Root veg to stretch your rands

This vegetarian, Moroccan-inspired sweet potato dhal will fill you up, and there’s enough for leftovers.

For the dhal:

• 1 T cumin seeds
• 1 T fennel seeds
• 1 t coriander seeds, crushed
• 1 t fenugreek
• 3 pods cardamom, bruised
• 3 T extra virgin olive oil
• 1 T ground turmeric
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 1 green pepper, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 T garam masala
• 1 T red wet masala
• 4 medium orange sweet potatoes
• Yellow split peas 1 kg, rinsed and soaked overnight
• 2 T honey
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Tzatziki, for serving
• Shredded beetroot, for serving
• Woolworths Seed Mix, to garnish

Method:

1. Place the cumin, fennel, coriander, fenugreek and cardamom in a cold pan and heat gradually until the spices begin to pop. Shake the pan and, once fragrant, remove from the heat.
2. Heat the olive oil in a heavy-based saucepan and add the turmeric, onion, green pepper, ginger and garlic and fry over a medium heat until translucent.
3. Stir in the spices, garam masala, red wet masala and sweet potato. Lastly, add the split peas and soaking water and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Add the honey and season with salt and pepper.
4. Serve the dhal with tzatziki, beetroot and flat bread. Garnish with the seed mix.

This creamy bake uses two budget-friendly veg – sweet potato and butternut. It’s just the thing to warm you from the inside.

Ingredients:

• Baby leeks punnet 300 g, thinly sliced
• 3 T olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• Ready-to-use butternut chunks 500 g
• 3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• Thyme, a few sprigs
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Grated Parmesan, for serving

For the sweet potato bake:

• Sweet potato 500 g, scrubbed or peeled and thinly sliced
• Butter, for greasing
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 3 free range eggs
• ½ cup cream
• 1 clove garlic
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method:

1. Soften the leeks in the oil until tender, then stir in the garlic. Add the butternut and stir. Add the carrots and the stock, then the thyme and a little seasoning. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, or until tender.
2. To make the sweet potato bake, simmer the sweet potato in salted water for 10–15 minutes until tender. Drain, then turn into a greased baking dish. Whisk the stock, eggs, cream, garlic and seasoning. Pour over the potatoes and bake at 190° C for 20 minutes, or until set. Serve with the butternut and Parmesan.

(Serves 4)

Parsnips aren’t just for making soup, they’re delicious roasted too. And making your own pasta doesn’t require lots of ingredients either.

Ingredients:

• Flour 500 g
• 6 free range eggs
• 1 T olive oil
• ½ t salt
• Semolina flour, for dusting
• 6 small parsnips
• 2 T olive oil
• Butter 60 g
• Pine nuts 30 g
• Sage leaves 10 g
• 1 clove nutmeg, freshly grated, for sprinkling

Method:

1. Place the flour on a clean work surface then create a well. Add the eggs to the well then carefully incorporate into the flour, with the oil and salt, until a dough begins to form.
2. Knead the dough until supple, then cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
3. Dust the work surface with semolina flour, then using a rolling pin or pasta-rolling machine, roll out the pasta dough to your desired thickness.
4. Using a flower-shaped cookie cutter, cut out flower shapes from the dough. Place a saucepan of water over a high heat. Add a little salt then bring to the boil. Add the pasta cut-outs then cook for a few minutes, until al dente.
5. Cut the parsnips into fairly thick slices then rub with olive oil and place on a ridged pan over a high heat. Cook until char lines appear on either side.
6. Place the butter in a pan over a medium heat. Once melted, add the pine nuts and sage leaves then cook until evenly coated and golden brown.
7. Toss the cooked pasta with the sage butter and pine nuts then spoon over the char-grilled parsnip. Serve immediately with a sprinkle of grated nutmeg.

(Serves 4)

Beetroot is delicious roasted, especially with sweet figs and creamy blue cheese.

Ingredients:

• 2 sheets Woolworths Frozen Puff Pastry, thawed
• 1 free range egg, beaten
• 2 T milk
• Woolworths De Leeuwen Cheese 150 g
• 4 – 6 baby beetroots, roasted and sliced
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 4 – 6 figs, quartered
• Thyme, for serving

1. Method:
2. Preheat the oven to 190° C. Trim the pastry to fit a 30 x 22cm baking tray, overlapping it in the middle to make one large sheet of pastry.
3. Score the pastry to form evenly sized squares, taking care not to cut all the way through. Brush with the egg and milk and bake for 10 minutes, or until the pastry begins to puff and turn golden.
4. Remove from the oven and crumble a little cheese into the middle of each square, then top with a slice of beetroot. Bake for a further 5 minutes, or until the pastry has cooked through.
5. Heat the honey in a saucepan, then stir in the balsamic vinegar. Drizzle over the tarts and top each one with a wedge of fig and garnish with thyme.

(Serves 6)

Feeling inspired?

SHOP ROOT VEGGIES