Mix together and let sit for ± 10 minutes to thicken up
300ml So nice vanilla soy milk
2 teaspoons white vinegar
Add the following to the milk mixture and mix well
½ cup canola oil
1 cup sugar (I personally use less only a ¾cup , otherwise too sweet for our taste)
Mix together
4 cups whole-wheat flour
8 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt (see note below re salted pumpkin seeds, then please use less salt)
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 weetabix – rub between your hands to form crumbs and mix with the dry ingredients.
Add any of the following as per your own preference: Sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, raisons, or any other nuts you like.
Our preference: pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds and I use ¾-1 cup of seeds, as we just love the seeds in the rusks. When using pumpkin seeds, I use the salted ones, as I always have it in the house just to munch on. In such a case then I will reduce the salt with the dry ingredients.
Mix the wet and dry mixture and mix thoroughly, until no more flour or dry spots visible. You can use a big spoon and spatula to mix and scrape the excess from the side of the bowl or if you prefer mix with your hands. In such a case, I would suggest that you put some oil on your hands otherwise it can become rather sticky.
Spray your pan with ”spray and cook” or ”pam” and transfer the mixture to your pan and then flatten it with your oily hands and then mark out the size of the rusks by cutting through it. I have a nifty pan with a cutter so this ensures that I always have evenly sized rusks, but have done it by hand for many many years.
Bake for 18-20 minutes at 400degrees F, and it should have a nice brown baked color and when inserting a baking pin it should come out clean.
When ready, take out of the oven and let it cool down, then break open the pieces and place it on a cooling rack which you placed in a baking tray and dry overnight at 200degrees F or till it’s properly dried out (say 5-6 hours).
Let it cool down, and then store in an airtight container, or pack in zip lock bags and enjoy.
Prepared, tried and tested: Esme Slabbert
Baker’s note: When I bake rusks, I usually make a double recipe as it nicely fits into my pan (see picture) and then I make a second double batch. This way I have a good stock and also its more economical when drying it out