A few weeks you made Chiacchiare on the show and I was really intrigued by this, because it reminded me a lot of South African koeksisters. Except it is covered in a syrup.

Well here is the recipe, if you want to try it!

SYRUP:
375ml water
800g white sugar
2ml cream of tartar
1 piece of root ginger, bruised
3 stick cinnamon

DOUGH:
500g cake flour (or plain flour as you call it)
30ml baking powder
3ml salt
60ml butter or margarine
2 large eggs
250ml milk
sunflower oil for deep frying

To make the syrup, heat the water in a saucepan, add the sugar and stir until dissolved (wash down the sugar crystals adhering to the sides of the saucepan). Add the cream of tartar, ginger and cinnamon and boil, uncovered for 5 minutes. Do not stir. Remove from the stove and chill. To make the dough, sift the flour, baking powder and salt together into a bowl, then rub in the butter or margarine until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Beat the eggs and milk together and add to the dry ingredients. Mix the dough well, then knead it lightly for 2 minutes to make it pliable. Cover the basin with waxed paper and leave it for 1 hour.

Roll the dough out to 7mm to 1cm thich. Cut into strips 8cm x 40cm and make 2 vertical cuts in each strip, starting 5mm from the top and cutting right down to the bottom. Plait the strips loosely and press them together at the loose end. Heat the oil to 190 cent. and deep fat fry the koeksisters, a few at a time, for 2-4 minutes. Remove from the oil, drain on absorbent paper for about 1 minute, then dip them in the cold syrup for 30 seconds. Remove the koeksisters from the syrup and dry on a wire rack placed on a tray.

Note: As the syrup must remain cold, chill it in two basins and leave one in the refrigerator while the other is being used. Swap them around as soon as the syrup becomes warm.

I hope you will enjoy this!!!