Recipes · South African · Desserts

Koeksister (South African Plaited Syrup Pastry)

One serving has 741 kcal and 10 g protein, and at least a fifth of a woman's daily need of selenium (54%), phosphorus (53%), thiamin (52%), riboflavin (42%), vitamin K (38%) and folate (34%). Ready in 105 minutes.

Koeksister (South African Plaited Syrup Pastry)
Photo: Arnold Goodway, CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
  • Preparation: 90 min
  • Cooking: 15 min
  • Makes: 1 serving (238 g)
  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Diets: Vegetarian
  • Contains: dairy, egg, gluten

Ingredients

  • 70 g Flour, all-purpose
  • 2.5 g Baking powder
  • 8 g Butter, unsalted
  • 15 g Eggs, whole, raw
  • 20 g Milk, whole
  • 60 g Sugar
  • 40 g Water
  • 0.5 g Cinnamon
  • 4 g Lemon juice
  • 18 g Vegetable oil

Method

  1. Make the syrup first: dissolve the sugar in the water in a small saucepan with the cinnamon and lemon juice, bring to a boil, then simmer for 3 minutes and chill thoroughly (ideally overnight) in the refrigerator.
  2. Rub the butter into the flour and baking powder until it resembles breadcrumbs, then mix in the egg and milk to form a firm dough.
  3. Knead briefly, then roll out to about 1 cm thick and cut into 2 strips about 8 cm long; slice each strip lengthways into 3 without cutting all the way through, and plait them, pinching the ends to seal.
  4. Cover and chill the plaited dough for 20 minutes to firm up.
  5. Heat the oil in a small, deep pan to 170°C (340°F) and fry the plait for 3-4 minutes, turning, until deep golden brown and cooked through.
  6. Immediately drop the hot pastry into the ice-cold syrup for 20-30 seconds, turning once, so it soaks in and sets into a crisp, syrupy shell.
  7. Lift out and let any excess syrup drip off; this recipe makes 1 serving of 2 koeksisters, so multiply by however many you need.

Nutrition per serving

NutrientPer servingShare of a day's need
Energy741 kcal35%
Carbohydrates116 g
Water82.5 mL
Fiber2.2 g7%
Protein9.8 g21%
Tryptophan0.12 g
Threonine0.31 g
Isoleucine0.39 g
Leucine0.73 g
Lysine0.36 g
Methionine0.2 g
Cystine0.2 g
Phenylalanine0.5 g
Tyrosine0.33 g
Valine0.47 g
Histidine0.23 g
Fat27.3 g
Monounsaturated6.7 g
Polyunsaturated11.2 g
Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA)0.01 g
Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA)0 g
Omega-69.7 g
Saturated7.7 g
Trans-Fats0.13 g
Cholesterol75 mg
Calcium235 mg23%
Copper0.13 mg14%
Iron3.9 mg22%
Magnesium21.3 mg7%
Manganese0.57 mg32%
Phosphorus373 mg53%
Potassium132 mg3%
Selenium29.5 µg54%
Sodium232 mg
Zinc0.79 mg10%
Thiamin (vitamin B1)0.57 mg52%
Riboflavin (vitamin B2)0.46 mg42%
Niacin (vitamin B3)4.2 mg30%
Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5)0.63 mg13%
Pyridoxine (vitamin B6)0.07 mg5%
Folate (vitamin B9)137 µg34%
Cobalamin (vitamin B12)0.24 µg10%
Choline48.7 mg11%
Vitamin A88 µg13%
Vitamin C1.6 mg2%
Vitamin D (D2 + D3)22.5 IU4%
Vitamin E2 mg13%
Vitamin K34.1 µg38%

Shares of a day's need are for a woman of 30, 165 cm, 60 kg, lightly active, by the US and Canadian Dietary Reference Intakes. SustainBite works out each person's own needs, by the standard where they live: the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations in Norway, the UK's, EFSA's in the EU.

Climate footprint

0.3 kg CO2e a serving: about average for breakfasts, sides, desserts and drinks on SustainBite. Source: ADEME, Agribalyse 3.2.

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