Hertzog Cookies
By
Elsa Dreyer
@elbie
1
They were named after General J.B.M. Hertzog, prime minister of the South Africa Union in 1924. According to legend, this was One of His wife's recipes and He loved it so much that She named the Cookie after Him. I grew up with Hertzog koekies. As is so often the case with traditional food recipes, there are many versions and here is the recipe that was used in my family for many, many years.
Blue Ribbon Recipe
So sweet, so light..so delicious! We simply adore the taste and texture of these cookies.
The Test Kitchen
★★★★★ 17 votes5
Ingredients
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5 ccake flour / all purpose flour
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2 tspbaking powder
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1 pinchsalt
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1 csugar
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2 stickbutter, room temperature
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4 largeeggs
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·smooth apricot jam
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1 csugar for the filling
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2 ccoconut
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5large egg whites
How to Make Hertzog Cookies
- Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Cream margarine/butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one by one and beat thorougly after each addition.
Add dry ingredients and mix to form a soft dough.
Add a little flour if dough is too moist, or a little water if dough is too dry. If you use large or jumbo sized eggs, this is normally not a problem. - Roll dough out thinly and press out circles. Line the base of greased patty pan tins with dough circles.
Spoon a teaspoonful of apricot jam into the middle of each circle of dough. - Beat egg whites until soft peak stage. Add the sugar gradually, while still beating.
Add coconut and spoon egg mixture onto apricot jam filling.
Bake in a preheated oven at 180C (350F) for 20 - 25 minutes.
Turn onto a wire rack to cool.
Makes about 60 - 72 Hertzoggies. - Tip: To prevent the apricot jam from "leaking" during the baking process, add a teaspoon or two of flour to it.
Festive Touch: Cut red or green glacé cherries into small pieces and add to coconut mixture.