Portlaoise restaurateur Imelda Tynan serves up tasty recipes using alternative ingredients.

Chef Imelda Tynan serves up some tasty alternative dishes using prawns, sweet potato and celeriac.

Pasta with Prawns, Tomato, Basil & Garlic

1lb Ripe Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half

2tbsp Olive Oil

12oz Peeled Prawns

1lb Pasta

Bunch of Fresh Basil

2 to 3 Cloves of Garlic, crushed

Salt & Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 200º. Place the tomatoes on an oven tray cut side up, season and drizzle on some oil, roast for 20 minutes. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 minutes.

Heat the remaining oil in a pan, add the garlic and then prawns, toss together for about 2 minutes.

Drain the pasta, return it to the pan and add the roasted tomatoes, prawns, basil and season. Divide into warmed pasta bowls and scatter over some torn basil leaves.

Sweet Potato with Feta Cheese and Cherry Tomatoes

4 Medium Sized

Sweet Potatoes

2 Red Onions, sliced

Few Sprigs of Rosemary

Salt & Pepper

Olive Oil

1 250g of Cherry Tomatoes, halved

200g Feta Cheese

Peel & dice the sweet potato and spread out on a roasting tin or casserole dish, peel and cut the onion in thick slices, scatter them over the potato, season with salt & pepper and sprinkle with some chopped rosemary then drizzle with olive oil.

Place in a hot oven 180º to 190º for about 20 minutes until the potato and onion are nearly cooked then place the halved cherry tomatoes on top return to the oven for about 10 minutes until all is cooked.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle or crumb the feta cheese all over.

Spicy Celeriac Chips

3tbsp Rapeseed Oil or Coconut Oil

1tbsp Curry Powder

1tsp Mustard Seeds

2 Cloves Garlic, crushed

1 Large Head of Celeriac

Heat the oven to 200°. Heat the oil on a baking tray and add the curry powder, mustard seeds and garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on a hot ring.

Peel and dice the celeriac, add to the baking tray and coat in the seasoned oil, add salt and pepper. Roast for 40 – 50 minutes until golden.

Banana & Pecan Nut Bread

4oz Butter

2 eggs

6oz Light Muscovado Sugar

3 Ripe Bananas

4oz Pecan Nuts, roughly chopped

8oz Self Raising Flour

1tsp Mixed Spice

Preheat the oven to 170°, cream the butter & sugar together, and then add in the eggs one at a time beating after each addition until well combined.

Peel and mash the bananas with a fork, add them to the creamed butter and sugar mixture along with the roughly chopped pecan nuts, then fold in the sieved flour and mixed spice.

Spoon the mixture into a lined 2lb loaf tin, bake for 1 hour to 1¼ hour until cooked.

The cake is cooked when you press gently the centre of the cake and it springs back up under your finger.