Serves 4-6
Ingredients
800g (2 large) sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup mascarpone
⅓ cup dried breadcrumbs
¼ cup finely grated parmesan
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
¼ cup toasted walnuts, chopped, plus extra to scatter
250g large dried pasta shells (conchiglioni)
300ml single cream
½ cup vegetable stock
½ cup grated vegetarian smoked mozzarella
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ bunch thyme, to serve
Method
- Preheat oven to 200°C (180° fan forced). Place the sweet potato and garlic in a saucepan with cold salted water and bring to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain and place in a large bowl.
- Add the nutmeg, mascarpone, breadcrumbs, parmesan, lemon zest and walnuts to the bowl and mash until smooth.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta shells in salted boiling water for 4 minutes, or until half cooked. Drain. Divide the sweet potato mixture into each shell and place in a deep baking tray. Drizzle with cream and stock, sprinkle with smoked mozzarella and place in the oven.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and bubbling. Toss the thyme in oil and scatter over the tray. Cook for a further minute, or until crisp.
- Serve with extra walnuts and thyme.
Smart Tip
You will need 30 large pasta shells for this recipe. You can also make this recipe a simple lasagne – use 250g fresh lasagne sheets and layer in a tray, alternating sweet potato mixture and pasta. Drizzle the top with ¼ cup single cream, top with cheese and bake following the recipe at right.
