Jelly vision
Give the grown-ups a bowl of childhood nostalgia with dressed-up jelly, custard and fruit. Lesego Semenya’s take on the classic combo pairs boozy stewed fruit and ginger beerspiked jelly with chocolate-dipped lady fingers
WE CHEFS CAN BE
a really soppy bunch. Any memory from our lives is turned into a dish or culinary story, especially when creating new recipes.
I wish I could say I’m different, but I’d be lying. I love a twist on a nostalgic dish and gladly play with flavours from my childhood all the time. This dish is one of those happy creations.
Every December my parents would ship my brothers and I to Limpopo for the festive season and, besides the scorching heat of the place, the memory that lingers the most in my head are the desserts. Green or neon red jelly with canned peaches, pudding and custard. It was the same dessert served at family gatherings in trifle form, too. So I’ve always associated those flavours with the festive season. At the end of it all everything would be washed down with a big glass of gemere (ginger beer).
Here’s my more adult twist on the classic combination of flavours. You’ll need to start the day before to allow the jelly to set.