Easy Buttermilk Rusks with Self-Raising Flour

Buttermilk rusks: food fit for children

My children consider buttermilk rusks to be essential fodder. Certainly, it makes breakfasts easier, in that they love to dunk a rusk or two into their tea in the morning and claim they are then set up for the rest of the day.

I got this recipe from my mum-in-law - and if you are Afrikaans, you can find her recipe, idiosyncratic Afrikaans and all - here. 

I tend to prefer to make the rusks with yeast - if that is your choice, then you can find that recipe here, but my husband and kids prefer to eat these - so - these are what we tend to make. 

Our oven is large, and has a fan, so in the interests of making as much as possible and in keeping electricity costs down, we make a double-batch each time. 

Mum's Buttermilk Recipe 

500 gm butter, cut into small pieces 

650 ml boiling water 

2 cups granulated sugar 

Put altogether in a pot and stir until sugar is dissolved, leave to cool 

Dough 

3 kg self-raising flour 

1 teaspoon salt 

3 eggs 

6 rounded teaspoons baking powder 

500 ml buttermilk 

(If you can't find buttermilk, use ordinary milk but place a tablespoon of vinegar into it and leave it to stand until it becomes very thick). 

Place everything together in a large bowl and knead until the dough comes together and is elastic. 

Two batches, using 6 kgs of flour

My children found this the hard part, kneading it together:

Faran helping to make the rusks

Once the dough has come together, make balls and place them into a pan. My husband makes the balls by squeezing the dough between his thumb and fingers - so:

This is how you make rusk balls

Place the balls into a greased pan. Place in the oven at 180 ºC (of 360 ºF) for a half-hour, then reduce the heat to 160 ºC (320 ºF) for a second half-hour. Make sure they are not too sticky inside. The kids quite often love to slather the fresh, sweet bread with butter at this stage, and eat - hot from the oven. 

However, rusks are really twice-baked bread, so what you must do is, once they are cool, break into large rusks, or even cut in half, and then dry out in the oven at 100 ºC or 212 ºF for between three and four hours. We leave the oven door slightly propped open with a wooden spoon.

The rusks are done with the bread is thoroughly dry; pack in airtight containers and use as needed. 

Bethany makinrg rusks