Sweet potato and courgette fritters

These delicious fritters can also be made with carrots or sweetcorn, or try a mixture, depending on what you've got. They freeze beautifully for up to 3 months.

MAKES 12 FRITTERS

  • 450g (1lb) sweet potatoes
  • 225g (8oz) courgettes
  • 5 spring onions, finely chopped
  • small handful fresh basil leaves,
  • finely chopped, plus extra to
  • garnish
  • 2 large eggs
  • 4 tbsp milk or buttermilk
  • 50g (2oz) self-raising flour
  • 25g (1oz) cornflour
  • rapeseed oil, for cooking
  • sea salt and freshly ground
  • black pepper
  • cucumber raita, to serve

1 Preheat the oven to 110°C (225°F/gas mark ¼).

2 Peel the sweet potatoes and top and tail the courgettes, then grate both – you’ll need 500g (1lb 2oz) in total. Place in a bowl with the spring onions and basil and season to taste. Break the eggs into a jug and beat with the milk or buttermilk. Sift the self-raising flour and cornflour over the sweet potato and courgette mixture, then mix in the egg mixture until you have a thick batter.

3 Heat some oil in a large non-stick frying pan set on a medium to high heat. Working in batches, add large spoonfuls of the sweet potato and courgette batter to the pan, pressing them down to about 1cm (½in) thick with the back of a spoon. The batter should make 12 fitters in total. Cook gently for 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown, carefully turning them over with a fish slice to avoid them breaking up. It’s worth pressing the sweet potato cakes down gently with a palette knife or fish slice as they cook to help press them into shape. Keep warm in a low oven while you cook the remainder.

4 To serve, arrange the sweet potato and courgette fritters on plates with a separate bowl of the cucumber raita and scatter over the basil leaves to garnish.

Roasted Mediterranean vegetables with couscous and feta

This dish is delicious hot or cold. Try using any combination of Mediterranean vegetables you fancy. However, it’s important that the vegetables are not too crowded in the roasting tin, otherwise they’ll stew rather than roast. If in doubt, use two smaller tins and swap the shelves in the oven halfway through roasting to ensure they cook evenly.

SERVES 4

  • 2 red peppers, halved, deseeded and
  • cut into 2.5cm (1in) squares
  • 2 yellow peppers, halved, deseeded
  • and cut into 2.5cm (1in) squares
  • 2 large courgettes, cut into 2.5cm
  • (1in) pieces
  • 1 large aubergine, cut into 2.5cm
  • (1in) pieces
  • 1 large red onion, cut into 2.5cm
  • (1in) pieces
  • 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • handful of fresh basil leaves
  • 1 red chilli, deseeded and
  • finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 225g (8oz) couscous
  • juice of ½ lemon
  • 225ml (8fl oz) vegetable stock
  • 175g (6oz) feta cheese, cut into
  • small cubes
  • good handful of good-quality pitted
  • black olives
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F/gas mark 8).

2 Heat a large roasting tin in the oven. Place the red and yellow peppers, courgettes, aubergine and onion in a large bowl and drizzle over 3 tablespoons of the oil, tossing to coat the vegetables evenly, then tip into the heated roasting tin. Season generously and roast for about 40 minutes, until the vegetables are completely tender and lightly caramelised, tossing from time to time to ensure they cook evenly. About 10 minutes before the vegetables are ready, quickly chop up the basil and scatter it over the vegetables with the chilli and garlic, tossing to combine, then return to the oven to finish cooking.

3 Five minutes before the end of the vegetables’ cooking time, place the couscous in a large pan and drizzle over the remaining 3 tablespoons of the olive oil with the lemon juice, stirring gently to combine. Bring the vegetable stock to the boil, then pour it over the couscous in a bowl. Stir well, cover and leave to stand for 5 minutes before gently separating the grains with a fork. Season to taste and reheat gently, stirring continuously with a fork, then fold in the roasted vegetables, feta, olives and parsley. Serve warm or cold on plates.