⏱ Prep: 30 min 🔥Bake: 25 min 👤Makes: About 20 🥥Style: Sponge cake
South African ystervarkies, Afrikaans for “little porcupines” are small cubes of vanilla sponge dipped in glossy chocolate sauce and rolled in desiccated coconut until they bristle just enough to earn the name. They’re the South African cousin of the Australian lamington, but smaller, and they’ve been showing up at school bake sales, church fêtes and tea trays for generations. Soft, sweet, chocolatey, and one of those treats that instantly says home to anyone who grew up on them.
Ingredients
For the sponge
- 4 large eggs
- 200g caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 200g self-raising flour, sifted
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 60g butter, melted
For the chocolate dip
- 60g butter
- 60ml milk
- 60g cocoa powder
- 250g icing sugar, sifted
- Pinch of salt
To finish
- About 250g desiccated coconut, fine and unsweetened works best, keep it fresh and topped up as you go
Step by step
- Bake the sponge. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Line a 23cm x 23cm square tin. Whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla until pale and thick. Sift in half the flour and gently fold through, then sift in the remaining flour, baking powder and salt and fold again until just combined. Fold in the melted butter. Pour into the tin and bake for 25–30 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
- Cool the sponge fully. Let the cake cool completely in the tin, then ideally leave it overnight before cutting.A cooled, slightly firmer sponge cuts cleanly and holds together far better in the chocolate dip than a fresh, soft cake. Don’t skip this rest if you can avoid it.
- Cut into small cubes. Trim the edges and cut the sponge into roughly 3cm cubes, small is traditional and authentic here.
- Make the chocolate dip. Melt the butter with the milk in a bowl, then whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Add the icing sugar and salt, whisking until glossy and the consistency of a thick coating sauce.
- Dip and coat. Place coconut in a shallow bowl. Dip each sponge cube into the chocolate sauce using two forks, letting the excess drip off for a few seconds, then roll immediately in the coconut until fully coated.Don’t oversoak the cubes in the chocolate, a quick dip is all you need, or they’ll turn soft and fall apart. Keep the coconut topped up too; wet coconut won’t stick well.
- Set and serve. Place finished ystervarkies on a wire rack to set for a few minutes before serving.
Ystervarkies vs lamingtons
Same basic concept, sponge cake, chocolate, coconut, but South African ystervarkies are typically much smaller than their Australian counterparts, usually just 3 to 4cm per cube rather than the larger lamington squares. The smaller size is part of what makes them so easy to pop one (or several) into your mouth at a tea party.
Make it your own
Claire’s note
A splash of orange zest or a drop of coffee in the chocolate sauce adds a nice twist. Some people sandwich two cubes together with apricot jam before dipping, for a little surprise in the middle. Ystervarkies are best eaten within a day or two, store them airtight at room temperature, since refrigeration can dull the coconut and firm the coating too much.
Serve with
South African ystervarkies are classic with a cup of rooibos tea or coffee. For more from the South African recipes and the complete African food guide has it all.
Add South African ystervarkies to your weekly meal planner for your next bake sale or tea-time gathering. And for more recipes, follow us on Pinterest.
Print
South African Ystervarkies
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: About 20 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
These small, vanilla sponge cubes are dipped in chocolate and rolled in coconut, perfect for tea-time or bake sales.
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 200g caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 200g self-raising flour, sifted
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 60g butter, melted
- 60g butter (for chocolate dip)
- 60ml milk
- 60g cocoa powder
- 250g icing sugar, sifted
- Pinch of salt (for chocolate dip)
- About 250g desiccated coconut
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and line a 23cm x 23cm square tin.
- Whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla until pale and thick.
- Sift in half the flour and gently fold through, then sift in the remaining flour, baking powder, and salt and fold again until just combined.
- Fold in the melted butter.
- Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 25–30 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
- Cool the sponge fully in the tin, ideally letting it rest overnight.
- Cut the sponge into roughly 3cm cubes.
- Melt the butter with the milk in a bowl, then whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth.
- Add the icing sugar and salt, whisking until glossy.
- Dip each sponge cube into the chocolate sauce, then roll immediately in the coconut until fully coated.
- Set the finished ystervarkies on a wire rack for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
For added flavor, a splash of orange zest or a drop of coffee can be added to the chocolate sauce. Best eaten within a day or two, stored airtight at room temperature.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: South African
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 250
- Sugar: 20g
- Sodium: 150mg
- Fat: 10g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 35g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 80mg
