These dried plum and almond rusks are a great tea time snack.
Rusks are to South Africans what biscotti are to Italians. They are a hard, twice baked biscuit (cookie to my American readers), that is most often served with a hot drink such as tea, and used for dipping. In South Africa the most common source of commercial rusks is Ouma Rusks where ouma means grandmother in Afrikaans. They do amazing flavours, and I am sure many a South African child has teethed on them. Since discovering that I can make small batches of rusks with success, I have started making up flavour combinations to suit my mood, and what needs using up. I had some plums in the fridge which never seemed to ripen. When we got back from overseas I turned them into dried plums and then used these to make my dried plum and almond rusks. I hope that no matter where you are, you will try and make this traditional South African tea time treat.
What is the traditional biscuit / cookie from your country?
Dried Plum And Almond Rusks
Ingredients
- 275 g self raising flour
- 1.25 mls baking powder
- 2.5 mls salt
- 85 g fructose
- 65 g dried plums
- 65 g almonds
- 25 g dessicated coconut
- 1 egg, beaten
- 125 g thick yoghurt
- 125 g butter, melted
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180° Celsius
- Line a loaf tin with baking paper
- Place the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and mix
- Mix together the egg, yoghurt and butter
- Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients
- Mix until well combined
- Pour the batter into the loaf tin
- Bake for 45 minutes
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely on a wire rack
- Preheat the oven to 40° Celsius
- Cut into chunks and bake for 3 hours to dry out
Notes
Click on the links for conversions and notes.
What I blogged:
- one year ago – Osteria Francescana
- three years ago – Friday’s Food Quiz
I love the combination of dried plums, almonds and coconut and the yogurt would give a great flavour as well.
Thank you Rachel, I loved the flavours as well 🙂
This special rusk recipe looks so appetizing too, Tandy! Delicious!
Thank you Sophie 🙂
I keep making the same recipe over and over again – Pete’s favourite. Need to broaden my rusk making horizons.
Have a lovely day Tandy.
🙂 Mandy xo
I sometimes like making the same flavours over and over again, like I do with bread and granola, but for rusks I like to change things up often 🙂
So glad to read the word “biscuit”…twice cooked! Love the recipe
Thanks Roger, they are a great snack biscuit 🙂
Hi Tandy, I love scones, so I know I would love these. So clever of you to dry the plums and use them in a recipe like this.
They have a different texture to scones so I hope that you do enjoy them!
I’ve never heard of this particular cookie before, but they look simple and delicious.
They are very simple to make and delicious to eat Mary Frances 🙂
Mmmm! I love experimenting with different fruits and adding them to things you wouldn’t normally expect. Dried plums sounds sensational, I’ve got to try this! 🙂
I was on a rusk baking mission so I was playing around with flavours. Might have to make some more soon as I love them as snacks 🙂
I love how you bring in recipes I’ve never encountered before. Delicious and educational! I love biscotti so I must try these rusks 🙂
I hope you like the rusks and I am so glad you learnt something new here 🙂
Your rusk looks just delicious, Tandy. I bet it tastes fantastic with plums, almonds and coconuts…
ela h.
Thank you Ela 🙂
You put yogurt in the dough for these cookies? Woah! We have little biscuits in India too, but I think we just call them biscuits haha.
I like that you call them biscuits as well 🙂
Hi Tandy!
I have never heard of rusks. But overall, I find Americans seem to consume (I live in New York) a lot of store bought cookies (at least that’s what I see in the grocery check out line ) like Oreo’s and Keebler cookies. Personally, I think these cookies are terrible and never buy this overly processed types of food, but they are very popular here.
Your dried plum and almond rusks look like the perfect nightcap with a cup of tea out in the garden of course.
HI Laura, I so agree with you about shop bought cookies. I much prefer to make my own as that way I know what are in them. Wish I could be in my garden at present – we are in the middle of a really cold and wet winter 🙂
Ah, I’m glad you said what rusks are because I’ve never of that before. Love the combination and that you used plums, don’t see those use very often. 😀 Pinning
Hope you enjoy them Cindy 🙂
Before I tried rusks in South Africa I thought that they were like the baby rusks (which have no flavour). I was so relieved when they weren’t! 😀
I would have been devastated to be given a biscuit in a foreign country if it tasted like nothing!
Good to know about rusks and biscotti!! Love your dried fruit mixins!
Thanks Joanne 🙂
A traditional biscuit/ cookie from home are love letters, very thin wafers made with coconut milk, rolled into cigars or folded into neat squares. I love them! So delicious but quite a tough one to make so they are often only and for special days like Chinese new year. Loved reading about the rusks- learnt something new! And love the use of dried plums and almonds- what a great flavour combi!
Those love letters sound so amazing! So glad you learnt something new here 🙂
These look great, bet they’re good with coffee.
They are perfect with coffee Caroline 🙂
Oh is THAT what they are? I’ve seen them mentioned here and on other SA blogs before, and I did wonder – over here the term is used almost exclusively for children’s teething biscuits! 🙂 Yours look delicious, Tandy! 🙂
Thanks Celia. I decided I should do a post with an explanation! It was a good excuse to make a new flavour 🙂
They sound divine! Definitely got to try these out! 🙂
Hope you enjoy them Jess 🙂
Those really do look delicious Tandy.
Thank you Lidia 🙂
Rusks, biscotti or any other type of bread with fruit and nut are well within my preference. I love the idea of putting in yoghurt, too. Thanks for this recipe!
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
My pleasure Julie 🙂
That’s so funny – I just heard of a rusk today. Now I must make them! These look good!
Hope you enjoy them Emily 🙂