Stella's Ideas

I enjoy to keep my hands busy with either crafts, baking or photography. I want to share all the things I enjoy with you.

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Hertzoggies (Hertzog cookies)

This is a very nice and easy recipe for this favorite South African cookie. Just as nice as the Louise Cake in New Zealand

Ingredients:

Pack of 4 sheets sweet short pastry

Fine Apricot jam

3 Egg Whites

250 ml Sugar

500 ml high coconut

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 C 

Prepare you muffin pan by lightly greasing it with butter/margarine.

Prepare your work area with flour as you will need to roll out the sweet short pastry.

Use buscuit cutter to cut out circles to line the muffin pan

Put 1 tsp (5ml) of appricot jam in each case.

Make the coconut meringue to cover the jam.

Mix the egg white till very stiff and sugar bit by bit till light and fluffy.

Fold the coconut to the egg mixture.

Spoon the meringue mixture over the jam in the cases, make sure the jam is covered.

Bake for about 20 min or till the pastry is golden brown.

Take out of the oven and leave to cool down in the muffin pan, before lifting out and placing it on a wire rack to cool down.

There is a whole South African history behind this Hertzoggies something interesting to tell on another day.

Enjoy

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Nice idea! Crochet bag with zipper @ Plus3Crochet

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Dragon Game of Thrones style by Kati Galusz

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Crochet stone cozies

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Despicable Me minions

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I used this free pattern from Ravelry from Nurdi Babi but I was so sleepy when I did this that I accidentally modified the pattern a bit. Hihi…

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My dear, this is super cute! ♥

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Crochet doily Dream Catchers inspiration!

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Crochet umbrella, chart

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Summer Crochet Bag pattern

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Bridal Shrug crochet free pattern from Red Heart

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Beautiful Crochet Overlay Mandala

[cviljoen]

Pikelets (Crumpets / Plaatkoekies)

Since we moved to New Zealand it is amazing to see how many different names you get for one dish.

We know this as Flapjacks (Plaatkoekies).

This a great snack morning, afternoon or evening with homemade yogurt.

Try the recipe at home

Ingredients

1 egg

62 ml castor sugar

125 ml milk

12,5 ml vegetable oil

250 ml high grade flour

10 ml baking powder

Method

Mix egg and castor sugar together

Add half of the milk and all the oil, mix well

Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt together in another bowl

Add the flour to the egg mixture.  Stir with a wooden spoon till there is no more clots in the mixture.

Stir the last half of the milk to the mixture.  Don't stir to long

Make the flapjacks in a prepared frying pan till nice and golden brown on both sides.

Serve with honey and margarine while nice and hot.

Make 15 nice size flapjacks or 30 pikelets

Yummy

[cviljoen]

Apple Tart

Whenever I bake this Apple Tart for work or to take along somewhere, there is always a request to make sure that there is another one that will stay home.

Bake it at home and you will understand why.  This is not the traditional apple pie with puff pastry.  It has the the apple and the raisins covered with a cake like batter and a yummy butterscotch type syrup to cover it.  This is definitely a winner.

Here is the recipe to try

Ingredients

4 1/2 tsp Butter/margarine

1 1/2 cup self-raising flour

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup coconut

pinch of salt

1/4 cup sultanas / raisins

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 large tin of apples (410g)

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180 C

Cream the butter and sugar

Add eggs one at a time while mixing

Wisk / mix it thoroughly

Add salt, flour and milk alternately

Add coconut and sultanas

Prepare a pie dish with non stick spray

Spread the mixture in the dish

Cut the apples in smaller pieces and spread evenly over the dough

Bake for 45 min

Syrup

1 cup milk

1 1/2 cup sugar

3 tsp butter/margarine

1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Method

Boil all ingredients and pour over the hot tart

Cool and decorate it with fresh whipped cream

By Joey Pienaar, Fit for a King Cookbook

[cviljoen]

Breakfast bars (Health rusks)

This is a great breakfast when you are on the run. Dunk it in your coffee and let it soak a bit.  This is really filling.

My son enjoy this as a morning snack at school so it is yummy just as it is.

Ingredients

1 Kg Self-raising flour

5 ml Baking powder

3 ml salt

500 ml Muesli

125 ml Sultanas (75 g)

125 ml chopped apricots / pears (75 g)

1 x 100 g assorted nuts

250 ml coconut

250 ml sunflower seeds

50 ml sesame seeds

375 ml Brown Sugar

2 extra large eggs

500 ml yogurt of your choice

500 g butter, melted

Method

Mix flour, baking powder, salt, muesli, sultanas, apricots, nuts, coconut,sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and sugar in a big mixing bowel.

Beat eggs and yoghurt together and mixed the cooled butter with egg mixture.

Add the yoghurt mixture with the dry ingredients and mix together with a wooden spoon.

Pour the mixture in 3 buttered bread tins (or 1 big oven tray) and make it even on the top.

After about 40 minutes of baking put foil over the rusks with the shinny part at the top to ensure that the rusks do not turn to brown on the top.

When you put a test pin in the rusks and it comes out clean you can remove the rusks from the oven, leave it in the tins for about 5 minutes before you turn it around, and let it cool.

Once it is cooled down you can cut it in thick slices and then in smaller fingers.

Dry the rusks in the oven on 100C for about 3 hours after which you will switch the oven off and leave the rusks in the oven overnight.

This makes 40-60 fingers of rusks depending on the size.

[cviljoen]

Banana Loaf Recipe

Here is the recipe long awaited for . . . 

Ingredients

125 ml  butter/margarine at room temperature

125 ml - 250 ml sugar

5 ml vanilla essence

2 eggs, room temperature

500 ml cake flour

10 ml baking powder

2.5 ml salt

4-6 ripe bananas, mashed (400 g / 1 3/4 cup)

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease and line a small loaf pan with baking paper

Cream the butter and sugar and add the vanilla essence

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition

Sift together the dry ingredients and add to the egg mixture

Lastly, mash the bananas with a fork and add

blend well and turn the mixture into the pan. Bake for 1 hour or until done.

Slice and butter

-Cook&Enjoy, SJA De Villiers

[cviljoen]

Banana Loaf

So what do you do if you can get ripe banana's for 57 cents per Kilo?

Frozen banana's an easy frozen desert . . . .

Smoothies . . . . . 

Banana Cake with Chocolate icing . . . . . 

Or a yummy Banana loaf.

I've made the recipe out of Cook&Enjoy recipe book and it is always better the 2nd day after you baked it.

The recipe will be posted soon.

[cviljoen]

Home-made Granola (Muesli)

With my son going back to school, breakfast will usually be oats.  This can become boring.

I decided to make our own muesli as the muesli in the shop can tend to taste like plastic.

Most of the ingredients you will have at home, its just the dried fruit and nuts you need to buy if you don't have that.

This is really a very yummy recipe and it is even better with home-made yogurt.

Try this and let me know what you think

Ingredients

4 cups raw oats (not quick or instant)

¾ cup unsweetened dried flaked coconut

⅓ cup chopped or sliced almonds

3 tablespoons sunflower seeds (unsalted)

⅓ cup honey

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup assorted dried fruit, like apricots, raisins, cranberries, cherries, cashew nuts etc.

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Place the oats in a large mixing bowl. Add the coconut flakes, almonds nuts and stir to combine.

Mix the honey and olive oil. 

Pour honey mixture over the oat mixture and stir until coated.

Spread the granola out on a large baking sheet. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring every few minutes to prevent burning.

Let the granola cool completely then add the dried fruits and cashew nuts and stir to combine.

Store in an airtight container. 

This makes about 6 cups (1,5 kg)