FOOD

BEAT THE AUTUMN BLUES CELEBRATE THE END OF SUMMER WITH THESE DELICIOUS RECIPES

February is a tough month. It’s the final month of summer and the festive season is little more than a memory (although our expenses and waistlines don’t seem to understand that!)

Thankfully, there is more to celebrate than to be glum about. It is the month that celebrates love, for one thing, not to mention that we still have a whole month’s worth of warm weather to appreciate. The change of season will bring a whole new host of flavourful local ingredients that will be readily available, too.

There is still time to embrace the last bit of summer fun in your dishes, while beginning to introduce slightly darker, richer flavours into your menu. Here are a few total crowd pleasers to change up your game with.

MANLY CHICKEN (One chicken will feed four people) Recipe by Jan Braai

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken • 1–2Tbs of your favourite chicken spice or rub • 1 tin of cider, ginger beer, beer, Coke, apple juice or grape juice • 4–8 medium to large potatoes

Method:

• Open the tin of soda/cider/beer/juice and drink one third of it.

Now let the remaining contents in the tin reach room temperature. • Light the charcoal fire. In a kettle braai, this means having two heaps of coals on the sides of the bottom grid and leaving the middle of the bottom grid open. • Ensure that all innards are removed from the cavity of the chicken. • Rub the chicken inside and out with the braai spice. • Push the tin with two thirds of the liquid carefully into the cavity of the chicken. • Place the chicken standing upright (with the can inside also facing upright) into the middle of the top grid of the braai and pack the potatoes around it. • Close the lid and bake the chicken for one hour at 180°C. Make sure that the bottom and top air vents are open. Do not open the lid for the next 50 minutes. • After 50 minutes to one hour the chicken will be ready. The skin will be crisp and some of the liquid from the can will have steamed into the chicken making the meat moist and flavourful. • The chicken is done when its internal temperature is 77°C on your meat thermometer, or when the juices run clear when you poke the flesh with a knife. • Take the chicken off the braai, discard the can and its leftover liquid, and let the chicken rest for a few minutes before carving it. • Serve with the potatoes, which will by now have crisp skins and be completely soft inside.

CHOCOLATE STOUT CAKE Malva pudding is delicious, but there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Change it up as we head into colder weather. Recipe by Katelyn Williams

Ingredients:

For the Cake • 1 cup stout beer (Castle Milk Stout works!) • 224g butter, chopped • 75g cocoa, sifted • 2 eggs • ⅔ cup sour cream • 2 cups cake flour • 1½ tsp bicarbonate of soda • 2 cups castor sugar

Icing • 4 egg whites • 1 cup light brown sugar • 1/4 cup cocoa, sifted

Method:

• Preheat oven to 160°C. • In a pan, combine the stout beer and butter, and heat gently until butter is melted. • Remove from heat, whisk in cocoa. Set aside. • In a separate bowl, whisk the egg and sour cream together, add to the stout mix with the flour, bicarbonate of soda and sugar and whisk well. • Pour into a greased loaf or cake tin and bake for one hour and 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. • Cool slightly in the tin before turning out. • For the icing: • Whisk egg white in a bowl over simmering water until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar and beat until stiff. • Remove from the heat and whisk on low until cool. • Whisk in cocoa and top the cake with mounds of the meringue. Serve with a dusting of cocoa for decoration.

STICKY WALKIES

(Serves 8) Recipe by Expresso.com

Ingredients:

• 1kg cleaned chicken feet • 200ml tomato sauce • 120ml olive oil • 4Tbs soya sauce • 6Tbs braai and grill seasoning • 4Tbs chicken spice • 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, • 4Tbs crushed chillies (fresh or dried) • 100ml cola • Handful of fresh coriander

Method:

• In a bowl, combine the tomato sauce, olive oil, soya sauce, cola, braai seasoning, chicken spice, Worcestershire sauce and chillies, and stir until all ingredients are combined to form the marinade. • Place the chicken feet into the marinade for 15 to 20 minutes before putting them on the grill. The fire must not be too high, medium will do. • Grill the walkies, brushing them with marinade while braaiing until just cooked. • Sprinkle with chopped coriander, and serve.

Tip:

You can serve these walkies with grilled pineapple as a midday snack or an interesting starter.