Roasted Orange Sweet Potato and Ditalini Patties

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Total cooking time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Serves 4

Difficulty: Easy

2 orange sweet potatoes (about 800g/1lb 10oz in total)
½ cup (90g/3oz) ditalini
30g (1oz) toasted pine nuts
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
½ cup (50g/1½oz) grated Parmesan
35g (1¼oz) dry breadcrumbs
Plain flour, for dusting
Olive oil, for shallow-frying

1. Preheat the oven to very hot 250°C (500°F/Gas 10). Pierce the sweet potatoes several times with a fork, then place in a roasting tin and roast for about 1 hour, or until soft. Remove from the oven and cool. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling water until al dente. Drain and rinse under running water.

2. Peel the sweet potato and mash the flesh with a potato masher or fork, then add the pine nuts, garlic, basil, Parmesan, breadcrumbs and the pasta and combine. Season.

3. Shape the mixture into eight even patties (about 1.5cm thick) with floured hands, then lightly dust the patties with flour. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the patties in batches over medium heat for 2 minutes each side, or until golden and heated through. Drain on crumpled paper towels, sprinkle with salt and serve immediately. grreat with a fresh green salad.

Nutrition per serving:
Protein 13.5g; Fat 15g; Carbohydrate 51g; Dietary Fibre 5.5g; Cholesterol 12mg; 1650kJ (395kcal)

Note:
To save time, drop spoonfuls of the mixture into the pan and flatten with an oiled spatula.

Serving suggestion:
The patties are great with aïoli - mix 1 clove of crused garlic into 90g/3oz whole-egg mayonnaise with a squeeze of lemon juice and season.

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.