On a recent trip to the Cape, Angela Day met two talented chefs who shared with her the recipes for dishes she enjoyed eating at their restaurants
Chef Nicole Dupper
Executive chef, Imibala Trust Restaurant, Somerset West
Chef Nicole Dupper cooks delicious food. She likes to use the freshest ingredients and prepare them as simply as possible to let their natural taste shine through.
I found out that most of the produce she uses is sourced from the various Rupert Foundation farms in the Cape. The wines naturally all come from the Rupert family farms.
The recently opened restaurant is part of the Imibala Trust precinct, started 15 years ago in Somerset West by Gaynor Rupert, Johan Rupert’s wife.
It comprises shops, an art gallery and classrooms where underprivileged children take part in extra-mural activities.
The main aim of the trust is to provide these children from the Helderberg basin with school uniforms. It costs R1 000 to clothe a child for a year and all the money from the trust as well as any donations are used to this end.
The restaurant is the brainchild of Gaynor’s brother, restaurateur Ian Downie, who fell in love with Nicole’s style of cooking when he was looking for a chef to head up the restaurant.
Nicole shared her recipes for quinoa and corn salad and buttermilk panna cotta.
Chef Michelle Theron
Executive chef, Pierneef à La Motte, Franschhoek
The La Motte wine farm is one of my favourite places to visit when I am in Franschhoek.
The Rupert family acquired it in 1970 and over the past 45 years have developed it.
It boasts the amazing Pierneef art gallery which houses an impressive collection of his paintings.
The farm also grows all the fresh produce used in the restaurants.
Music concerts are held each month and there are historic, nature and sculpture walks around the farm.
A lovely farm shop sells the excess produce, freshly baked breads and cakes and beauty products made from the lavender and herbs grown on a nearby property.
The crowning glory of the farm is the Pierneef à La Motte restaurant. It too prides itself on the quality of its ingredients, and Michelle and her team design their menu according to what’s in season.
The restaurant is also famous for its Winelands tea, which is a local take on high tea, serving delectable items such as biltong choux and savoury cheesecake.
Michelle shared with me her recipes for winter oxtail pie and savoury cheesecake.
QUINOA AND CORN SALAD
Serves 6-8
250ml quinoa
500ml water
3ml salt
DRESSING
30g packet of coriander
15g Italian parsley (half a packet)
10ml crushed garlic
1 red chilli, seeded and diced
125ml olive oil
45ml red wine vinegar
3ml ground cumin
salt and pepper
CORN
4 small corn on the cob
olive oil for frying
150g crumbled feta
1 avocado, diced
Combine the quinoa, water and salt in a pot, simmer gently for 20-30 minutes until cooked.
Remove and set aside to cool for 20 minutes.
DRESSING: Place all the ingredients in a blender or processor and blend until well mixed.
Pour three quarters of the dressing over the quinoa.
CORN: Remove the kernels from the corn cobs. Heat some olive oil in a pan and briefly fry the corn in two batches until lightly charred.
Place the quinoa on a serving plate and top with the corn, feta and avocado. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve.
BUTTERMILK PANNA COTTA
Serves 6
30ml water
7.5ml gelatine powder
250ml cream
125ml castor sugar
half a vanilla pod, split
500ml buttermilk
Turkish delight, cut into pieces
chopped pistachio nuts
seasonal berries
Place the water in a small bowl, sprinkle over the gelatine and leave to become absorbed. Dissolve in the microwave for 10 seconds.
Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla in a pot and heat to just boiling.
Remove from the heat and stir in the dissolved gelatine. Set aside to cool slightly. Stir in the buttermilk. Remove the vanilla pod.
Pour into serving dishes and refrigerate until set – 4-5 hours.
Serve decorated with pieces of Turkish delight, pistachio nuts and seasonal berries.
SAVOURY CHEESECAKE
Ideal to serve instead of a dessert at the end of a meal.
Serves 10-12
200g packet of digestive biscuits, crushed
5ml ground cinnamon
80g butter, melted
FILLING
60g butter
60ml cake flour
250ml full cream milk
250ml apple juice
250g thick cream cheese
45ml ricotta cheese
50g goat’s cheese
30ml lemon juice
3ml salt
a pinch of white pepper
4 eggs, separated
preserved fruit for serving
Combine the biscuits, cinnamon and butter and press into the base of a 22cm spring-form tin.
Wrap the outside of the tin in a double layer of foil. Place in the freezer while you prepare the filling.
FILLING: Melt the butter in a pot over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute.
Gradually stir in the milk and apple juice and cook, stirring, until boiling and thickened.
Add the cheeses and stir until smooth.
Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice and seasoning.
Stir in the egg yolks.
Beat the egg whites until until soft peaks form. Fold into the cheese mixture.
Pour the mixture on top of the crust. Place in a roasting pan and fill the pan with hot water to come halfway up the sides. Bake at 160°C for an hour until the middle is set.
The mixture puffs up while cooking but settles once removed from the oven.
Switch off the oven and allow the cheesecake to cool in there for 45 minutes. Remove and refrigerate overnight.
Remove from the tin and place on a serving plate. Decorate with slices of preserve before serving.
WINTER OXTAIL PIE
Serves 6
2kg oxtail
750ml red wine
125ml dry sherry
a few whole cloves
a few black peppercorns
a few whole allspice
1 stick of cinnamon
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 stick of celery, sliced
5ml chopped garlic
half a bunch of Italian parsley
a few sprigs of rosemary
15ml oil
30g butter
2 litres beef stock
salt and pepper
1 roll of puff pastry
beaten egg for glazing
Place the oxtail in a deep dish. Add all the ingredients up to and including the rosemary, cover and place in the fridge to marinade overnight.
Next day, strain the meat and vegetables, and reserve the liquid. Remove all the whole spices from the sieve and discard.
Heat the oil and butter in an ovenproof casserole and brown the meat in batches. Remove and set aside. Add the onions, carrots and celery and fry until lightly browned.
Add the reserved liquid and simmer until the liquid has reduced by half.
Return the meat to the casserole and add the beef stock and seasoning. Cover with a lid or seal well with foil and cook at 160°C for 3-4 hours until the meat falls from the bone.
Remove and cool.
Remove the oxtail and take all the meat off the bones.
Strain and reduce the cooking liquid to make a thick sauce. Combine with the shredded oxtail.
Spoon into individual serving dishes.
Cut out the puff pastry to fit the containers. Place over the cooled filling and brush with the beaten egg.
Bake at 200°C for 15-20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown.
* Angela Day was a guest in the Cape of the Rupert Foundation.
** The Angela Day cookery column is published in The Star, the Cape Argus, the Daily News and the Pretoria News.