The last time I went to a nightclub was last Friday night that time I went to Las Vegas to get married. Thanks to a famous DJ friend’s 40th birthday celebration, I regained some of my street cred, by hitting up one of Cape Town’s hottest dance spot on Saturday night. The party was of the charts and I finally dropped dead on my bed at roughly 5am. Needless to say, I needed all the nutrition I could find the next morning, but was in no state to walk or talk, let alone Nigella my way around the kitchen.

While crawling to the fridge, in search of some leftover Champagne, I spotted the box of freekeh I got from the Really Interesting Food Company the other day. This trendy supergrain is kicking quinoa out of the rice cooker at the moment. With a nutty flavour and chewy texture, it’s loaded with nutritional benefits and has up to three times the amount of fibre and protein as brown rice.

It’s a real life saver, I tell you!

The same can be said for this recipe that I developed in my fragile state. It’s so easy, a hungover person can make it with their eyes wide shut. Be sure to start, and end, the cooking process with a glass or two of Champagne. It took away all my pain.

Time to get your freak on for Freekeh – cheers!

What you need

• 1 bottle of Champagne – 1 cup for cooking purposes and the rest for own consumption.
• 1 cup of cracked freekeh
• 2 cups of mashed sweet potato
• 3 tablespoons of Mascarpone cheese
• 1 packed of diced bacon
• 1 medium sized block of cheddar cheese
• 1 block of veggie stock
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• salt
• pepper

To crumb

• Flour
• egg
• panko crumbs

Artichoke dipping sauce

• 1/4 cup chopped Artichoke hearts
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• black pepper, to taste
• Angel hair chilli, for garnish

Making it happen

1. Pour yourself a glass of the finest Champagne. I used a locally produced Methodé Cap Classique, because it’s much cheaper and it tastes better.
2. Take 2 cups of water and one cup of freekeh and place it in a medium size pot. Add the block of veggie stock (the knorr blocks works fine) to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer with the lid on for 20 minute.
3. Take a cup of Champagne and add it to the freekeh. This will allow the freekeh to overcook, which makes it nice and sticky. Simmer for another 10 to 20 minutes, or until all the liquid has cooked away.
4. Top up your glass while you’re at it!
5. Let it cool down. Once the freekeh is at room temperature, stick it (pot and all) in the refrigerator.
6. Peel the sweet potato, cut it up into big chunky piece and boil it on the stove in water. Once all the pieces are soft, turn it into a mash. Add the Mascarpone to the sweet potato mash and flavour with salt and pepper. Allow to cool-off and then stick it in the refrigerator.
7. Cut the bacon into small pieces and fry until crispy. Have a couple of pieces, because you’re worth it!
8. Mix the sweet potato mash, freekeh and bacon pieces together. Add the cumin and season to taste with salt and pepper.
   

   Like so.

9. Cut the cheddar block into small squares.
10. Roll the freekeh mixture around the square pieces of cheese and shape them into little balls.
11. Dip into flour then into beaten egg and finally roll in the panko crumbs, making sure they are well covered.
12. Shallow fry them in olive oil. I used avocado oil.
13. Make the dip by mixing all the ingredients together.
14. Serve with the artichoke dip, lightly dressed mixed leaves and Champagne Methode Cap Classique.