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South African Hertzoggies Recipe

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4.3 from 1 review

  • Author: Eliza
  • Total Time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 24 mini tarts
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Description

South African Hertzoggies are delightful mini tarts featuring a buttery, crumbly pastry base filled with apricot jam and topped with a sweet coconut meringue. These bite-sized treats are baked until golden and crisp, offering a perfect balance of textures and flavors that epitomize traditional South African baking.

Ingredients

For the Pastry:

  • 2 cups of self-raising flour
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • 150gm castor sugar
  • A pinch of salt
  • Pinch of nutmeg
  • ½ cup of cubed butter
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1 tablespoon cold water

For the Filling:

  • 3 large egg whites
  • 1 cup of castor sugar
  • ½ teaspoon of vanilla essence
  • 2 cups of desiccated coconut
  • ½ cup apricot jam

Instructions

  1. Preheat and prepare the tray: Preheat your oven to 180 °C (356 °F) and grease a mini muffin baking tray to prevent the tarts from sticking during baking.
  2. Mix dry ingredients for pastry: Sift together self-raising flour, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add castor sugar and cubed butter, then massage the butter into the flour mixture until it forms fine crumbs.
  3. Form the dough: Incorporate the egg yolks into the mixture. If needed, add cold water gradually to bring the dough together. Knead the dough on a clean, floured surface until smooth.
  4. Rest the dough: Roll the dough into a ball, place it in a bowl, cover, and allow it to rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes to relax the gluten and make it easier to work with.
  5. Prepare the meringue filling: In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they reach a soft peak stage. Gradually add vanilla essence and castor sugar in stages while continuing to whisk until glossy, firm peaks form.
  6. Fold in coconut: Carefully fold the desiccated coconut into the meringue mixture to evenly combine without deflating the meringue.
  7. Shape the pastry bases: Press the pastry dough directly into each cavity of the greased mini muffin tray, creating a base about 5mm thick for each tart.
  8. Add apricot jam: Spoon two teaspoons of apricot jam onto each pastry base, spreading gently but avoiding the edges.
  9. Top with meringue mixture: Divide the coconut meringue evenly among the tart bases, spreading or mounding it on top to cover the jam completely.
  10. Bake: Place the tray in the preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until the tops of the tarts are crisp and golden brown.
  11. Cool and serve: Allow the tarts to cool slightly in the tray before carefully lifting them out onto a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

  • Using cold butter helps create a tender, crumbly pastry texture.
  • Resting the dough is essential to prevent shrinkage when baking.
  • Be gentle when folding in the coconut to maintain the airiness of the meringue.
  • If you do not have a mini muffin tray, small tart tins can be used instead.
  • These Hertzoggies store well in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 25 minutes
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: South African

Find it online: https://recipekind.com/south-african-hertzoggies-recipe/