Johannesburg cookbook author Jan Kohler on food, festivities and family

For cookbook author and hostess-with the-mostest Jan Kohler celebrations are synonymous with food. 

“We associate certain dishes with holidays that we celebrate, and the food becomes a tradition that our families look forward to every year. We turn to them because they are familiar, comforting and, actually, downright delicious,” says the author of Pink Gin and Fairy Cakes and its successor Celebrations. 

“The food I cook and the recipes in my books are created for novice cooks, busy people and parents who have their hands full. I always use local (or easy to find) ingredients and cook delicious, simple food (that would work well for family suppers) but also dishes that can go a long way and will impress at a party over the festive season,” the Johannesburg resident says.

 We asked the ebullient Kohler some questions as she shares some of her favourite festive holiday recipes. 

Who were your food idols or mentors? It was only when I moved out of home that I discovered chefs who were cooking on TV, like Food Network, and started to get my hands on the books of celebrity chefs like Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson. Nigella was definitely my food idol and I became a domestic goddess “wannabe”! I’d have to say about Jamie that I loved how accessible and simple he made cooking for everyone. I like to think that I’ve since grown up and discovered so many more wonderful chefs and books out there. The world is truly full of incredibly inspiring and talented people. 

Tell us about your recipe books and why you decided to write them? My love for entertaining definitely set me on this journey. These recipes featured time and again as friends and family gathered around my table. I was constantly asked to share my recipes and one day at a ladies lunch party, one of my friends suggested I just put them all into a book for them, and so an idea was born! My first book, Pink Gin and Fairy Cakes was centred around raising my children and making food for my family and friends at the same time. I enjoy making food that people love to eat, so most of my recipes are simple, even though I have a “cook from scratch” approach. 

What inspired your choice of Pink Gin and Fairy Cakes as the title of your recipe book? I wrote this book at a time when my kids were in junior and pre-school, and life was very much about playdates and birthday parties. With moms and kids in the mix – often on a Friday afternoon – this is exactly where pink gins and fairy cakes would collide. I guess it was also to convey that the book wasn’t written just for children. There are lots of delightful grown-up recipes in there too! 

Tell us about Celebrations? For as long as I can remember, there always seemed to be an occasion for a party or celebration. Holidays seldom went unobserved – I would cook, decorate the house, and dress up for just about any occasion. The combination of Halloween, spring parties, many family celebrations or parties “just because”, allowed me to explore ideas, cook and create a collection of recipes that I wanted to share. These are my most loved celebration recipes and the book includes many of the holidays that we celebrate as South Africans. 

What culinary dreams to you still have? I had always dreamed of visiting Ferran Adria’s restaurant El Bulli. But since I never got there before it closed, I hope to explore more of Spain’s culinary scene and discover more treasures. I’ve travelled to Spain a few times and yet I feel that there is still so much more to taste and see. I feel the same about France – I’d like to tour more regions of France with a focus on iconic dishes, methods of cooking and French wines. 

What is your favourite go-to meal to cook at home? Pot roast chicken. I love the simplicity of this dish, the ease with which it can be made, and the way the flavours infuse in this pot of comfort food. 

Tell us a bit about your family? I come from a family of very enthusiastic cooks. Both my dad and my stepdad were very hands-on in the kitchen throughout my childhood, and we all still share a passion for cooking today. I am married with three children. 

And a few fun questions: Name five things always in your fridge or pantry 

• Cans of Italian tomatoes
• Anchovies
• Real butter
• Grana Padano (or parmesan)
• Chilli

What would be your last meal? Hands down it is Spaghetti Aglio e Olio. 

Is there anything you do not eat? While there are probably more things than I’d like to admit, I’m just going to say anything produced by a goat is not my favourite! 

If you had to cook dinner for five famous people, who would they be and what would you make them? I would cook for the cast of Friends. Perhaps you’d need to know the series quite well to appreciate my sentiment. But I’d definitely make them a Christmas trifle without Rachel’s mincemeat in it! I’d make the best Italian panini for Joey so he could try something other than a meatball sub, and my delicious cheesecake so they wouldn’t have to steal from their neighbours. 

Favourite celebrity cook? Stanley Tucci – I love his discerning, no-nonsense approach to Italian food. He is entertaining and passionate about what he does, and his enthusiasm for life after surviving throat cancer is such an inspiration. 

What are three latest food trends? 

• Sustainable eating
• Watching how meals are prepared on social media (i.e. videos)
• Anything pistachio!

 What chef do you admire most and why? Jamie Oliver, for his ability to stay relevant and keep selling books for over three decades. He adapts to food trends, keeps things simple and I love that he is constantly promoting a healthy, cook from scratch approach in a fast paced world.

Kohler shares three of her favourite festive season recipes: 

Champagne Float

Requires overnight freezing 

Finally, a soda float that’s right up my alley! You’ll turn heads with this sensational champagne cocktail and keep your guests coming back for more. 

Ingredients: 

One bottle of champagne or MCC sparkling wine
A punnet of raspberries 
To make the Champagne and Strawberries Sorbet:
250g strawberries, washed and chopped
1 cup water
100g castor sugar
500ml of your favourite bottle of pink bubbly
The juice of 1 lemon (approximately 60ml) 

Method: 
The sorbet should be made the day before and frozen overnight. Combine the water and the sugar in a small saucepan and simmer until the sugar has melted. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Once the sugar mixture has reached room temperature, place this in a food processor with the strawberries and liquidise the mixture. Now slowly add the lemon juice and champagne, taking care with the fizz. Expect some froth!

Pour this mixture into your ice-cream maker and set it according to the manufacturer’s instruction to make sorbet. Churning the mixture for about an hour will give you the right consistency, but the sorbet won’t set because of its alcoholic content. Alcoholic beverages need a lower freezing temperature, so you need to transfer this to the freezer and leave it at least overnight. When you’re ready to make your float, use the sorbet straight from the freezer, making sure that you use a really cold bottle of bubbles too.
The wonderful thing about the frozen sorbet is that it ensures a refreshing, ice cold drink. Pour the sparkling wine into wide brimmed champagne glasses or martini glasses and then place a neat scoop of sorbet into the champagne. Expect a bit of fizz!
Float a few raspberries on top and add a mint sprig if you desire, then serve immediately – these don’t sit around well! 

Turkish Delight Pavlova
Serves 8 to 10 
Turkish Delight – love it or hate it – certainly makes the most beautiful dessert on presentation alone. If you’re a lover of Turkish Delight like me, it might just become your all-time favourite. 

Ingredients: 
For the meringue:
5 egg whites
280g castor sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cornflour
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon rosewater 

For the topping:
500ml of whipping cream
250g of rosewater Turkish Delight, chopped into small pieces
A little icing sugar, for dusting
A handful of pink rose petals, to garnish (optional) 

Method: 
Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease and line a flat baking tray. In a dry bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, and then gradually add the castor sugar, a large spoonful at a time, while you keep the mixer going. I love using my electric cake mixer for this because it means that I can be a little more hands-free while it’s working its magic.
Once all the sugar is in, your meringue should be stiff and shiny. Using a really large baking spatula, gently fold in the baking powder, cornflour, and vinegar. Add the rosewater last, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl until everything is thoroughly mixed in. Spoon this out onto your baking sheet, making a circular formation.
Try to create something that resembles a cake, with swirls and peaks. Pop your meringue into the oven, and immediately turn the temperature down to 150°C.
The baking time should be anything from an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes. To check if it’s ready, open the oven door and gently tap the meringue. It should be firm and dry to the touch. If you’ve achieved that around the one-hour mark, don’t overcook it because you want it to have a soft, marshmallow-like texture in the middle.
Turn off the oven and open the door slightly to let the meringue completely cool. To serve, gingerly peel the paper from underneath and place it on a flat platter or plate. Whip the cream into soft peaks and pile it on top of the meringue. Then add the Turkish Delight and sprinkle a little icing sugar over the top. You can also decorate with pink rose petals for a grand finish! 

Rice Krispies Cookie Monsters
Makes 12 
As with cupcakes, you can make Rice Krispie treats to suit any theme or colour.
While blue Cookie Monsters will delight the children, there are many ideas that you can adapt to a themed party. This is also an easy and fun baking activity that the kids can take part in this holiday season. 

Ingredients:                  
¼ cup butter
4 cups mini marshmallows
5 cups Rice Krispies cereal
Blue food colouring
White fondant icing
Black food colouring 

Method: Place the butter and the marshmallows in a heat-proof bowl and microwave this on high for about 2 minutes until the butter and marshmallows have melted. Give it a quick stir to smooth out the consistency, and then immediately add the Rice Krispies and stir until well-coated. Add as much food colouring as you need to get the desired colour.
Set this aside to cool before making your shapes. In the meantime, you can make cookie monster eyes or other accessories by rolling and moulding fondant icing.
You won’t easily find such a small cookie cutter, so you’ll have to use another small round object to cut out the fondant. I use the back of a piping nozzle, which is very handy because if the icing gets stuck, you can use a toothpick to dislodge it through the opening.
Set your shapes on a piece of baking paper and complete the eyes by painting a little round black pupil onto the eye shapes with your black food colouring.
These are best used when they’ve had some time to dry. (Use CMC powder for quicker hardening). 
If the Rice Krispie Cookie is still sticky when you attach them, they should stay on. If not, make a paste with a little icing sugar and water and use it as you would use glue. These little eyes will bring your cookie monsters to life!