A South African classic with a modern twist – these salted caramel hertzoggies are simply moreish!
Salted caramel hertzoggies
Ingredients
SHORTCRUST PASTRY CASES
- 300g cake flour + extra, to dust
- 75g castor sugar
- 10ml (2 tsp) baking powder
- pinch salt
- 125g chilled butter, cut into small cubes
- 3 large egg yolks
- 15 – 30ml (1 – 2 tbsp) ice water
FILLING
- 180g Nestlé Caramel Treat
- 5ml (1 tsp) sea salt flakes
MERINGUE
- 3 egg whites
- 160g castor sugar
- 160g desiccated coconut
Instructions
For the cases, sift all of the dry ingredients together and place in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolks and a little ice water, and pulse until it starts to come together in a ball. Add some more ice water if the dough is too dry.
Place the dough on a piece of cling film, bring together with your hands, cover with the cling film and allow to rest in the fridge, at least 15 minutes.
Mix the sea salt flakes into the tinned caramel for the filling. Taste and add more salt, if desired. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease 2 x 6-cup standard muffin tins. Roll the rested dough out to a thickness of 0,5cm on a flour-dusted surface, cut out 9cm-diameter discs with a cookie cutter to fit into the muffin tins’ cups and press the dough into the cups (the dough should come up the walls of the cups). Spoon a heaped teaspoonful of the salted caramel mixture into each of the dough cases.
For the meringue, beat the egg whites until stiff peak stage with an electric mixer (the bowl must be scrupulously clean and dry or the whites won’t reach full volume). Add the 160g castor sugar, 1 tablespoonful at a time, whisking well after each addition. Fold in the desiccated coconut and mix well.
Place a tablespoonful of the meringue mixture on top of the caramel, covering each cup with the meringue mixture as a “lid”. Bake in the oven, about 20 minutes, until the pastry and meringue are cooked through. Allow to cool in the muffin tin, remove and serve.
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Recipe, styling and photography by Hein van Tonder