Sweet potato and turnip doughnuts

I have a sweet jaw, not just a sweet tooth, but I am mindful of the wisdom of enjoying things in moderation. Judging by my posts, you may be fearing that I eat mainly sweet things. So I decided to redress the balance. If I had two blogs the other one would be called 'No More Rice Cakes!' So in honour of the blog that time does not permit, I will label all savoury recipes under this name.

Looking around the fridge I only really had a turnip and sweet potato so I decided to make a variation on a popular Indian street food called vada. They are essentially spiced balls cooked in a batter. Even though they sound sweet, they are deliciously light and spicy.

Sweet potato and turnip doughnuts

Ingredients:

1 large sweet potato
1 turnip
2 garlic cloves
1cm ginger
1 tsp asafoetida
1 tsp turmeric
2 tsp ground coriander
1 chilli

50g gram flour
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
50ml water

Method:

Peel the sweet potato and trim the turnip and cut into wedges. Boil for about 25 minutes until soft. In the meantime, chop the garlic, ginger and chilli.

Heat some oil in a saucepan and add the garlic, ginger, chilli and cook for 1 minute over a medium heat. Add the asafoetida, ground coriander and turmeric and cook for another 4 minutes remembering to stir. Take off the heat and keep to one side.

Drain the sweet potato and turnip and place in a large mixing bowl. Add the spicy garlic mix, some salt to taste and using a electric whisk, mix together until you have a smooth puree. Take tablespoons of the mix in your hands and shape into balls. Place on a plate and put in the fridge for 45 minutes to cool down and set.

In the meantime, prepare the batter mix by placing the gram flour, bicarbonate of soda and cumin seeds into a bowl and stir in the water.

Heat some vegetable oil in a small pan 5 minutes before taking the sweet potato balls from the fridge. When the oil is hot, place one sweet potato ball at a time and add to the batter to coat all around. Use a tablespoon to do this. Add each ball to the oil, perhaps three at a time, and cook for about 2 minutes on each side.

Drain on some kitchen paper and enjoy the doughnuts with your choice of chutney or ketchup.