Recipe: Syrup dumplings

Ingredients

Syrup
200g sugar
250ml (1 cup) water
Rind of 1 naartjie (all the white pith removed with a sharp knife)
1,25ml (¼ tsp) salt
4 cardamom pods, bruised
1 bay leaf
2 star anise
1 cinnamon quill
85ml handcrafted South African gin

Dumplings
100g full-cream milk powder
100g self-raising flour + extra, to roll
100g semolina
2,5ml (½ tsp) ground nutmeg
30ml (2 tbsp) vegetable oil
60ml (4 tbsp) milk
Canola/sunflower oil, to fry
Toasted coconut flakes, to serve

Method

1. For the syrup, place the sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Add the remaining syrup ingredients and keep the mixture at a slow simmer over low heat while preparing the dumplings.

2. For the dumplings, place the milk powder, self-raising flour, semolina, nutmeg and 30ml (2 tbsp) vegetable oil in a bowl. Add the milk and mix to a soft dough. Allow the dough to rest and thicken slightly, about 10 minutes. On a flour-dusted surface, roll the dough into 18 small dumplings between your palms.

3. Heat the oil to 180° C in a large frying pan (the oil must not be too hot, as the dumplings will brown too quickly but be uncooked inside). Use a sugar thermometer to check the temperature of the oil.

4. Fry the dumplings to a light golden brown colour. Keep swirling the dumplings in the oil, so they brown evenly. Once cooked, remove the dumplings with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towel and place in the warm syrup, still on the stove. Once all of the dumplings have been added, remove from heat and allow the dumplings to soak in the syrup, 1 hour.

5. Remove the dumplings from the syrup and sprinkle with toasted coconut flakes. Serve with extra syrup alongside, if desired.

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