Hello, I'm Maretha. I'm a South African-born home cook in Sheffield, United Kingdom, creating comforting recipes for real kitchens, wherever yours happens to be.
The Cinnamon Jar is for home cooks who want food that feels familiar, generous and doable, but still interesting enough to make dinner feel less like a chore.
Some recipes come from my South African roots, some from my life in the UK and others from wherever my appetite has wandered. You'll find cosy dinners, curries, bakes, desserts, pasta dishes, tray bakes and South African favourites.
Nothing too precious. Nothing that asks you to buy one strange ingredient, use a teaspoon of it and then let it haunt your cupboard for the next three years. Just clear, practical recipes with plenty of flavour and the sort of details that help them work the first time.
What you'll find here
- South African, British and globally inspired comfort food.
- Recipes for real home cooks, not restaurant kitchens.
- Clear steps, practical tips and cooking cues.
- Ingredient notes, swaps and supermarket-friendly suggestions.
- Troubleshooting help for the bits that can go wrong.
- Honest context around traditional and adapted recipes.
- Cosy bakes, creamy dinners, curries, puddings and nostalgic treats.
What matters most to me
I want every recipe to feel useful, honest and worth your time. Some dishes are traditional. Some are gently adapted. Some are globally inspired rather than strictly authentic. I'll always try to be clear about the difference.
I want my recipes to feel reassuring, especially if you're making something for the first time. If a sauce might split, I'll tell you. If an ingredient swap changes the texture, I'll say so. If a shortcut works, wonderful. If it doesn't, I won't pretend it does.
My cooking background
I'm a self-taught home cook with more than 30 years of hands-on cooking behind me, plus a few years working in hospitality earlier in life.
I grew up in South Africa, where the women in my family could make beautiful food from simple ingredients. That shaped the way I cook now: generous, practical, resourceful and full of flavour.
I'm not a formally trained chef, and I don't pretend to be one. My focus is home cooking that feels trustworthy, doable and worth your time. I test recipes in my own kitchen and write them with the details I'd want if I were making something for the first time.
Why South African food appears so often here
South African food is a big part of my story. It's the food I grew up with: bobotie, pannekoek, curry noodle salad, milk tart, soetkoekies, malva pudding and all the dishes that taste like family, sunshine and a school fête table at the same time.
Living in the UK has made those recipes feel even more meaningful to me. Cooking them keeps me connected to home, and sharing them here helps other South Africans abroad, curious cooks and comfort-food lovers find their own way to them too.
Where ingredients differ between South Africa, the UK and the US, I try to explain the closest options clearly. Nobody should have to abandon a recipe because one ingredient has decided to live under a different name in another country.
Why "The Cinnamon Jar"?
Cinnamon has always felt like home to me.
It was part of the food I grew up with, especially in South African baking and puddings. The smell still takes me back to family kitchens, warm spices and food made with care rather than fuss.
A cinnamon jar is small and ordinary, but open it and suddenly everything feels warmer. That's what I want this blog to be: a simple place to find food that feels comforting, useful and a little bit special.
A little more about me
I'm an introverted overthinker, a lover of pre-90s music - before everything got a bit questionable - detective shows, nostalgic food and quiet days at home.
I'm happiest with something bubbling on the stove, something buttery cooling on the counter and a new thing to learn. I have a long history of start-stop hobbies, which I prefer to think of as "ongoing research" rather than evidence against me.
When I'm not cooking, I'm usually photographing food, working on the blog, learning something new or overthinking one thing or another.
What I hope you'll feel here
I hope The Cinnamon Jar feels like a calm, useful place to cook from.
You don't need chef-level skills. You don't need a perfect kitchen. You don't need to know what every ingredient does before you start.
I'll guide you through the recipe, explain what matters and point out the bits that can trip you up. You bring the appetite. I'll bring the notes.
If you have a question, suggestion or just want to say hello, you can get in touch through my contact page.
Welcome to The Cinnamon Jar. I'm very glad you're here.
Can you use one of my photos?
Sure! You are welcome to republish a photo on your website/blog/newsletter - but please always link it back to the recipe or blog post you pulled it from.
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