The Bakinglady 

Cold, leftover mashed potato always reminds me of my lovely mum and dad, and my Surrey childhood. Dad would have made ‘Eggo’ - inspired by his army days- fried in lard, mixed with egg and a hefty sprinkling of the Schwartz spice called Season All , Or mum would have utilised it to make the family a fantastic curried mince beef and onion pie... the cold mashed potato, added to her shortcrust pastry mix to make the best, lightest pastry in the world... the minced beef was yellow with curry powder and it was simple, but, good honest food! We also lived very close to a large Afro Caribbean community where you could buy curried goat with rice and peas, fried plantain or fluorescent yellow Jamaican pasties with curried lamb or chicken filling. They came a close second to mums curried minced beef and onion pie and were perfect street food to munch on as we wandered the streets of croydon... this is my vegetarian tribute and I guarantee 100% you will not miss for a minute the lack of meat! Ultra cheap, mega tasty and packed full of good stuff, the whole family will love them ��

Jamaican styley sweet potato and chickpea pasty - makes 4 giant pasties

200g cold mashed potato - I had some left over from last nights tea ��

300g plain flour plus a little extra for rolling

100g block margarine

1 egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons ground turmeric

1/2 level teaspoon salt

1 large leek, finely sliced and washed

1 large carrot, washed and diced

1 medium sweet potato, washed and cut into dice

2 heaped teaspoons medium curry powder

2 tablespoons oil

100g lentils

200g baked beans

400g can chickpeas, drained

1 heaped tablespoon mango chutney

450mls water

1 vegetable stock cube

Salt and pepper

A little milk to brush on the pasty’s

Dried onion granules ( optional)

Place the flour, salt, turmeric and margarine into a large bowl and rub together, with your fingertips until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk, mashed potatoes and 2-4 tablespoons of water ( this will totally depend on how wet your mashed potato was to start off with, I used 3 but you may use more or less....) using a fork, stir the pastry together until it forms big clumps, use your hand to bring it together to form a soft but not sticky dough.

Place the leeks, carrot, sweet potato and 2 tablespoons oil into a large non stick saucepan, fry for 10 minutes. Add the curry powder, stock cube, lentils and water , bring to the boil then turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook until the lentils and carrot are tender. Now add the baked beans, mango chutney and drained chick peas, turn the heat up and cook rapidly, stirring continuously until any remaining liquid has disappeared and the mixture is very thick. Check the seasoning then leave to cool.

Divide the pastry into 4, form each into a ball then roll out thinly to the size of a side plate, wet the edges and place a good dollop of the cooled mixture on half of the pastry, fold over to form a pasty, sealing the edges to stop the mixture from leaking out. Place the pasty’s onto a tray, brush with a little milk and sprinkle with onion granules if using ( I love these, they are not authentic but hey - it’s my recipe so I can put on what I like ��) bake in a preheated oven 160c for 20-30 minutes or until the pastry is a light golden colour and crisp.