Comfort Food 103

Frozen. It was a popular word last year. So popular that my publisher wanted to name a winter anthology after it. The theme of the book is winter and that’s what gave me the idea to ask some of the authors of Frozen-the Anthology for their best winter comfort food.

We’ve had a giant snowstorm sweep across the U.S. in the past few days. People from Chicago all the way to New York City are affected. It could be a great time to make the following comfort dessert as sent in by my author friend, Charmaine Pauls.

Charmaine wanted to share her comfort food recipe even as she enjoys the summer weather in the southern hemisphere. She is a fellow Melange author and also one of the authors of Frozen: The Anthology. You may want to whip up some pudding and curl up with a short story from Frozen.

I will turn the blog over to Charmaine now.

Malva Pudding – a traditional South African dessert

Every South African knows Malva pudding. It’s a traditional dessert served warm with custard or ice cream. My grandmother used to make this on Sundays, and it’s still a favorite of my mom. I like to serve it after a winter meal to our Chilean friends. Everyone who tastes this, always asks for the recipe. You can read more about this and other South African food favorites in the humorous historical short story, The Grayton Christmas Supper Contest, in the anthology, A Holiday to Remember.

Jakoba’s Malva Pudding (serves 6)

250ml cake flour

250ml sugar

20ml butter

1 egg

20ml apricot jam

250ml milk

5ml bicarbonate of soda

5ml apple cider vinegar

Cream butter and sugar until light and mix with egg and apricot jam. Sift dry ingredients together. Dissolve bicarbonate of soda in vinegar. Mix egg and vinegar mixture with dry ingredients, adding milk little by little. Add salt. Pour into an oven dish and bake 35 minutes at 360°F. In the meantime, prepare the syrup.

250ml cream

5ml vanilla essence

125ml butter

250ml water

500ml sugar

Boil everything together, and pour over pudding as soon as it is removed from the oven. Prick the pudding with a toothpick before sauce is poured over for better absorption. Serve with vanilla ice cream while warm.