Malay koeksisters

* From "Every day Malay cooking" author Zainab Lagardien*
These can be deep-fried and frozen [without the syrup] for up to 14 days.
Thaw for 1 hour, make the syrup and eat!

250 ml 1 cup cake flour
250 ml 1 cup self-raising flour
5 ml 1 teas salt
60g ¼ cup butter or margarine
5 ml 1 teas ginger
5 ml 1 teas cinnamon
5 ml 1 teas mixed spice
2.5 ml ½ teas cardamom
10 ml 2 teas soft brown sugar
10 ml 2 teas white sugar
10 ml 2 teas instant dry yeast
375 ml 1 ½ cups warm water

Syrup

250 ml 1 cup water
125 ml ½ cup sugar
15 ml 3 teas desiccated coconut
1 piece naartjie peel

- In a mixing bowl, combine the flours with salt.
- Add butter and rub in lightly until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add remaining ingredients, using the warm water to form a dough.
- Do not kneed.
- Cover with plastic and leave in a warm place for about 1½ - 2 hours or until doubled in size, then turn out on a lightly floured surface.
- Dip fingers and knife into flour and use your hands to stretch the dough.
- Cut into 4 cm x 8 cm strips and deep-fry over medium heat in a deep saucepan.
- Insert fork to check if done and remove quickly, one by one, and drain in a colander or on kitchen paper.
- To make the syrup, bring water, sugar, coconut and naartjie peel to a slow boil in a large saucepan until syrup starts to bubble.
- Prick each koeksister, then lower into the syrup.
- Add as many koeksisters as the pan will hold.
- Turn koeksisters and allow them to absorb syrup until they are brown - about 2 minutes.
- Remove from pan with a slotted spoon, placing them on a platter sprinkled with a litte extra coconut.
- Serve while hot.

Makes about 25.

Tips: Make double quantity syrup or you will run out before all koeksisters have been dipped.
Sprinkle coconut over each layer of koeksisters on the platter.
Don't leave koeksisters too long in the syrup or they will fall apart.

Koeksisters

Vir die stroop:
1 kg (1 liter) suiker
5 ml kaneel
2.5 ml gemmer
500 ml water

Gooi 1 kg suiker, 500 ml water, 5 ml kaneel en 2.5 ml gemmer in ‘n pot en kook dit tot ‘n opgeloste vloeistof. STOP. Wag tot die stroop koud genoeg is om in ‘n ander bak te gooi. Laat die stroop oornag afkoel in die yskas. Go to bed, do not pass go, do not collect $200. Die yskoue stroop is die eerste geheim van koeksisters maak, so moenie eers met louerige stroop probeer nie ! Wanneer jy dit die volgende dag uitgehaal het, sit die bak in ‘n ander bak met yskoue water en ysblokkies in, sodat die vloeistof koud bly te midde van die oefening.

Vir die deeg:
500 ml koekmeelblom
25 ml bakpoeier
30 ml margarien
100 ml melk
100 ml water
knippie sout
500 ml sonneblom olie (om in te fry my kind)

Verhit (nogal baie warm, maar nie kook nie) genoeg sonneblomolie in ‘n pot om die sistertjies in te braai. Meng 500 ml koekmeelblom, 5 teelepels bakpoeier en knippie sout. Vryf 30 ml margarien in met jou vingers.

Sny 200 ml melk en/of water (ek gebruik 100ml water en 100 ml water) in die meel in. Moenie die meel te veel hanteer nie, hoe minder jy dit hanteer hoe beter.

Rol dit uit op ‘n ligweg-meel-gestrooide oppervlak tot so 5 mm dikte. Sny die deeg in repe van 5 cm breed en 10 cm lank (net ‘n riglyn, dimensioneer na gelang van smaak). Sny die repe verder om elk drie bene te hê. Vleg die bene en druk dit styf vas aan die oop kant.



Bak die gevlegte outjies in die olie tot altwee kante ‘n mooi karamel kleur het. En nou vir die tweede geheim: Die koeksister moet nog kook en borreltjies maak, dan moet jy dit al in die yskoue stroop onderdompel het, soveel so dat jy hom sal hoor stroop trek. Haal die koeksister na so minuut uit. Die koeksister behoort baie swaarder te voel as jy hom uithaal.

Gebruik verskillende implemente om die koeksisters in die olie en in die stroop te hanteer, vertrou my, jy wil nie stroop in die olie kry nie.