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Want to try some Cuban, Arabic, Dutch or South African cuisine this holiday season?

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Table

Simple Cuban Cooking With Jay

Arroz Con Leche (Sweet Rice Pudding)

Sofrito

Arroz con Pollo (Rice with Chicken, Cuban style)

Vegan Moros y Cristianos (Black Beans and Rice)

Merenguitos (Meringue Cookies)

Middle Eastern Meal Prep With Salam

Shai (Arab Chai, or Tea)

Hummus (Savory Chickpea Dip)

Falafel (Crispy Chickpea Fritters)

Malubit Zahrah (Flipped Cauliflower)

Mahshi (Stuffed Veggies)

Knafah

Easy & Hearty Dutch meals with Gijs

Stamppot boerenkool (Kale mash)

Hutspot (Carrot & onion mash)

Pannekoeken (Dutch (loaded) pancakes)

Pannekoeken toppings

Kapsalon (shawarma& fries salad)

South African Sharing Food With Harrit

Bobotie (South African casserole)

Malva Pudding (Apricot Toffee Cake)

Shakshuka (Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce)

Appelflappen (Apple Hand Pies)

Simple Cuban Cooking With Jay

Despite my very Anglo last name, I am actually Cuban! Leftover from the brief British occupation of Cuba. Little known fact, I guess. Anyway, I grew up cooking with my grandmother and working in a kitchen to put myself through university, so I have a lot of experience cooking. The recipes I have picked out to represent my little corner of the world are some of my favorites, and I hope you enjoy as much as I do. So without further ado, let's get into it!

-J. Everwood

Arroz con leche is one of my favorite desserts in the world. It's sweet, comforting, slightly tart (Depending on whether or not you add the lemon peel!), and comes together without much fuss. My grandma would make it for me on my birthday, and she even made me some to take with me when I first left home all those years ago. Needless to say, it's a dish that makes me very nostalgic.

Arroz Con Leche (Sweet Rice Pudding)

You will need:

1 cup of short-grain rice

6 cups whole milk

1 cinnamon stick

1 lemon peel

1/2 cup of sugar

1 can of condensed milk

Instructions:

Soak your rice in water for a few minutes until the water gets cloudy, then drain it.

Put your rice, milk, lemon peel, sugar, and cinnamon stick into a medium saucepan and cook it at low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally.

Once done, fish out the lemon peel and cinnamon stick from the rice using a spoon. The sudden crunch of an entire cinnamon stick or the extreme bitterness from a lemon peel are not welcome surprises.

Add the contents of your can of condensed milk and stir again.

Remove from heat and cover, then store in a cold place. Though you can have this hot, it tastes much better cold, so I would let it sit overnight. But I'm not your mom, do whatever you want.

Sofrito is as synonymous to Cuban cooking as soy sauce is to east Asian cooking. It is used in so many dishes, we could sit here all day listing them off! Some recipes call for the use of ham, but this recipe is vegan, so no need to worry about adding it in for this one. Sofrito is typically used to cook alongside proteins, so next time you have some leftover chicken or beans, feel free to add in the sofrito to the pan and use it as a flavor booster!

Sofrito

This is more of a sauce to use with your cooking but its good nonetheless!

You will need:

1/2 cup olive oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 large red bell peppers, diced

5 tomatoes, diced

2 Spanish onions, peeled and diced

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup cilantro

1 tablespoon oregano

Salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Instructions:

Heat the olive oil in a pan carefully until it is hot.

Sauté the garlic, bay leaf, onions, peppers, and tomatoes until the onions and peppers are soft.

Stir in the tomato paste slowly.

Add the wine and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cilantro and oregano.

Switch off the heat.

Puree it in a blender. Add salt and pepper to taste.

That's it! It holds up well in the fridge, but I recommend freezing it if you're not going to use it immediately.

Arroz con pollo is a simple, delicious dish that is symbolic of Cuba and the Caribbean in general. It is the Hispanic world's equivalent of pilaf, which originated in Asia. Just goes to show you that it's a small world after all!

…

Great. Now I have that awful Disney ride song stuck in my head.

Arroz con Pollo (Rice with Chicken, Cuban style)

You will need:

4 Bone-In Chicken Thighs

1/2 a cup of olive oil

1 teaspoons of cumin

1 Spanish onion

1 red bell pepper

4 garlic cloves

1 cups chicken stock

1 can of tomato sauce

1 bay leaf

2 teaspoons of oregano

1 cup of rice

Salt and pepper to taste

You can replace some of these ingredients with Sofrito, read the Instructions for more.

Instructions:

Pour your olive oil into a big pot over medium heat.

Season your chicken thighs with salt, pepper, and cumin.

Place the chicken into the pot to brown for a bit. Once all the pieces are brown, remove the chicken.

In the same pot, fry your diced onion until it is translucent.1

Add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes or until it is fragrant. Make sure to stir constantly or the garlic will burn!

Add the tomato sauce, chicken stock, bay leaf, and rice in that order. Don't want your rice to burn, do we?

Add your chicken thighs back on top and cover the pot.

Let it sit for anywhere between 30 to 45 mins or until the rice has absorbed all the liquid.

Moros y Cristianos translates to "Moors and Christians". Its name is a reference to the African Moors who conquered Spain from the 8th century up until the Reconquista, with the black beans being the Moors part of the dish and the white rice being the 'Christians' of Spain. Sounds icky, I know, but ultimately both parts of the dish are cooked together, so maybe there's a message of unity here after all? Who knows. All I know is that this dish is delicious and I hope you try it!

Vegan Moros y Cristianos (Black Beans and Rice)

You will need:

2 cups of water

1 cup of rice

1 can of black beans

1 Spanish onion

3 cloves of minced garlic

1 bay leaf

1 green bell pepper, finely chopped

1 tablespoon of white vinegar

A splash of olive oil

You can replace some of these ingredients with Sofrito, read the Instructions for more.

Instructions:

Heat some oil in a pot over medium heat.

Add the onions and peppers, cooking them until they are soft and the onions are translucent.2

Add the minced garlic and let it cook for a little bit or until it is fragrant.

Add the water to the pot, then add the rice.

Add the beans and their liquid to the pot, and then stir.

Let the mix come to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low. Wait until the rice absorbs all the liquid.

Add the vinegar and stir.

You're done! Though this dish is traditionally served with pork rinds, but they are completely optional to add if you're vegan, vegetarian, or simply just don't eat pork.

I'll be honest, Merenguitos are far from my favorite dessert (Arroz con leche, my beloved!), but they're still great. Not to mention they're really easy to make and don't require many ingredients. They're also highly customizable, meaning that if you feel like experimenting with adding different flavors to the mixture, you absolutely can, and they'll still turn out great!

Merenguitos (Meringue Cookies)

You will need:

4 large egg whites. No yolks!

1/2 cup of sugar

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

A pinch of salt

Instructions:

First things first, you'll need to preheat your oven to 200ºF, or 93ºC.

Start whisking/whipping the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar in a bowl.

Slowly begin pouring in your sugar while continuing to whisk the mixture until stiff peaks form. You can tell when the peaks are stiff when you lift the whisk and the mixture doesn't curl as you lift it.

Pour the mixture into a piping bag. You can DIY one by putting your mixture into a plastic freezer bag and squeezing the excess air out of it then before twisting the bag into a cone shape. Once this is done, cut a small hole in one of the bottom corners using scissors.

Pipe the mixture down onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Stick it in the oven for 45 minutes. To test doneness, remove one from the oven and break it open. If the inside is dry and solid after a few minutes of being outside, they are done.

Once they are done, turn off the oven but leave the cookies in the oven for about a half hour, then remove them and let them cool down. Careful not to burn yourself!

Middle Eastern Meal Prep With Salam

Even though I haven’t been able to visit my family in over a decade, my Arab identity is alive and thriving in my everyday life. And what better way to show that than through our daily bread and butter? Like Jay, cooking with my grandparents has always been a cornerstone of home life—whenever I could squeeze it in between coursework, research, commuting, and all the other chaos life throws at you.

Of course, being away from my homeland has shaped my cooking in unexpected ways. Ingredients get swapped, cuisines mix, and time leaves its fingerprints on tradition. So, while what I cook might not taste exactly like what you’d find in an Arab country, the roots are still there, holding strong and true.

- S. Narjeen

While I’ve never been a huge fan of tea or chai myself, I have to admit that I’m impressed by how widespread and beloved the drink has become across the globe. Most cultures refer to it by one of two names—“Chai” or “Tea”—or some variation of these. It’s fascinating to consider the history behind these names. The drink itself originated in China, where it was first cultivated and consumed. European and Western societies gained access to it through maritime trade routes, primarily from merchants speaking the "Min Nan" dialect along certain coastal regions. Meanwhile, the “cha” pronunciation spread along the Silk Road, reaching Central Asia and eventually making its way to the Middle East.

Shai (Arab Chai, or Tea)

You will need:

4 cups water

2 tbsp loose black tea leaves (preferably strong, such as Ceylon or Assami)

2-3 tbsp sugar (adjust to taste)

2-3 cardamom pods (optional, for extra flavor)

1 small handful fresh mint leaves (optional, for garnish)

Instructions:

Bring the water to a boil over medium heat in a tea kettle or pot.

Once the water is boiling, add the tea leaves and mint and/or cardamom pods (if using). Stir to combine.

Reduce the heat to low and let the tea steep for 5-7 minutes, depending on how strong you like it.

Stir in the sugar and allow it to dissolve completely. Taste and adjust sweetness as desired.

Strain the tea into small cups, discarding the tea leaves and cardamom pods.

If you prefer milk in your tea, highly recommend using carnation milk

Dip "kaik" (Arab Biscuits) into tea to soften if you would like a small snack alongside your shai.

Hummus, alongside falafel, is arguably one of the most recognizable Arab dishes, especially among vegetarian and vegan communities, thanks to its rich flavor and high protein content. For my family and me, it’s been a go-to breakfast food we make nearly every weekend. Traditionally, we enjoy it with warm pita bread for dipping, but the beauty of hummus is its versatility. You can pair it with falafel, crackers, or veggie sticks—personally, I love using bell pepper slices. It’s an underrated combination in my opinion!

Hummus (Savory Chickpea Dip)

You will need:

2 cans of chickpeas

1 cup of water

½ cup of sesame paste

OPTIONAL ingredients (All to Taste)

Olive oil

Lemon juice

Parsley (or another herb)

Ritz Crackers, Bread, or Cucumbers slices

Instructions:

Place Chickpeas, Water, and Sesame paste into blender, and blend until uniform in appearance

Add lemon juice here too. Feel free to add a little at a time and taste test until you get to the sourness level you want.

Pour hummus into a serving bowl. Use the spoon to give it a nice, wavey design with an elevated center.

Optional step: Drizzle olive oil on and around the center

Optional step: Garnish the center with parsley or chosen herb

Enjoy your hummus by dipping in ritz crackers, bread, or cucumber slices. Note pita bread is the most common/traditional choice. Alternatively, you could use a spoon, but I will judge you for it!

Note: PLEASE saran wrap your hummus if you don't finish it. It WILL get a crusty top layer if left outside to dehydrate.

Falafel are one of the most well-known foods from the Middle East and a staple at any self-respecting Arab restaurant. It took my family a bit of time to figure out the proper recipe, as none of the store-bought frozen falafel worked for us, and eating at restaurants was too expensive. We tried a wide variety of ground beans for a while but eventually settled on chickpeas as the most classic and flavorful option. What I will say is that falafel are best served fresh and hot—they just don’t taste the same after sitting in the fridge or being exposed to the elements for a few hours. And unfortunately, microwaving them doesn’t restore them to their former glory.

Falafel (Crispy Chickpea Fritters)

You will need:

2 cups dried chickpeas (soaked overnight and drained)

1 small onion, roughly chopped

4 garlic cloves

1 cup fresh parsley and cilantro leaves

Seasoning

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, for spice)

1 1/2 tsp salt (adjust to taste)

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 tsp baking powder

3-4 tbsp flour, for binding

Oil for frying

Instructions:

Combine the soaked chickpeas, onion, garlic, parsley, and cilantro in a food processor, and process until you get a coarse, grainy texture. Avoid over-processing into a paste.

Add seasoning and baking powder, and mix until combined.

To bind mix together, add flour, one tablespoon at a time, until the mixture holds together when shaped into a ball.

Scoop about 1-2 tablespoons of the mixture and form it into small balls or flattened patties.

Heat oil in a deep pan or fryer to 350°F (175°C). Fry the falafel in batches for 3-5 minutes, turning occasionally, until golden brown and crispy. Remove and drain on paper towels.

Serve warm with pita bread, hummus, tahini sauce, or fresh salad.

Malubit Zahra has to be one of my all-time favorite dishes—there’s just something unbeatable about that tender cauliflower, especially when paired with a side of yogurt or a fresh salad. As a kid, I had a terrible habit of sneaking bites straight from the pot before my mom even had a chance to finish cooking it. My family, being far too kind, indulged me in this mischief and would even set aside the biggest cauliflower chunks for me when we sat down to eat. Suffice to say, I was very spoiled, and I enjoyed every moment of it.

Malubit Zahrah (Flipped Cauliflower)

You will need:

2-4 cups of rice

1 cup bone or chicken broth

1 head of cauliflower (Feel free to add more!)

1 finely sliced sweet onion

2-3 mashed garlic cloves

OPTIONAL:

1 can of strained chickpeas

3-6 Pieces of chicken

Instructions:

IF ADDING CHICKEN: It may be better to use pre-cooked chicken- simply fry or fillet to taste beforehand.

Heat some oil in a pot over medium heat. After breaking cauliflower into florets, cover in spices and allow them to grill until a gold-brown color.

Pour strained chickpeas, onion, and garlic into the same pot as cauliflower and stir. Allow to simmer for 3-5 minutes. Add oil as needed.

Place tender chicken into pot and allow to simmer for an additional 3-5 minutes. Add oil as needed.

Stir thoroughly. Note that most of the veggies and meat will be left at the bottom of the pot- this is completely fine.

Add the rice and stir- but don't separate the veggie and rice layers too much!

Pour water (or broth, if you're feeling fancy) into the pot until everything is covered.

Allow food to cook for the next 20-30 minutes, until all water has been absorbed. Stir pot periodically to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom.

Once all water is absorbed, obtain a tray or plate large enough to fit the diameter of the pot. Then, flip the pot onto the platter. Do this while the pot is still hot, so make sure you wear oven mitts!

Shake the pot or tap it from the top, then remove. You should have a "cake" of rice covered with meat and cauliflower. This is how this dish gets its name- you need to "Flip" the pot to get to all the tasty stuff at the bottom!

The word "Mahshi" in Arabic literally translates to "Stuffed." So, take a wild guess what happens to the veggies depicted above. My family would make large batches of these whenever we had an abundance of vegetables on hand, and we’d get pretty creative. While squash and zucchini are the most commonly used veggies, we’ve stuffed potatoes, eggplants, and even a few particularly large carrots on occasion. It’s a delicious and comforting dish, and just a couple of stuffed veggies will leave you feeling mahshi yourself.

Mahshi (Stuffed Veggies)

You will need:

4 large zucchinis, eggplants, or bell peppers (or a combination)

1 cup rice (washed)

Ground lamb or beef, to taste

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp ground allspice, cinnamon, and cumin

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup vegetable or chicken broth

Diced vegetables

Tomato Sauce or Paste, optional

Instructions:

Carefully hollow out the zucchini, eggplant, or peppers FROM ONLY THE TOP, making sure not to break the skin. Set them aside.

In a large bowl, combine the rice, ground meat, chopped onion, olive oil, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, salt, and pepper. Mix well.

Stuff the vegetables with the rice and meat mixture, leaving a little space at the top to allow the rice to expand during cooking.

In a large pot, heat a bit of olive oil and brown the stuffed vegetables for a few minutes.

Then add enough water to just cover the vegetables. You May add in tomato sauce or paste as well, if so desired.

Cover the pot and bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 40-50 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and the rice is fully cooked.

Serve hot with yogurt or fresh salad, though be forewarned the mahshi at the bottom of the bowl will be EXTREMELY hot.

Knafah is a unique desert combining both Sweet and Umami flavors. It is one of my father's favorite dishes, but with how sugary it can be, my family only opts to make it a few times a year for special occasions. A fun little side story: the recipe calls for shredded phyllo dough. I brilliantly decided to describe this as "dough cut into strips" to my boyfriend, who was doing a project about my cultural cuisine for his food customs class. He insisted thereafter, that technically, the phyllo dough could count as noodles. His logic and confusion is understandable, but my lord does it hurts my arab heart.

Knafah

You will need:

For the base:

1 lb shredded phyllo dough (or kataifi pastry)

Orange Food Coloring (Optional)

1 cup unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup ricotta cheese or sweet cheese (such as Nabulsi, softened)

For the syrup:

2 cups sugar

1 cup water

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp rose water (optional)

Optional garnish:

Crushed pistachios

Instructions:

Prepare the syrup: Combine sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves, bring to a boil, then simmer for 7-10 minutes. Add lemon juice, orange blossom water, and rose water. Remove from heat and cool.

Obtain a baking dish or thin cooking pan. Gently separate the shredded phyllo dough across the bottom

Spread softened butter or margarine and knead into the phyllo dough until everything is even. Warm the pan on a stovetop to make this step easier. If you would like to add the food coloring, place it in at this step to coat the initial phyllo dough layer.

Spread the cheese mixture (mozzarella and ricotta) evenly over the phyllo and press it down until firm. Top with the remaining phyllo, then press again.

Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake the knafeh for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden and crisp.

Flip the pan: Grab a slightly larger or even sized pan, and flip the knafeh onto it to ensure the orange, brighter side originally on the bottom is facing upright.

Add syrup: Once baked, pour cooled syrup over the hot knafeh evenly. Let it soak for a few minutes.

Garnish and serve: Sprinkle with crushed pistachios, slice, and serve warm.

Easy & Hearty Dutch meals with Gijs

I’m not the first person to admit I’m not a good cook — that person would be my husband Daniël. He might or might not have banned me from cooking dinner in our household due to my so-called “cursed palette” and “ability to insult several cultures in one dish.” He might've made me cut my take on lasagna. Ah well.

Dutch cuisine might not be the culinary highlight of the world in your eyes, but we got some absolute bangers that are easy to prepare and will treat you right.

~Gijs van Oosterbeek, Head Researcher for Site-312

The one thing my husband trusts me with is true Dutch cultural heritage: mashing vegetables with potatoes. Boerenkool and hutspot are tasty and easy beginner dishes with loads of vegetables, which you can cook in big batches and serve up later. It’ll stay fine in your fridge for at least 2 days, or you can freeze it in. Bake leftovers in gravy rather than adding it afterwards (just save a little bit for the required gravy pit).

Serve it with real sausage, though. Not that vegan bullshit Daniël was convinced "tasted just like the real thing." It doesn't and it's an insult to pretend otherwise.

Stamppot boerenkool (Kale mash)

Kale as some kind of superfood is absolutely hilarious. Massage with oil and bake it in the oven?! We call it farmer’s cabbage and we boil it with potatoes.

You will need:

1 kilogram potatoes;

500 grams of kale;

60ml or ¼ cup of a milk of your choice (plant milk or cow milk);

Bacon (preferably) or another salted protein (optional);

Serve with:

Gravy (instant or your own recipe);

(Smoked) sausage or another protein of choice.

This recipe is 4 servings.

Instructions:

Peel the potatoes and dice them in smaller pieces, so they cook faster. Doesn’t need to look pretty.

Put the potatoes and the kale in a big pot and add water. Bring to a boil and let it cook for about 20 minutes.

Cook the (smoked) sausage or other meat/proteine of choice separately.

Prepare the gravy according to your recipe/the instructions on the box.

Pour off all the water and mash the potatoes and kale together with a masher. Don’t have a masher? You can use a fork or any other kitchen utensil that lets you stomp it all to a pulp. Just enjoy the therapeutic experience.

Stir in the milk to make it a bit creamy, but don't overdo it. The gravy will also add fluid and this isn't a soup.

You can mix in some diced bacon bits. If you don’t eat pork you can leave it out, or replace it with some nicely seasoned chicken. If you don’t want meat you can leave it out altogether, just add a little more gravy!

Traditionally, it is served with smoked sausage and gravy. You might not have access to smoked sausage where you are in the world, so any sausage will do. Don’t like sausage? Add your preferred meat or meat-replacement. The Dutch are very tolerant of your preferences.

Lastly, the finishing step: add a pit in the middle of your serving and serve the gravy there! It is not traditionally Dutch without the gravy pit. I will haunt you if you skip this step. The gravy pit is not optional! You’re supposed to mix the kale mash with the gravy afterwards, though. Don't question it.

Optional tastemakers:

You can vary the taste by adding a tiny dash of French mustard (think ‘1/2 a teaspoon’ to one serving) or a little butter. Others have replaced the milk with a cream. Try experimenting to find your preferences!

Hutspot (Carrot & onion mash)

Another mash, in case you can't get a hold of kale.

You will need:

700 grams of potatoes;

600 grams of carrots;

400 grams of onion;

60ml or ¼ cup of a milk of your choice (plant milk or cow milk);

Bacon (preferably) or another salted protein (optional);

Serve with:

Gravy (instant or your own recipe);

(Smoked) sausage or another protein of choice.

Instructions:

Can’t get your hands on kale or want to try something else? Replace the kale with carrots and onion, all peeled and diced roughly. Follow the same instructions as for the kale mash. Does it look like someone threw a better-looking dish back up? Then you did it right! Enjoy!

Optional tastemakers:

Try to vary a bit by adding a little pepper, a dash of nutmeg or some butter!

Again, serve with a gravy pit or I will beat you with a pair of wooden shoes and throw you in the Utrechter canals.

We don't have steakhouses in the Netherlands, we have pannekoek restaurants. Before you're asking how to fill an entire menu with pannekoeken, let's go over the basics: pannekoeken are a lot thinner than the pancakes that were based on it, and not as fluffy as a result. Think of slightly thicker crêpes. Next, bake in your favourite toppings. Especially the savoury stuff. This is dinner food, and I bet you won't be able to eat more than two per meal!

Pannekoeken (Dutch (loaded) pancakes)

You will need:

300 grams of wheat flower

700 ml milk3

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

8 grams of vanilla sugar (optional)

This is enough for about 5-6 pannekoeken, depending on how thick you make them and the size of your pan.

Instructions:

Throw all the powdered ingredients together and give it a quick stir.

Add the milk and stir until it's a goo.

Grease up a frying pan with some butter or oil, then drop in enough batter to cover the entire surface. I like using a ladle to measure it out.

Bake it until it's no longer attached to the pan, then flip it around to bake the other half.

And that's it. Really easy one to get the basics done, but let's have fun with it now!

Pannekoeken toppings

These are some of my favourite toppings:

Boerenpannekoek (Farmer's pannekoek)

Chop up a handful of all your favourite savoury stuff!

Onions (roughly chopped or in half-moons)

Mushrooms

Bellpepper

Bacon bits or bits of ham

Slices or grated cheese

Mix everything except the cheese into the batter and bake as a regular pannekoek. Once you flip to bake the second side, drop the cheese on the already finished side so it can nicely melt on top of your pannekoek.

If you want to make this mix vegan or vegetarian, just skip or replace the animal stuff.

Hawaiian pannekoek

I don't give a damn if you think pineapple doesn't go on savoury stuff. Just give it a goddamned try.

Some pineapple from a tin, either those little cube thingies or the circle slices.

Ham bits. Or sliced mushrooms if you are so inclined

Mix it all into the batter. If you go with the circular slices, just put the batter and mushroom/ham mix in the pan first, and drop the slices in the right spots. I add cheese on top to melt, but I've been told that this is "cursed."

Meatpannekoek

This is the gamechanger for me. Make the Farmer's pannekoek mix, but instead of bacon or ham, throw in some leftover flavoured meat or some shawarma. My personal favourite is spicy chicken and some chopped spring onion! Use a hotsauce of your choice, but I'll aways recommend sambal if you can get it.

Add cheese to your liking.

Fruitpannekoek

I am what I eat! Fruit on or in your pannekoek is a classic mix. I like throwing in some slices of strawberry, some blueberries, or some apple bits. Whatever you like as fruit, I mean. Maybe some grated coconut if I feel fancy. Although I bet it could work with cheese.

Note to self: try this with cheese.

This might be the easiest thing on here, because even I can't mess this up. It's a Turkish-Dutch fusion dish named after the place you get your hair cut, because they came up with this dish at the hairdresser apparently. It's also very good greasy stuff. The perfect solution of eating unhealthy comfort food but also a salad. And apparently amazing stuff to eat at the end of a night of heavy drinking, if Jacob (our Field Agent) is to be believed.

It doesn't usually look this fancy, by the way. Daniël insisted on going for a michelin star for the picture.

Kapsalon (shawarma& fries salad)

You will need:

500 grams of fries (oven or oil fried, doesn't matter much)

400 grams of shawarma, baked

100 grams of cheese

200 grams of mushrooms, diced

1 red onion, diced

For the salad part:

half a cucumber, sliced

1 tomato, sliced

100 grams of lettuce, sliced

For the sauce:

Turkish garlic sauce (or another garlic sauce if you have it)

Sambal (or another hot sauce)

Instructions:

Prepare the fries. You can also grab pre-prepared stuff if you don't have a fryer.

Bake the onion, mushrooms and shawarma in a frying pan. If you really can't find shawarma, try gyros or small bits of chicken you season well. Yes, sometimes I do add seasoning to my food.

Take the aluminium container and fill it 1/3 with fries. Then fill it for 1/3rd with the shawarma mixture, and cover it with cheese.

Bake it in the over for a couple of minutes, until the cheese has melted. While you do, prepare the salad part.

Take the container out of the oven, add the garlic and hot sauce to your taste, then top it off with the salad.

This is how it looks when you order it, by the way.

South African Sharing Food With Harrit

I've been living in the Netherlands for a while now, which is quite a big food culture shock from South Africa. In all honesty, didn't do much cooking myself back home, aside from braai.4 It's not so much the cooking itself I enjoy — hell, I hate making dinner on my own. But making food together with your loved ones and sharing? That's the good stuff! The recipes I selected are specifically important because of the people they represent, and they are super share-worthy. Hope you enjoy the little food journey I made!

~Harrit Swanepoel, Head of Technical Infrastructure for Site-312

Bobotie is our national dish! I love it so so much. Made for sharing, and it's even better the second day. So I like to make it on Sunday and enjoy leftovers for one or two days after. This recipe is my aunt's specific take on it!

Gijs started eating leftovers on pre-baked ciabattas for lunch, like some kind of egg salad. Which I guess is fine?

Bobotie (South African casserole)

You will need:

2 onions, diced

1 kilo minced beef

250ml milk (plant or cow)

2 slices of bread

2 eggs

1 tbsp (or: 15ml) curry powder

1 ½ tbsp (or: 22,5ml) sugar

2 tsp (or: 10ml) salt

½ tsp (or: 2,5ml) pepper

1 ½ tsp (or: 7,5ml) turmeric5

2 tbsp (or: 30ml) lemon juice

A handful of almonds;6

1 cup / 150 grams raisins

4 bay leaves

Optional:

1 green apple, diced

200 grams of green beans

Serve with:

3 tbsp chutney.

Rice

Vegan alternatives:

If you want to make this recipe vegan, you can easily replace the minced meat with a vegan alternative. The eggs are a bit harder, but I've managed to figure it out! Replace the eggs and the two slices of bread with 120ml crème fraiche (60ml for each egg) and about 1/2 a teaspoon of kala namak for the eggy flavour (or more to taste). If you don't have kala namak, don't use regular salt in its place! You'll oversalt your dish!

This recipe is 4 servings.

Instructions:

Pre-heat the oven on 180°C or 356°F;

Cut and dice the onions and fry it for about 1-2 minutes in some oil or butter. Add the meat (or meat replacement) and cook until done.

Soak the slices of bread in the milk, then squeeze out the milk. Cut it up. If you replaced the eggs with crème fraiche, you can skip this step.

Place the bay leaves, 125ml milk and 1 egg (or 60ml crème fraiche) aside. Add all other ingredients to the onions and meat, and put it all in the oven dish. Place the bay leaves on top of the mixture.

Cook for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, take the dish out of the oven. Stir the the 125ml milk and the 1 egg (or 60ml crème fraiche) and pour over the top of the mixture.

Place it back in the oven and cook for another 15 minutes.

Cook the rice in the meantime.

Serve with rice and chutney.

My aunt used to add a diced apple to the mixture - only sour apples work, though. Sometimes I like adding spring beans to the mixture, just to get a little more vegetables in my diet.

Update: Gijs ate it on fries last night. I'm still recovering.

It was actually pretty good.

I’ve always called this Cathryn’s Pudding, since my aunt always brought it over when she visited. Don't let the name confuse you, it's more cake-like. It's sweet and fluffy and my comfort food. When I first moved to the Netherlands and felt homesick, aunt Cathryn and I used to videocall and make it at the same time, so we could share it together over distance. Now I make it when I miss her.

Malva Pudding (Apricot Toffee Cake)

You will need:

For the pudding:

1 tsp baking soda

125 ml milk (plant or cow)

200 gram self-rising flour

100 gram white sugar

2 eggs

2 tbsp (or: 30ml) apricot jam

20 grams butter (can be vegan margarine)

¼ tsp (or: a dash) of salt

For the sauce:

1 cup (or: 240ml) of milk (plant or cow)

115 grams butter

100 grams cane sugar

½ tsp vanilla extract

Vegan alternatives:

The milk and butter can easily be replaced by a plant based alternative, but the eggs are a bit trickier. Replace both eggs with 1,5 "chia-egg". You can make a chia-egg by adding 1 tablespoon chia seed and 2,5 tablespoons of water, and stir until the texture is gelatinous. So: 1,5 tbsp chia seed and just under 4 tbsps of water to replace it! I've replaced the two eggs with two chia-eggs before, and it comes out very very fluffy, so you could adjust a bit. The chia seed gives the pudding a bit of an additional texture, but I kinda like it!

Instructions:

We’re going to make the pudding mixture first!

Pre-heat the oven on 180°C or 356°F;

Dissolve the baking soda into the milk.

Add all the other pudding ingredients together and mix. Add the milk/baking soda mixture, and mix it well.

Bake the pudding mixture for 25-30 minutes. When it’s almost done baking, we’ll make the sauce! It takes a little bit of timing, so only start making the sauce in the last 5 minutes.

Mix the sauce ingredients in a sauce pan and heat up until it’s melted together. Stir well, so that it doesn’t burn.

Take the pudding out of the oven and pour the sauce over it. You can cover the entire pudding in it, until you can only see the top of it under a thin layer.

Let it stand for several hours to cool. The pudding will soak up a lot of the sauce, and that’s the good stuff!

You might have a little bit of sauce left over. You can add that to your coffee or some other dessert if you want.

You can eat the pudding like this or with ice cream.

Okay, this is more of a Northern African recipe, not South African, but I have nostalgia for this dish. Back in university, my roommate and I used to make Shakshuka when we ran out of clean dishes, because you can just eat it out of the pan with some pitas. My roommate is vegan so we made it with tofu, but you can still have poached eggs instead. Left is with tofu, right is with egg.

Gijs once called it "pizza toppings you scoop out with the bread," and I hate that he's not wrong.

Shakshuka (Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce)

You will need:

For the mixture:

800 grams of diced tomato

6 cloves of garlic, minced

100 grams/1 cup of chopped onion

1 red bellpepper, chopped

2 chili peppers, chopped fine (you can add more peppers for more heat, or use chilli flakes if you prefer)

2 tbsp oregano (or more/less to taste)

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper (or more/less to taste)

Pick one of these two options:

1) For the eggs:

5 eggs

salt to cover them in once you've put them in the pan

2) For the tofu eggs:

1 block (about 450 grams) of firm tofu, pressed

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

100 ml (plant-based) milk

3 tbsp of nutritional yeast7

1 tsp kala namak8

Serve it with bread, pitas, or any other wheat-based medium for scooping.

Instructions:

If you're using the tofu eggs, put all the ingredients in a blender together and blend. Put it aside for when you need it.

Put the onion, garlic and bell pepper in a pan and fry for about 5 minutes.

Add all the other ingredients for the mixture and let it simmer with the lid on for about 3-5 minutes.

Remove the lid and make wells. Put either the eggs or tofu eggs into these wells, then put the lid back on and let it simmer for another 5 minutes. That should make sure the eggs are set. Then remove the lid and cook for another 10 minutes.

You can add some cheese or feta on top if you want. Eat directly from the pan by scooping it out with some bread, or put it on a plate. Great for sharing!

Let's finish off with some Dutch sweet pastries that Daniël taught me to make. Sharing your recipes with those that matter to you is a special kind of bonding to me. I love making these apple pastries, they're like portable little apple pies you can just take with you.

I guess I'm finally getting used to that Dutch palette.

Appelflappen (Apple Hand Pies)

You will need:

For the filling:

200 grams of diced apple

50 grams raisins

For the sugar mixture:

25 grams of cane suger

15 grams of vanilla sugar9

1 1/2 tbsp cinnamon powder

For the crust:

20 squares of flaky pastry (premade is fine). Size is about 12x12 cm or 5x5 inches.

A tbsp of (plant-based) milk

Instructions:

Pre-heat the oven at 200 °C or 392° F.

Mix the diced apple, raisins, and 2/3 of the sugar mixture in a mixing bowl.

Take a square of pastry and cover one half of it in a couple of tablespoons of the filling mixture. Then fold it over and press the sides together. The traditional shape of this pastry is a triangle, but you can also fold it over in a bar.

Do this for all 10 squares of pastry. Place them on a baking sheet on an oven tray, and coat the side that is on top in some (plant-based) milk. Then sprinkle the rest of the sugar mixture on the outside.

Bake for 20-25min. Please note: if your pre-made pastry has some other instructions, please follow that instead! I just tell you what I do for the stuff I buy.

Some folding instructions!

Footnotes

1. You can ignore steps 4 and 5 if you use Sofrito instead. Just make sure you add the Sofrito to the pot and heat it for a little bit!

2. You can ignore steps 2 and 3 if you use Sofrito instead. Just make sure you add the Sofrito to the pot and heat it for a little bit!

3. Oatmilk also works fine. Haven't tried soy or coconut but I suspect it influences the taste a bit?

4. South-African barbecue

5. Also known as “curcuma”

6. You can add up to a quarter cup if you want to. I sometimes use cashews instead.

7. This stuff is for the cheese taste, it's good!

8. This is sulfic salt that gives it an egg taste. If you can't find it or don't want to, replace it with 1/2 tsp regular salt

9. If you don't have this, you can replace it with fine granulated sugar, but the vanilla is my own little magic flavour addition

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