Tarunima Sinha learnt to bake with just one cake tin. An ancient, 8-inch aluminium chapati tin that belonged to her grandmother. And in My Little Cake Tin, she shares her magnificent recipes using just that size tin. Including basic useful building blocks, tools, and tips for new or nervous bakers, the book then goes on to be a delicious discovery of every cake imaginable … the glorious festive Sicilian cassata cake, the pastel-green marzipan covered Swedish Prinsestarta (princess cake), and the coconut, lime and pineapple tiramisu cake that gets pride of place on the cover … it’s just one joyful recipe after another. Hardie Grant, Quadrille. R609 from Exclusive Books
Beetroot relish and brandy-preserved cherries and roasted apricot jam. Tomato passata and dried mushrooms and Worcestershire sauce. Not Just Jam will have you sterilising bottles and dissolving sugar and macerating and stirring and bubbling and leaving you with bottles of the most delicious home-made preserves, pickles, sauces and jams … all developed by Matthew Evans on The Fat Pig Farm. Murdoch Books, R505 from Takealot
After dinner coffee with a shot of something orange (we suggest Cointreau). Espresso cup and saucer, R149 from H&M at superbalist.com
Pretty up your lunch table with a sunshine, scallop-edged tablecloth. R239 from H&M at superbalist.com
There is a law that legally prevents wine or grape juice to be added to spirits like gin before or after the distillation process. Why? Who knows. But it does prevent fun-loving, boundary-pushing distillers like Six Dogs Distillery’s Charles Bryant from doing their creative thing. Which he wanted to do with Pinotage … that great South African grape. Luckily … there are loop holes. Thanks heavens, since a glass of Six Dogs Pinotage Stained Gin sipped neat or on the rocks in front of a roaring fire is a thing of great beauty! Stained? Yip. That’s the loop hole. The Six Dogs chaps decided to add hand-selected Pinotage grapes to the gin once distillation was done, so they could slowly, over a matter of months, impart their awesomeness into the gin. The result. A singular spirit that really pushes the boundaries between liquor categories – it’s been likened to grappa, Cognac, and smoky whiskey, and appeals to gin and wine lovers. It’s deep in colour, bold in flavour – think black cherry, plum, black currant, and some tasty tannin, and while each year’s grapes bring subtle, unique variants in taste, the juniper-forward flavour is consistent. And once the Autumn chill has finally left, it’s equally enjoyable chilled with a good tonic in Summer. R550 from sixdogs.com. Details: Instagram @sixdogsdistillery
We are obsessed with chai lattes … and have yet to find one to make at home that lives up to those we order from our fave coffee shops. Until now. Say a warm and spicy welcome to the new Tetley Chai Lattes. Chai – which is the Hindi word for tea, has been enjoyed for thousands of years, with its roots in the fabric of Indian tea culture. Sweet. Spicy. Creamy. It’s indulgence in a mug … and these new ones come in original and fragrant vanilla flavours. Easy for on-the-run treats, simply empty the sachet’s contents into a mug, fill up with boiling water or milk (or a combo of the two) and you’re good to go. In your local supermarkets and Takealot now. @TetleyTeaSA
