This recipe calls out for a Winter’s dining room, complete with a log fire burning and candles on the table. Unfortunately we live in Singapore, so we enjoyed this rosemary and thyme laden dish in the heat of the summer instead. With the cold snap in New Zealand at the moment, I am sure it could warm many a stomach.

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• coconut oil to fry
• 500g beef mince
• 4 Tbsp soya sauce, tamari or coconut aminos
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp thyme leaves, dried
• leaves of one stick of fresh rosemary, chopped (or 1 tsp rosemary, dried)
• 50ml water
• 1 sweet potato (yellow looks best, but any colour will do), sliced finely
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)
2. Heat the pan to a moderate heat and add the coconut oil. Fry off the onion, garlic and carrot until the onion is soft and fragrant – about 3 minutes
3. Add the beef mince and fry until it has browned
4. Add the soya sauce / coconut aminos, balsamic vinegar, thyme and rosemary to the pan and stir well. Cook for 2 minutes stirring occasionally
5. Sprinkle over a pinch of sea salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine.
6. Add the water and turn the heat down to a low heat. Leave it to slowly cook for around 15 minutes. Keep an eye on it and add a little more water if needed to stop it from drying out.
7. Remove the meat from the heat and pour into a pie dish. I used one 25cm x 15cm.
8. Slice the sweet potato finely and layer over the top of the pie in overlapping rows. Sprinkle over sea salt and more rosemary (fresh or dried)
9. Place the pie dish into the hot oven and cook at 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit) for 15-20 minutes until the sweet potato has cooked through and become crispy. They should be like potato chips on top of the pie.
10. Serves 2-3

Music to go with it…
Listen on Spotify:Tourist LeMC – En Route