The flexibility and creativity of our kitchen teams is one of the many reasons that food plays such a big role in any visit to Singita’s lodges and camps. Understanding the preferences and special requirements of our guests is top priority, and often this includes unusual dietary restrictions such as a sensitivity to wheat or dairy. One such recent visitor to Singita Boulders Lodge in South Africa was Lindsay Zegans, otherwise known as NYC GlutenFree Grubber on Instagram. The chefs at the lodge designed an entirely gluten-free menu for the duration of Lindsay’s honeymoon safari, including seared tuna salad, celiac-friendly cheesecake and a bunless lamb burger.

Here they share two of their gluten-free recipes with us; one is a wholesome bread loaf that uses alternatives to traditional wheat flour and the other is a vegetarian take on the traditional South African bobotie, made with butternut squash and chickpeas. Lindsay was also kind enough to contribute lots of her great photos – doesn’t it all look delicious!?

Gluten-free bread baked at Singita Boulders Lodge

GLUTEN FREE BREAD RECIPE

Ingredients – what you will need:

400g mixture of gluten-free flour (potato, rice, buckwheat and/or corn)
1 tsp. xanthan gum
1½ tbsp. instant yeast
2 tsp. salt
5 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. lemon juice
250ml warm water
2 eggs
1 cup yoghurt
2 tbsp. honey

Method – what to do:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, instant yeast and xanthan gum
3. Combine the rest of the ingredients together in a separate, large mixing bowl
4. Add the flour mixture to the liquids and mix with a dough hook until the consistency of batter is achieved
5. Transfer the dough into a lined, standard-size (roughly 9″ x 5″ x 3″) loaf tin
6. Prove dough in warm area until it doubles in volume
7. Bake for 25 minutes, depending on size of the loaf tin
8. Remove from tin and return to the oven for a further 10 minutes

Baker’s Tip: To check if your gluten-free bread is baked through, test the internal temperature of the loaf, which should be around 95°C/200°F.

BUTTERNUT & CHICKPEA BOBOTIE RECIPE

Ingredients – what you will need:

For the base mixture:
1 medium sized butternut, peeled and cut in to small cubes
150g dried chickpeas, soaked in water from night before (or tinned chickpeas)
3 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 onions, chopped
2 heads of ginger, chopped
3 whole tomatoes, chopped
2ml crushed garlic
15ml curry powder
15ml turmeric
15ml cumin powder
10ml Mother-in-Law’s Tongue (red chilli powder)
Finely grated rind and juice of ½ small lemon
60 ml raisins

For the egg custard topping, combine:
500ml cream
4 eggs
4ml salt

Method – what to do:

1. Begin by frying the onions in the butter and oil over a medium heat
2. When the onions are translucent, add the ginger, garlic, lemon and spices
3. Cook briefly until fragrant
4. Add the tomatoes, butternut, chickpeas and raisins
5. Keep cooking the mixture over a medium heat until butternut is cooked al dente
6. Preheat the oven at 180°C
7. Using your desired casserole or baking dish, spoon in your bobotie mixture and level the top
8. Cover with the egg custard and bake until the custard is set

Vegetarian and gluten-free bobotie

Traditional bobotie is a spiced mince dish of Cape Malay origin, usually served with yellow rice and condiments like raita, chutney and toasted nuts. In Lindsay’s own words, Nico’s vegetarian version is “amazing!”. Why not give it a try this weekend and share it with us on Instagram by tagging @Singita_? You can also follow @nycgrubber on Instagram for more of Lindsay’s yummy food photos.

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