Women in food: Christine Capendale

Christine Capendale, qualified home economist, dietician, and cookbook author, recalls her earliest memories being centered around cooking and baking with her mom – “not even able to reach the counter, standing on a chair helping her!” – and has been a foodie all her life.

She obtained a BSc degree in home economics and dietetics from Stellenbosch University, and today, she has over 20 years of experience in the catering, speciality cakes, recipe development, food styling and food consulting industries.

“I taught Home Economics for 5 years and started a catering company after the birth of my youngest daughter.  After winning a major foodie competition (IDEAS DOMESTIC GODDESS 2007) I opened up my first Food studio from where I gave cooking classes and did cooking team-building experiences,” says Capendale.

Nowadays, she teaches cooking classes and develops recipes and content for food companies’ digital platforms from her food studio in Hermanus. With over 19,000 followers on Instagram, @christinecapendale, she also manages a growing digital foodie community.

“Keeping up with technology has been a challenge but I love new challenges and believe we should never stop learning,” she says. “I LOVE what I do and it is the biggest joy to do what you absolutely love EVERY single day!”

In honour of August coming to a close, Capendale shares that she sees Women’s Month as a “celebration of sisterhood”.

“It is a reminder to celebrate the extraordinary roles in all spheres of society that women fulfill, plus it is an opportunity to pay tribute to the generations of women whose struggles laid the foundations for the progress made in empowering women and achieving gender equality to date.”

Find Christine Capendale’s Steamed Apple and Pecan Tarte Tatin with a Butterscotch sauce below, and don’t forget to tag us @foodandhomesa #CookingWithFH on Instagram if you made this recipe!

Steamed Apple and Pecan Tarte Tatin with a Butterscotch sauce

Print Recipe

Steamed Apple and Pecan Tarte Tatin with a Butterscotch sauce

Dessert, Tea Time

By Christine Capendale – Serves: 8

Ingredients

• Butterscotch sauce
• 100g butter
• 200g brown sugar
• 150ml cream
• 5ml vanilla
• Tarte tatin
• 6 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cored, cut into quarters (or smaller)
• 100g butter
• 180g brown sugar
• 5ml ground cinnamon
• 100g lightly toasted, chopped pecan nuts
• 1 sheet puff pastry

Instructions

1

Mix together the ingredients for the butterscotch sauce in a small saucepan on medium heat, stir to melt the sugar and cook until it is thick and a syrup (110°C) Optional to stir in 5 ml Maldon salt

2

Preheat your oven to 200°C

3

Melt the butter and NATURA golden light brown sugar together on low heat and cook until caramelised in the pan that you are going to use to bake your tarte tatin. The pan must be ovenproof.

4

Remove from the heat once the caramel is a dark golden brown and place the apples neatly in the caramel. Scatter with half of the pecan nuts.

5

Roll out the puff pastry on a floured worktop and cut a circle a bit bigger than the pan (about 4cm larger in diameter)

6

Cover with the puff pastry and tuck in the pastry so that the fruit is contained. Cut a slit in the centre of the pastry to let out steam.

7

Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, then place a serving dish on top of the pan and carefully turn upside down (work quickly and be very carefully!). Remove the pan. If any fruit has moved out of place, now is the time to carefully put them back in place if necessary.

8

Return the pan to the heat and quickly toss the rest of the pecan nuts in the remaining caramel sauce for a few seconds. Scatter the pecans over the tart. Cool, garnish with sprigs of thyme and serve with crème fraiche, whipped cream or ice cream and the butterscotch sauce.

ALSO SEE: Women in food: Dudu Nzolo

Women in food: Dudu Nzolo

Images: Supplied/Christine Capendale

Feature Image: Sourced/michaelolivier.co.za