Potato and Halloumi Bake

Serves 2-3

1 large sweet potato, the orange-fleshed American variety
1 large Desiree potato or other red/firm potato
1 red onion
1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
Half a head of garlic
4 tablespoons olive oil
Black pepper
125g halloumi cheese, sliced as thinly as you can
Oven proof baking dish, 25 x 15cm

1.Preheat the oven to 200C/ gas mark 6.

2.Cut the sweet potato into rough 4 cm cubes and the Desiree slightly smaller (2.5cm) as the sweet potato will cook more quickly. Halve the red onion then cut the half into 4-6 segments, discarding any tough outer skin. De-seed the peppers and cut into 2.5 cm squares, and separate the cloves of garlic.

3.Put everything into a large roasting tin or whatever you want to use (it should be big, otherwise use two dishes) and, using your hands, give the vegetables a good coating of olive oil. Season with black pepper, but no salt as the cheese will make it salty (and anyway, the salt will make water leech out).

4.Cook for 45 minutes, by which time the vegetables should be cooked through and here and there tinged with brown.

5.You'll need to turn the oven up to maximum, or light the grill for the endgame: so place the thinly sliced cheese on top of the bake, and put it back in the very hot oven or under the grill until the cheese has melted and turned slightly brown on top, about 5-10 minutes. Serve straight out of the roasting tin.

Chicken Curry Puffs

Preparation time: 1 hour 30 minutes + 30 minutes chilling
Total cooking time: 35-45 minutes

Makes about 36

Difficulty: Medium

2 tablespoons oil
400g (13oz) chicken mince
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, finely chopped
3 coriander roots, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
3 teaspoons ground coriander
1 small potato, peeled and very finely diced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander leaves and stems
3 teaspoons soft brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 small red chillies, finely chopped
¼ cup (60ml/2 fl oz) fish sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
Oil, extra, for deep frying
Chilli sauce or satay sauce, to serve

Pastry:
1½ cups (185g/6oz) plain flour
½ cup (90g/3oz) rice flour
½ teaspoon salt
60g (20z) butter
½ cup (125ml/4 fl oz) coconut milk

1. Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan. Add the mince and cook over high heat for 3 minutes, or until it is starting to brown. Break up any lumps of mince with a fork as it cooks. Add the crushed garlic, onion, coriander roots, ground turmeric, cumin and coriander, and the potato to the wok. Stir-fry over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until the mince and potato are tender.

2. Add the fresh coriander, sugar, pepper, chilli, fish sauce and lime juice. Stir until well combined and most of the liquid has evaporated, then remove from the heat and allow to cool.

3. To make the pastry, sift the flours and salt into a medium bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture is fine and crumbly. Make a well in the centre, add the coconut milk and mix with a knife until the mixture forms a dough. Gently knead until the dough is smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

4. Divide the dough in half. Roll out one half on a lightly floured surface until it is about 3mm thick, and then cut into circles with an 8cm cutter.

5. Place 2 teaspoons of the filling in the centre of each circle, brush the edges of the pastry lightly with water and fold over to enclose the filling; press the edges to seal. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough, re-rolling the scraps until the dough and the filling are all used.

6. Heat the oil in a large wok or pan. Do not put too much oil in the wok - it should be only half full. Deep-fry the puffs, in batches, until puffed and browned. Remove from the oil with a wire mesh drainer, slotted spoon or tongs and drain on paper towels. Serve hot with chilli sauce or satay sauce.

Nutrition per puff:
Protein 3.5g; Fat 8g; Carbohydrate 7g; Dietary Fibre 0.5g; Cholesterol 15mg; 463kJ (111kcal)

Note:
If time is short, use about 8 sheets of ready-rolled puff pastry, instead of making the pastry.

Vegetable Chips

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Total cooking time: 15 minutes

Serves 6-8

Difficulty: Medium

250g (8oz) orange sweet potato
250g (8oz) beetroot, peeled
250g (8oz) potato
Oil, for deep frying


1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4). Run a sharp vegetable peeler along the length of the sweet potato to create ribbons. Cut the beetroot into paper-thin slices with a sharp vegetable peeler or knife. Cut the potato into thin slices, using a mandolin slicer or knife with a crinkle-cut blade.

2. Fill a deep heavy-based saucepan one-third full of oil and heat until a cube of bread dropped into the oil browns in 10 seconds. Cook the vegetables in batches for about 30 seconds, or until golden and crisp. You may need to turn them with tongs or a long-handled metal spoon. Drain on paper towels and season with salt.

3. Place all the vegetable chips on a baking tray and keep warm in the oven while cooking the remaining vegetables. Serve with drinks.

Nutrition per serving (8)
Protein 2g; Fat 5g; Carbohydrate 12g; Dietary Fibre 2g; Cholestorol 0mg; 413kJ (99kcal)

Note: If you don't have a mandolin or crinkle-cut knife at home, simply use a sharp knife to cut fine slices. The cooking time for the chips will remain the same.