Lamb Mince, Sultana & Pistachio Sweet Potato Boats

Preparation 10 Minutes

Cook 90 Minutes

Serves 4-6

Method

Preheat oven to 200°C. Prick sweet potatoes with a fork, arrange on a rimmed oven tray, and cover pan tightly with foil. Bake 1 hour. Remove foil, brush potatoes with 2 tsp oil, and bake a further 15 – 20 minutes – or until potatoes are very soft when pierced with a sharp knife.

While the sweet potatoes roast, place a heavy-based skillet over medium heat. Add remaining 1 1/2 Tbsp oil, diced onion, and 1/2 tsp salt. Cook 5 – 7 minutes, until onions have started to soften.

Add garlic, cumin, paprika, and harissa or tomato paste, to the onion. Stir for 1 minute, then add lamb mince and break up with a spatula.

Cook a further 3 – 5 minutes, until lamb mince is golden and cooked through. Remove from heat and stir through sultanas.

Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and cool slightly. Slice in half lengthwise, and scoop out flesh, leaving a 1 cm border of potato in the skins. Return potato halves to the tray, and add sweet potato flesh to the lamb mince. Roughly mash larger pieces of potato and stir to combine with mince. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer lamb mixture to the hollowed sweet potato halves, and bake a further 10 – 15 mins, until crisp on top and warmed through.

Top stuffed sweet potatoes with a dollop of yoghurt, toasted pistachios and fresh herbs. Serve with a simple rocket salad or steamed green veg.

Tips

• Sweet potatoes can be microwaved until tender, then brushed with oil, transferred to a baking tray and roasted in a 200°C oven for a further 5 – 7 minutes to crisp skin. Continue from Step 5 above.

Ingredients

4 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed

2 Tbsp olive oil, divided

400 g lamb mince

1 brown onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 Tbsp harissa or tomato paste

90 g Sunbeam Sultanas

Salt and pepper

TO SERVE

1/2 cup plain natural or Greek yoghurt

60 g Sunbeam Pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped

fresh mint, coriander, or parsley, finely sliced

rocket salad or steamed green veg

Recipe Collection

Classic Christmas Pudding

  1. Combine fruit, brandy, rinds and apple. Cover and set aside overnight or for at least 2 hours.
  2. Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, beat in golden syrup. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition.
  3. Combine breadcrumbs, flour, spices and almonds. Add creamed butter mixture and soaked fruit, mixing well to combine.
  4. Grease a 2 litre capacity pudding basin, line the base with a double layer of baking paper.
  5. Spoon mixture into the basin and smooth top. Double line the top with baking paper rounds.
  6. Take a 60cm long piece of baking paper and 60cm piece of foil, layer and fold in half, make a 3cm pleat in the middle (this allows for any expansionof the pudding). Place sheets over pudding and secure tightly with string. Place a wire rack onto the base of a large saucepan, fill one third with water and bring to boil. Carefully place pudding onto wire rack making sure the water level comes about halfway up pudding basin. Cover and simmer for 6 hours, replenish water when needed.
  7. Remove from water, stand for 10 minutes before turning out. Serve cut into slices with cream and maple syrup.

Crunchy Apple Slaw

  1. Place pinenuts and sesame seeds in a small frying pan and cook for 5 minutes until golden and toasted. Set aside.
  2. Combine the cabbage, apples, spring onions, raisins and mint in a large mixing bowl and toss well.
  3. Whisk together the oil and vinegar. Season to taste. Pour over apple mixture and toss well. Spoon onto serving platter and sprinkle with toasted seeds and nuts and some additional mint leaves.

Sweet Treats

Preheat the oven to 170°C. Line a large baking tray with baking paper.

  1. Combine oats, sugar, coconut, cinnamon, almonds, walnuts, oil and honey in a bowl. Mix with hands compacting together. Bake in the oven for 5 minutes and then stir and return for another 5 minutes.
  2. Stir in currants and sultanas and bake for a further 5-8 minutes to ensure the granola is evenly golden brown.
  3. Allow to cool completely before serving with milk or a good dollop of yoghurt.

Almond Sultana Florentines

Preheat oven to 160°C.

  1. Combine butter and condensed milk in a small bowl.
  2. Mix together almonds, coconut, cherries and sultanas until evenly distributed and pour over butter mixture and quickly mix with a wooden spoon until mixture comes together.
  3. Place tablespoons of the mixture onto baking paper lined oven trays, flattening and shaping into 3cm rounds, allow at least 3cm between biscuits for spreading. Bake for 10 minutes. Allow to cool on trays and transfer to wire racks. (If baking in a slice pan, press mixture to approximately 1cm thick and bake for 15 minutes and allow to cool. Top with melted chocolate and leave to set. Slice to serve.)
  4. When cool spread the base of each biscuit with a teaspoon of chocolate and leave to set. Can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 months.

Tip: Use damp fingers to shape and flatten biscuits.

Hot Cross Cookies

 

  • Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line cookie trays with baking paper.
  • Beat butter, vanilla, sugars and egg in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; stir in sifted flour and bicarb soda, in two batches. Stir in fruit, nuts & chocolate.
  • Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls; place 5cm apart on trays.
  • Bake cookies 15 minutes or until golden; cool on trays.
  • Once cookies are cooled, pipe cross with melted white chocolate.

Notes: Each cookie weighed 50g before cooking to make 24. Keep a few extra currants and choc chips to add to cookies when removed from oven to decorate top.

Walnut Sultana Zucchini Carrot Cake

Preheat oven to 180ºC (160ºC fan).  Grease and line base and sides of two x 22.5cm (9”) round baking tins. 

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with beater attachment, combine zucchini, carrot, flour, sugar, 50g of walnuts, sultanas and spices.  Mix on low until just combined.

Whisk together oil and eggs then add to the zucchini mixture and beat on low until just combined.  Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared tins, smoothing the surfaces.  Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cakes comes out clean.  Allow the cakes to cool in tins for an hour, then invert onto a baking rack to cool completely.

To make the icing, combine butter and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment.  Whisk until smooth.  Add sifted icing sugar and whisk until smooth and fluffy.

To decorate, spread half the icing on top of one cake.  Arrange the second cake on top and spread with remaining icing.  Sprinkle with chopped walnuts to decorate.

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