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Heritage Day is a mere 6 days away and if you haven’t started planning your menu yet… what are you waiting for?
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One of the most searched-for recipes on Food24 is malva pudding (aka malvapoeding or ‘marshmallow pudding’), and we aren’t surprised. There’s something just so decadent about taking a mouthful of the rich, spongy-textured, sticky toasted caramel flavoured bake.
Food writer, Nikki Werner did some extensive research back in 2013 on the moreish malva and this is what she learnt:
– The earliest published reference of malva pudding was dated 1912.
– The sauce must contain brandy otherwise it’s not Malva pudding.
– It became mainstream in the early 80s when the restaurant at Boschendal had it on its menu. Probably the first restaurant ever to offer it, thanks to well-known wine and food writer, Michael Olivier who was working there at the time.
There isn’t a soul I’ve met who doesn’t sink into a puddle of happiness when presented with a malva pudding but if you’ve ever made one from scratch, you’ll notice that one of the ingredients it calls for is vinegar. Non-bakers might think it odd but this is why it’s in the list: vinegar is an acid, which, when combined with baking soda, reacts and produces carbon dioxide bubbles that act as a raising agent – giving it that soft and spongy, marshmallowy mouthfeel that we all know and love.
If you’re craving a malva pudding right now (totally understandable), take a stab at this recipe…
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Supermarket milk tarts: We found the best one and it’s actually cheaper than all the others
We gave our team blind tastings of store-bought milk tarts and asked them to rate them: by: Katy Rose | 12 Sep 2018 ALSO READ: 4 SA pastry chefs share their pro tips for making the perfect milk tart Heritage Day is just around the corner, and of course we love to celebrate our heritage foods and recipes.