Semolina, Date and Cashew nut rusks

Whilst on holiday in Zimbabwe, I came up with this delicious recipe! I was  leaving to go back to South Korea, and baking a HUGE batch of rusks to take back with me was definitely on my bucket list!! Our domestic worker at home looked at me puzzled and asked “You baking again?” lol.. I laughed and said   “Rusks are our stable diet…..it is almost like Sadza to you”(Sadza is the staple diet in Zim)  She just grinned, and gave an approving nod when I handed her one to ‘test’..

My mom always seems to have EVERYTHING in her pantry, so I could pick and choose what I wanted to use – any cooks dream! I picked a few otherwise ‘odd’ ingredients, and decided to combine them into crunchy, fruity, filled with home goodness rusks!...and it worked. (:  It was a team effort and I even got our lovely domestic worker and my dear old (93 years old) Gran to pitch in and help.

Ingredients

400g margarine / butter
1 ½ cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins
1 cup pitted dates, roughly chopped
1 cup cashew nuts, roughly chopped
5 cups whole wheat flour
5 cups Semolina flour  / or if you cannot find it use white flour
15 ml baking powder
10 ml Bicarbonate of Soda
1 ½ cups milk
3 eggs

Method

Step 1 –Pre heat oven to 180’C

Step 2- Sift together all the dry ingredients in a bowl.

Step 3- Add the raisins, dates and cashews.

Step 3- Melt margarine/ butter until soft (not completely melted). Allow to cool down a bit. Add eggs and milk to margarine. Whisk


Step 4 – Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well.  Keep a bit of flour and milk at hand if you find the dough to be too dry / wet.

 Step 5- Grease a baking tray. Spread the dough onto tray and 
                                       

Step 6- bake at 180 ‘C for 45 min- 1 hour, or until rusks are golden brown.

Step 7- Remove from oven and allow rusks to cool down. Once cooled remove from pan and cut into desired bit size rusks.

Step 8- Place the rusks onto the oven rack and dry out for about 5 hours , at 50 ‘C

After 5 hours test if the rusks are completely dried out by breaking one or 2 in half and checking the middle.

VOILA!! Delicious, crunchy, wholesome rusks (: I am still enjoying my home made batch in Korea- savoring every bite 

Hope you enjoy making this one, Let me know if you have any questions?

See you ladle
Sanja