that drips easily off a spoon.

Half fill a large pot with cooking oil and heat until it bubbles.

Place spoonfuls of dough into the hot oil

Deep fry for a few minutes and then turn and fry them until Golden Brown

Remove when cooked and drain on paper towelling.

Allow to cool slightly before eating.

To Serve:

Add butter and/or Golden Syrup or Honey, or serve with curried mice.

SOUTH AFRICA - Bobotie

Bobotie

A traditional dish served all over South Africa from the Wild Coast to the Cape, Bobotie is a hearty, spicy curried mince dish with a creamy egg topping, baked like a lasagne. Normally served with yellow rice and salad.

Recipe for Bobotie

500g mince

1 chopped onion

10ml curry powder

5ml turmeric

2 ml ground cloves

2 sticks cinnamon

5ml crushed garlic

2 tablespoons chutney

30ml brown sugar

5 dried apricots

20ml lemon juice

2 slices white bread

2 Bay leaves

Cooking oil

Salt

Topping

1 egg

150ml milk

Soak the bread in water or some milk, then squeeze dry.

Fry onions in oil until brown, then add garlic cloves, salt, curry powder, turmeric and simmer for 5 mins.

Add the mince, eggs, sugar, lemon juice, chopped apricots, chutney and cinnamon sticks.

Mix well.

Pour into greased ovenproof dish and bake for 55 mins.

Remove from oven.

Beat the egg and milk, and pour slowly over the bobotie. Add bay leaves, and bake at 180 C until set.

Serve with rice and veg/salad.