It’s seemed as if I haven’t had much time on my hands lately and it makes me sad that I haven’t been creating nice things to share with you all! This weekend, today was a dedicated work day, leaving yesterday free for me to spend as I pleased. Clearly I took the chance to indulge in a little kitchen play-time!

I didn’t have any clear-cut ideas of what I wanted to make other than that sweet potatoes were to be involved, but a little experimenting actually produced a rather yummy result. Another lesson learnt from cooking: sometimes it’s better to go with the flow, forget the plans and trust your instincts

Fortunately, I’m also getting better at this cooking note-taking thing so I can actually pass this recipe on to you and remind myself of how to make this meal again too.

I had also picked up a couple of rather lovely looking cabbages at the market yesterday morning, again with no plans for them, so decided to crack into them straight away and made a simple Asian-style slaw. You can’t go wrong with a crunchy, flavourful salad, whatever the season or occasion. Not in my opinion anyway.

Asian Cabbage Slaw:

1/2 Red Cabbage, shredded
1/2 White Cabbage, shredded (Approx 6-8C Shredded Vegetables)
2 Spring Onions, julienned
Pinch of Chili Flakes (optional)
Juice of 1 Lime (Approx 2T)
1” Fresh Ginger, Minced
3T Brown Rice Vinegar
1T Tamari
1/2t Coconut Sugar (or other sweetener)
1t Sesame Oil
1T Neutral Oil
1/2C Chopped Toasted Cashews (optional)

Combine the shredded cabbage and green onions in a large bowl. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix well. This salad benefits from sitting at room temperature for a while to allow the flavours to mingle and the cabbage to slightly soften. I added some toasted cashews to the leftovers and would recommend it!

Back to the main kitchen experiment, or Sweet Potato, Red Lentil & Sesame Patties as I’m naming the result. These are very straightforward but a little fancier and prettier than your average baked sweet potato. Some extra protein and sturdiness comes in the form of red lentils and chickpea flour and a generous sprinkle of sesame seeds and green onions adds more flavour. Served alongside a little lime spiked non-dairy yogurt you’ve got a fun appetizer, or with the cabbage slaw too, a full meal.

Sweet Potato, Red Lentil & Sesame Patties:

2 Medium Sweet Potatoes, Baked in their Skins (to yield 1 1/2C Mashed)
1/2C Red Lentils
1/2C Chickpea Flour
2T Sesame Seeds, Toasted
3-4 Green Onions, Chopped
Salt & Pepper

Bake Sweet potatoes if you haven’t done so already. Simply prick them with a fork, place on a baking tray to catch any drips and cook in a preheated oven at 200C/400F for approx 45 minutes, or until soft. Set aside to cool.

Rinse the red lentils well then add to a pan with 1C water. Bring to boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, or until water is all absorbed. Set aside to cool.

Remove sweet potatoes from their skins and mash well in a bowl with the red lentils. Add the chickpea flour, toasted sesame seeds, green onions and seasoning and stir well to combine.

Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up a little as the mixture will likely be very soft.

Preheat oven to 180C/350F, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a large cookie scoop or 1/4C measuring cup scoop spoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking sheet. Using damp fingers flatten into patties and smooth the tops if necessary.

Bake for approx 25 minutes until the surfaces are dry. Leave to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheets as they are a little fragile straight out of the oven. They firm up further once cooled.

Serve with non-dairy yogurt with a squeeze of lime, or your favourite dip.

Makes 10-12

Wishing you all a happy December!

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