Friday, August 25, 2017

Rusks

Rusks are a traditional South African food, a yeast bread that is cut up and dried overnight in an oven. (I think that to be absolutely traditional, the dough is rolled into balls, packed closely into a pan and then broken apart before drying.) I'm not fond of rusks myself, but my husband Jack likes to have rusks to dunk into his early morning tea. He's very particular about the rusks. He disdains the modern tendency to make 'health rusks' with seeds, fruit etc added. The rusks must not disintegrate when put into tea or coffee. He found a family-run shop in town that sold the perfect rusk, until the lady who made them decided it was too much work for her. He persuaded her family to give him the recipe she used. That was about a year ago and ever since I've been trying to emulate her rusks. Fingers crossed that this batch passes the dunk test!

12 comments:

  1. That sounds like something Dave would like, although it would have to be dunked in coffee. He won't touch tea!

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    1. I think coffee is more traditional than tea to go with rusks.

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  2. That is interesting. I live in a city that was founded by Dutch people and they make Rusk Buns. I had some when I was a kid.

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  3. We have cake rusks (he more than me) - store bought - for snacking. Not as healthy as regular rusks, but tastier ;-P
    Kudos for doing it yourself ! And Jack has no choice now, does he ;-P

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  4. These kind of rusks look tasty, the only rusks that I have has were the kind that you give to babies, they are round and more like a bisuits.

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  5. The only rusks I've heard of are baby rusks, never heard of making them yourself or dunking in tea.
    Look nice though
    Briony
    x

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  6. Reminds me of Mandelbrot. I learned how to make these twice/baked, hard, dunkables from my Gram... no yeast, but just flour egg almond and sugar. Great with coffee.

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    1. Oh, that's interesting, I haven't heard of those, but they sound similar to biscotti that are also twice baked. I'm going to google it.

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  7. I do hope you are successful in making Rusks for your hubby. Not something I would eat though.

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  8. I used to love baby rusks. Perhaps because I've never growed up!!!!

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  9. I have never heard of this but we have something called melba toast and wonder if this is it?

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    1. The melba toast I've come across was much thinner than rusks, but similar idea perhaps.

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