TODAY’S RECIPE: Pork & pepper meatballs on parsnip mash

COMFORT food for a chilly night. Serves 2.

Ingredients

¼ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 red pepper, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp oregano

1 wholemeal pitta bread, torn in pieces

250g lean pork mince

1 egg, beaten

2 tsp olive oil 3 parsnips, peeled and chopped

140g passata

1 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Method

1. Heat oven to 190c/170c fan/gas 5. Put cinnamon, half paprika, pepper, 1 garlic clove, oregano and torn pitta into food processor. Blitz until finely chopped. Tip into large bowl, add mince and egg, and season well. Rub 1 tsp of oil over large baking sheet. By hand, shape pork mix into eight meatballs and place evenly on sheet.

2. Bake meatballs for 20 minutes or until lightly golden. Cook parsnips in pan of boiling water over high heat for 15 minutes, then drain and mash with seasoning.

3. For a quick tomato sauce, put rest of crushed garlic and paprika in small pan with passata and cook over medium heat for five minutes. Tip meatballs into pan with sauce and stir to coat. Pile on to parsnip mash on plates. Scatter over parsley and drizzle with remaining olive oil.