South African rusks

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 1,000 g flour
• 1 packet of baking powder
• 2 tsp salt, no less!
• 250 g margarine
• 675 g sugar, brown, preferably cane sugar
• 225 g sunflower seeds
• 150 g bran (flakes)
• 2 handfuls of raisins, or/also chopped dried fruit, ground nuts or almonds, sesame or ground pumpkin seeds
• 1 tbsp anise, whole, more to taste
• 1 tsp, heaped anise, ground
• 500 ml buttermilk
• 125 ml oil, not olive oil
• 2 eggs

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 5 hours; Total time approx. 5 hours 30 minutes

Traditional biscuits that are dipped into coffee. They’re filling, like an energy bar, and provide strength for a long day.

Use a very large bowl to mix. The batter is for two loaf pans. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, margarine, and sugar and rub evenly between your hands, like small crumbles. Then add the dried fruit, kernels, and seeds. Mix the buttermilk, oil, and eggs well and pour in. Now mix the mixture well with both hands. When everything is evenly mixed, divide it into the loaf pans. The “batter” is very sticky. The pans will be almost full, but the dough won’t rise much. I sprinkle a dusting of sugar so that the dough can break up nicely during baking. Bake for a good hour at 180°C to 185°C, or a little longer if necessary. When nothing sticks to a skewer, let it stand in the pan for another hour, then turn out and let cool completely. These “cakes” aren’t tasty yet. The next day, cut the cakes in half lengthwise, using an electric knife if possible, and then cut into slices the size of your little finger. Arrange them in flakes on baking sheets and, with the oven door slightly ajar, let them dry/roast at 100°C. This may take a few hours; they smell wonderful when they’re done. Only when they’re dry, like rusks, should they be placed in large containers. They taste wonderful and keep well. I’d also like to add that you don’t have to stick slavishly to the list of ingredients. In terms of quantity, yes, but I add a spoonful of lecithin, for example, or a spoonful of barley malt, or I mix different flours. Half wholemeal flour, half spelt flour makes a fine dry sponge cake.