Pampoenkoekies / Pumpkin Fritters

This is my mother’s recipe for the lightest, melt in the mouth pumpkin fritters you can imagine. Sunday lunch with Karoo leg of lamb or my mother’s homemade chicken and mushroom pie would usually include peas, steamed broccoli or cauliflower and pumpkin fritters. Often simply served with cinnamon sugar but on special days with a creamy syrup.

I prefer using butternut (you need about 1 medium butternut for this recipe) as it is easier to peel and cut, but feel free to use any pumpkin variety available to you. Once peeled, seeds scooped out and cut into smallish chunks, I steam my butternut for about 15 – 20 minutes until tender.  Let it cool before using it in this recipe (you can do this step the day before if you are very organized).

Makes about 25 small fritters (enough for about 6 people)

PUMPKIN FRITTER BATTER

butternut or pumpkin (cooked and cooled), 500g (2 cups or 500ml)

egg, 1

plain/all-purpose flour, 100g (2/3 cup) - (cake wheat flour in South Africa)

baking powder, 2 teaspoons (10ml)

fine salt, ½ teaspoon (2.5ml)

oil for frying (I like using grapeseed oil)

SYRUP

unsalted butter, 15g (1 tablespoon or 15ml)

sugar (white/granulated), 100g (1/2 cup or 125ml)

milk, 125g (1/2 cup or 125ml)

fine salt, ½ teaspoon (2.5ml)

cornflour, 1 tablespoon (15ml)

water (cold, tap water), 125g (1/2 cup or 125ml)

To start, in a mixing bowl, whisk the butternut/pumpkin and egg until fairly smooth.

Add the remaining batter ingredients and mix until uniform.

Heat the oil (you need about 2 cm depth) in a medium to large saucepan over a medium heat until hot (you can test if the oil is ready to use when a small amount of batter bubbles when placed in the oil).

Cook tablespoonfuls of the batter in the hot oil (about 2 minutes on each side).  You want the oil to bubble when cooking the batter but not brown the fritters too quickly – turn the heat down a little if needed (I use setting 6 – 7 on my stove).

Cook in batches until all the batter has been used.  Remove the cooked fritters from the oil using a metal slotted spoon and place them on a plate lined with kitchen paper towel to drain the excess oil.  Transfer them to a serving dish.

To make the syrup, place the butter, sugar, milk and salt in a small saucepan over a medium heat until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved.

Mix the cornflour and water in a small bowl until smooth. 

Add this to the butter and milk mixture and bring it to the boil while whisking. 

Remove the syrup from the heat and allow it to cool slightly (it thickens a little as it cools).

Pour the syrup over the fritters just before serving.