Spending your summer days in the open air, sitting around a fire, roasting marshmallows for S’mores, while you swap stories with your favourite people, couldn’t be more iconic of those carefree comforts that make extra special memories. But when it’s miserably cold and winter has put a dampener on your sunny leisure, why not bring the spirit of summer inside with some fireside snacks that you can make in your Bennett Read air fryer? (It’s more versatile than you may think!) Just take a look at some of these treats – both sweet and savoury - that will speak to your holiday spirit.
Fireside-Inspired Snacks:
1. Bring S’mores Indoors
Let’s start with one of the most widely known fireside snacks: S’mores. Mixing the fluffy texture of marshmallows, a warm and smooth chocolate melt, and a crisp sweet crunch makes sure your tastebuds always ask for more. Plus, it’s both really easy to make and affordable.
Ingredients:
- x1 Packet Marshmallows
- x1 Pack of Marie Biscuits
- x1 Slab of Milk or Dark Cooking Chocolate
Instructions:
- Line your air fryer basket with tinfoil (this stops you from having to clean off hot, melted marshmallow that have oozed out your biscuits).
- Lay out x4 Marie biscuits on top of this.
- Cut x2 marshmallows in half and place each half on a biscuit.
- Now break up your chocolate slab into individual blocks.
- Set aside x4 blocks and gently push each of these into each marshmallow half.
- Get out another x4 biscuits to place on top of your marshmallow-chocolate combo, in a biscuit-sandwich style.
- Air fry these for 2-3 minutes.
- Take them out, leave them to cool for a minute, and squish each biscuit sandwich together before eating!
2. We Vote Banana Boat!
If you’re on the banana-in-desserts team, you’ll love this steamy treat. A heavenly mix of caramelised goodness with a nutty crunch, topped with something sweet and sticky sounds like a boat we’d be onboard.
Ingredients:
- x2 Bananas
- A Handful of your favourite Nuts (like pecans, walnuts, or almonds for inspiration)
- x2 Tablespoons Honey
Instructions:
- Slice each banana (with the peel on) down the middle.
- Spoon out a shallow ‘boat’ for each half.
- Chop up your nuts and sprinkle them inside the banana hollows.
- Sprinkle honey over the tops of each boat.
- Line the air fryer basket in tinfoil and fold up the sides to form a cup. Ensure the tinfoil edges don’t touch the top of the basket. Fold them down if they do.
- Place your banana halves inside and cook for 10 minutes at 180 degrees Celcius.
- Take out your boats, leave to cool for a few minutes, and spoon out the gooey goodness within the skins.
3. Sweetly Spiced Pineapple Rings. It’s a Thing!
Another sweet treat to make in no time, especially if you’re after a taste of summer to cheer up a cold winter’s day – and what could be more summery than everyone’s favourite tropical fruit, pineapple?
Ingredients:
- x1 Tin of Pineapple Rings
- x1 Tablespoon of Brown Sugar
- x1½ Teaspoons of Nutmeg
- x1½ Teaspoons of Cinnamon
- Honey to taste
- Butter to taste
Instructions:
- Lay out as many pineapple rings as will fit in your air fryer.
- Mix the brown sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon into a ramekin and stir together.
- Sprinkle this mix over all the pineapple rings.
- Then lightly drizzle a touch of honey over each ring (pineapple is naturally sweet, so don’t overdo this).
- Now scoop a thin flake or two of butter over each ring.
- Air fry these at 180 degrees Celcius for 5-10 minutes. If you want slightly browned rings, choose 5 minutes, but if you want golden brown rings, 7-10 minutes should do the trick.
- Set aside to cool for a few minutes and then savour that summer flavour!
4. Cinnamon Rollups in the Air Fryer
And it’s a win for cinnamon recipes once again. If you’re looking for a delicate crunch with a sweet, slightly sticky and spicy pinch, you’ll appreciate this air fryer treat. So, go satisfy that sweet tooth in minutes, enjoying lazy baking at its best.
Ingredients:
- x1 Pack of Puff Pastry
- x2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
- x2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
- x1 Ramekin of Melted Butter
- x1 Pack of Thick Bamboo Skewers
Instructions:
- Lay out a sheet of defrosted puff pastry, onto a clean, flour-dusted surface.
- Use an egg brush to smear the melted butter evenly over the pastry.
- Now generously sprinkle the cinnamon and brown sugar evenly, over the pastry.
- Cut the pastry lengthwise, into thin and long strips, about 3cm wide.
- Roll up each strip into a circular spiral/wheel.
- You should be able to fit 3 wheels per skewer but make sure you grease your skewers before pushing them through your pastry wheels.
- Fit as many of these dessert skewers as you can into your air fryer basket without overloading it (remember the more air you allow to circulate, the more evenly your cinnamon roll ups will cook).
- Cook for 10 minutes.
Note: If you’d like to be a little ‘extra’ you could drizzle icing sugar over the roll ups when they’re fresh out the air fryer!
5. Corn on the Cob That’s Pure Comfort
You may not get the same taste of the flame, but you get extra juicy and flavoursome corn when you cook this wholesome side in the air fryer. The sweetness really stands out here, due to the air fryer’s dry heat caramelising the corn.
Ingredients:
- x2 Ears of Corn
- x2 Sticks of Butter/100 grams
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions:
Leave your butter to get to room temperature. Once it’s soft and spreadable, smother each ear with it.
Lay a large sheet of tinfoil (the size of a dinner plate) in your air fryer basket, then add your corn ears and cup the tinfoil around the corn. Leave enough room around the foil for the air to be able to circulate through.
Now add salt and pepper to your liking and leave to cook for 12-15 minutes at 190 degrees Celcius, ensuring you flip them halfway through the cooking.
Hot tip: Avoid stuffing too many ears of corn into your basket as this will restrict air circulation and lead to uneven cooking.
6. Air Fryer Stokbroodjies to Reignite Those Childhood Memories
If you haven’t tried bread on a stick or stokbroodjies while camping, can you even call yourself South African? This simple delight requires a bit of prep beforehand but it’s still really quick and easy to make and the fluffy, pull-apart bread is well worth the effort.
Ingredients:
- 500g White Bread Flour
- 10ml Salt
- 15ml Sugar
- 10g Instant Yeast (1 packet)
- 300ml Lukewarm Water
- 60ml Olive Oil
- 30cm Dowel Stick *Recipe courtesy of Anchor Yeast (www.ilove2bake.co.za)
Instructions:
- Add all the dry ingredients together.
- Mix the olive oil and water.
- Dust your working surface with flour.
- Add the olive oil and water mixture to the mix of dry ingredients and stir together.
- Once a fairly smooth texture has formed, place the dough on the dusted surface and knead for 10 minutes.
- Put this back in the bowl and cover it with a dish cloth.
- Let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Once the dough has proofed, divide it into 12 pieces, roughly the same size.
- Roll each piece into a round ball and leave these on a greased tray, spaced far apart.
- Grease the dowel stick with oil or butter.
- Take each round ball and roll them out into a long strip of dough around 20cm in length.
- Wrap each strip around the greased dowel and leave these to sit on a tray and rise some more – approximately 10 minutes.
- Cook 2-3 stokbroodjies at a time, in your air fryer, for 7 minutes (flip the stokbroodjies halfway through) or until golden brown.
- Set aside to cool for a few minutes and serve with your preferred condiments.
Hot tip: You can try complementing the air fryer stokbroodjies with honey, maple syrup, or jam if you want something sweet. Otherwise, add garlic butter or sour cream with balsamic reduction for a savoury snack.
Alternative idea: Wrap the dough around a sausage instead of dowel stick and enjoy the South African version of a corn dog!
7. Air Fryer French Toast is Everything Good in This World
We bet you didn’t think French toast was something you could make in an air fryer! Forget the frying pan and the extra oil and enjoy this savoury treat you’ll want to make again.
Ingredients:
- x1 Slice of Bread (of your choice)
- x2 Eggs
- ½ A Cup of Milk
- A Pinch of Salt
- Pepper to your taste
- x1 Teaspoon Vanilla Essence
Instructions:
- Roll out a sheet of tinfoil and place your slice of bread on top, leaving 10cm of foil along each side of your bread, and tear.
- Cup the foil around your bread, folding the sides up and ensuring there are no holes or tears.
- Get out a rectangular baking dish and grease it (or use spray ‘n cook).
- Crack your two eggs into the dish, add your milk, vanilla essence, salt, and pepper, and whisk until thoroughly combined.
- Now place your slice of bread into this mixture and leave it to soak up most of the mixture on either side.
- Put the foil cup inside the air fryer and using an egg lifter, gently place your egg bread inside of this so that no liquid leaks through.
- Put your air fryer on for 8 minutes, flipping over halfway through so that each side browns nicely.
- Remove the basket after cooking and leave aside to cool for a few minutes before serving.
Hot tip: You can add all sorts of combinations of condiments and spices to liven this dish up. Try jam and cheese, top it with butter and maple syrup, or sprinkle some cinnamon and brown sugar on. If you want to keep it savoury, tomato sauce is a simple yet delicious complement.
Do you have any fire-side snack inspiration for us? Share your air fryer alternative with us on social and don’t forget to tag us @BennettReadZA.
