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Blog / Congo

A Taste of Africa: Bran Rusks

Getting to know Africa includes experiencing the vastly different - and yummy - expressions of each culture through food.

We grew up eating these bran rusks!

They are delicious no matter what age you are. A lovely crunchy treat to enjoy with a good cup of coffee or tea. We call them our version of biscotti.

Bran_Rusks.jpg Source: Creative Commons, Labeled for Reuse

Every one of us makes them slightly differently. We have experimented with the dried fruit ingredients. We've tried dried cranberries, blueberries, dried mixed fruit (chopped up), a variety of different types of raisins, dried dates . . . just use your creative culinary imagination! You can omit the dried fruit entirely, but we think they are better with the addition of fruit. Subscribe to Zawadee Newsletter Subscribe to Zawadee Newsletter We love sharing our family recipes with you but please remember you can search online and find lots of variations on this dish and other terrific African recipes. An online recipe site we use over and over again is The Congo Cookbook. My East Africa Journal is also a great source for recipes. afrolems.com - A food blog for Nigerian, African and Interational recipes is a great source. Visit them - they have a really nice selection of recipes and the instructions are laid out in a really easy to understand manner. AllRecipes and Food.com are also good resources. Just a simple web search will turn up a wide variety of recipes for you to try. INGREDIENTS
  • 600 grams sugar
  • 3 eggs (we recommend extra large)
  • 1 kg of self-raising flour
  • 500 grams of butter
  • 1 tsp of salt
  • 1-1/3 cups of milk (we use 2%)
  • 1 tablespoon of baking powder
  • 200 grams bran flakes
  • Raisins, cranberries, dried blueberries, etc. Use your judgement. We put in about a half cup.
INSTRUCTIONS
  • Set the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Grease two loaf tins. We use spray canola oil. There are butter flavour sprays as well if you prefer.
  • Now cream the butter and sugar.
  • Once you've creamed the butter and sugar, you can add the eggs. Beat this mixture well after adding eggs. We add the eggs one at a time and beat each one into the mixture.
  • Add your dry ingredients but not the bran or the dried fruit yet.
  • Mix your dry and wet ingredients. Then add the bran and then the dried fruit. We add both gradually so they get incorporated evenly into the batter.
  • Divide your batter in half and put each half into a greased loaf tin.
  • Bake the loaves for about 45 to 50 minutes. Make sure to test them in the centre to make sure they are completely "baked through". Ours are usually done at just over 45 minutes.
  • It is really important to let the loaves cool completely before sliding into rusks.
  • Once completely cool, cut the loaves into about 1/2 inch slices.
  • Set your oven to 100 degrees Fahrenheit
  • Place the slices on parchment paper on a baking tray
  • Dry the rusks in the oven. We find it takes about 2.5 to 3 hours. Check frequently as you don't want them to burn up. You just want to dry them out.
In the end, you will end up with a tasty, crispy treat. They keep well in a biscuit tin and we even layer them into a plastic container (with a good seal), between parchment paper and freeze some "for a rainy day". They aren't quite as good once frozen but as long as you allow them to naturally come to room temperature, they are still pretty good. A trick we use is to put a piece of paper towel at the bottom (under a layer of parchment paper, and another piece at the top, over a piece of parchment paper. This helps to "wick" any moisture away from the rusks. We've related how we make our rusks but we'll also share a terrific recipe we came across for a similar rusk. This recipe is "truly terrific" and we highly recommend it. They are called Ma's Buttermilk Rusks. This is a recipe you'll want to make over and over. Ours are always a little different each time we make them, which we think adds to the delight!
Enjoy your Bran Rusks with an authentic, single origin coffee! Our Taste of Africa coffees are simply superb. Shop Coffee now Shop Coffee now
Posted on October 30, 2018
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A Taste of Africa: Chickpea, Red Pepper & Spinach Curry

Getting to know Africa includes experiencing the vastly different - and yummy - expressions of each culture through food.

This curry is just the best for hot summer weather!

Summer_Curry_Chickpea_Red_Pepper_Spinach.jpe

Source: Creative Commons, Labeled for Reuse

Yum! Yum! Yum! This amazing curry dish is just the very best for hot summer weather. Technically both vegan and gluten free, this fresh tasting curry is a snap to make.

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We also make this in a non-vegan version by throwing in whatever we've got left over. Sometimes a little chicken. Sometimes a handful of shrimp. You get the idea. Regardless of the additions you make, this basic recipe is wonderful as is and is also a great "base" for any creative experimentation you want to make. As one of our Dad's used to say, it's "clean out the fridge time - never the same twice"!

We love sharing our family recipes with you but please remember you can search online and find lots of variations on this dish and other terrific African recipes. An online recipe site we use over and over again is The Congo Cookbook. My East Africa Journal is also a great source for recipes. afrolems.com - A food blog for Nigerian, African and Interational recipes is a great source. Visit them - they have a really nice selection of recipes and the instructions are laid out in a really easy to understand manner. AllRecipes and Food.com are also good resources. Just a simple web search will turn up a wide variety of recipes for you to try. INGREDIENTS
  • Approximately 2 cups of bell peppers. We like to mix it up and have orange, yellow and red. So colourful!
  • 1 Cup of cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in halves
  • 1 cup of spinach (washed well)
  • 1.5 cups of canned chickpeas
  • 1/4 teaspoon of paprika. We use smoked paprika.
  • 1 sweet white onion diced up
  • sea salt and pepper, to taste
  • 4 cloves of garlic. You can dice the garlic. We like to smash ours and then break it up into small pieces. We think it releases more flavour that way.
  • 3 or 4 tablespoons of olive oil (We use a canola and olive oil mix)
  • 2.5 tablespoons of cornstarch (Sometimes it takes a bit more. Just add a tiny bit more if your curry isn't thick enough)
  • 4 tablespoons of nutritional yeast (Easily available at any "Bulk Barn" or similar grocery)
  • 1.5 cups of coconut milk
INSTRUCTIONS
  • Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and then bake the peppers until they are charred. This is important as it gives your curry a lovely flavour. Once cooled, remove the skin and the seeds and then put to the side.
  • Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil until nice and golden. Salt and pepper to taste. Set this aside as well.
  • In a food processor, mix your cooled peppers, your onion and garlic mixture, the coconut milk as well as the nutritional yeast, the cornstarch and the paprika until well mixed. At this point, you should give it a taste and add salt and pepper if necessary.
  • Now put your mixture back into an oven proof skillet and add the chickpeas, the spinach and the tomatoes. Fold this mixture together well. Bake at 400 degrees for around 25 minutes or so.
We like our curry with just plain rice but it is good with all sorts of things. Sometimes if the weather is really hot and humid, we just have it with some flatbread (like naan, for example).
Try our authentic, single origin coffee! Our Taste of Africa coffees are simply superb. Fresh roasted in frequent small batches. Simply delicious! Shop Coffee now Shop Coffee now
Posted on October 30, 2018
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