
Spring Eats: Garden Loaded Fries

Garden Loaded Fries
Almost everything here can be grown in your own backyard – a homegrown share plate of Mexican-inspired toppings over crunchy sweet potato fries with creamy cheese sauce.
Serves 2, multiply quantities as needed
Preparation: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 - 1.5kgs sweet potatoes
- 1 teaspoon cornflour
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or tallow
- 1 small red capsicum, finely diced
- 1 small yellow capsicum, finely diced
- 2-3 spring onions, sliced
- 1 small avocado, diced
- Juice of ½ lime
- 1 small red onion or French shallots, sliced
- 2 tablespoons coriander, chopped
- Cherry or tomberry tomatoes
- 1 ear of corn
- Red and green sliced chillis (optional)
- Black beans (optional)
- Sour cream and coriander to serve
Creamy sauce:
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup of whole milk
- ½ cup of strong cheese, like cheddar
Method:
Preheat oven to 210 degrees. Peel sweet potatoes and process or slice them into fry-sized chips. In a bowl, toss with olive oil and cornflour, transfer to a baking tray, and bake for 30-40 minutes – be sure to check on these regularly and shake around the pan so they don’t stick.
Cook the corn, boil or bake, for 20 minutes, slice off kernels with a sharp knife.
In a bowl add, capsicums, spring onions, and lime juice and mix well.
To make cheese sauce, melt the butter in a pan and add flour, mix until it forms a bubbling paste. Slowly add milk and whisk until this thickens. Add cheese and stir until melted through. Add a little more milk and cheese until you have a consistency that is thick but can be poured easily.
Place cooked fries on a large plate, drizzle over cheese sauce. Spoon over toppings, starting with capsicum mixture – add corn, chillis, avocado and beans.
Serve with fresh coriander, lime wedges, and sour cream.
Notes:
- Chips - depending on the potatoes used and size cut - can have varying cooking times, keep checking on your fries until they are golden brown
- The crunchiest chips happen when you use a fat source like tallow or lard
- This works equally well with crushed baby potatoes, sweet potato wedges, and of course corn chips
- Canned corn and beans can be used, drain and pat dry before sprinkling over your fries
- Soak the red onions in water for a couple of minutes to remove any bitterness, pat dry before adding.
Happy cooking!