Sweet Potato Latkes

with lime yoghurt dip

One of the fun things about cooking is taking a good recipe and trying it with different ingredients. As a bit of an experiment I decided to try making the courgette and halloumi recipe with sweet potato. I made a few minor adjustments and lo and behold, the result was wonderful! Crisp and crunchy on the outside, soft and spicy inside and not too sweet as the cheese and lime zest balance out the flavours. I started out thinking of them as sweet potato fritters but then realised in fact, they were an updated version of the potato latkes my mother used to make when I was a child, so this was true comfort food for me.

I’ve tried this with a combination of cheeses – grated hard cheese, crumbled, feta, ricotta – basically whatever I have at the time and it all works. I would recommend though, using the cardamon as it really adds a wonderful level of flavour.

Sweet Potato Latkes

Ingredients

• 2 medium sweet potatoes (approx. 500 grams)
• Approx. 1/2 cup chopped green onion
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 cup cheese, Mix grated cheddar, ricotta, feta or any suitable cheese on hand.
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1tsp lime (or lemon) zest
• 50 g flour or more as needed
• 1.5 tsp freshly ground coriander seed
• Crushed seeds from 6-8 crushed cardamom pods
• Pinch of ground chilli
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper – approx 1/2 tsp each
• Vegetable oil for frying

For the lime yogurt dip

• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• Zest from half a lime (or lemon)
• Salt and black pepper

Method

Start by peeling and coarsely grating the sweet potato. You should use either a coarse cheese grater or a food processor.

Add the onion, garlic, cheese, spices, lime zest, flour, salt and black pepper to the grated sweet potato. Mix and taste to check the seasoning. The amount of salt you need will depend on the cheese you use. Add the beaten eggs and mix it together and squeeze a few handfuls to see that it’s slightly sticky.

Heat approximately 1/4 inch of oil in your frying pan and once the oil is hot, scoop spoonfuls of the mixture into the pan, press down gently to flatten and fry for about 3 to 4 minutes each side. Control the heat so that they don’t burn but not so low that they soak up the oil. Cook till golden and crispy on both sides and remove with a slotted spoon and place on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.

To make the lime yogurt dip, simply mix the lime zest and a sprinkling of salt and black pepper into some Greek yoghurt.

You can serve this as an starter or as part of a main course. The gorgeous colour and warm flavours make this a lovely, comforting and quite addictive winter dish. Definitely one to try!