School meals warm up for winter

As winter draws in, the school menu changes to warming hotpots and puddings with custard.  Easily prepared, our sausage hotpot uses locally sourced pork sausages and includes onion, tomato, baked beans and sweet potato, which form part of the recommended five-a-day.Sponge is a firm favourite with the county's school children and we now make it with free-range eggs from the New Forest, but you might be surprised by how many eggs we use! We produce about 40,000 portions of sponge pudding a day – using 11,666 eggs! If you would like more information on school meals in Hampshire, please visit www.hants.gov.uk/caterers.

The basic sponge recipe can be adapted to make ‘apple stir about’, chocolate and orange sponge, carrot and orange sponge, sultana sponge – the list is endless. Don’t forget – adding fruit and vegetables to the recipe contributes to your five-a-day.

Sausage Hotpot ingredients - serves 10

	Metric	Imperial
Chipolata sausages	20	20
Onions, chopped and softened	113g	4oz
Tinned chopped tomatoes	454g	1lb
Baked beans	425g	15oz
Peeled and chopped potatoes	740g	1lb 10oz
Peeled and chopped sweet potatoes	454g	1lb
Worcester sauce	5ml	1tsp

Method

1. Cook potatoes and sweet potatoes together in a pan of boiling water.  Cut the sweet potato larger than the ordinary potato as it cooks more quickly. Once cooked, drain well and mash.
2. Bake sausages in a hot oven (gas mark 6 or 200°C) for 10 to 15 minutes.Drain off excess fat if necessary.
3. Add softened onion, chopped tomatoes, baked beans and Worcester sauce to sausages.
4. Cover with mashed potatoes. (For an alternative topping, use both types of potatoes sliced, parboil them and arrange on mixture.) Brush lightly with oil.
5. Bake in hot oven (gas mark 6 or 200°C) for approximately 30 minutes.

Sponge Pudding ingredients - serves 10

	Metric	Imperial
Plain flour	177g	6 1/4oz
Baking powder	14g	1/2oz
Caster sugar	163g	5 3/4oz
Oil	127g	4 1/2oz
4 medium eggs (approx.)
Milk	70g	2 1/2oz

Method

1. Measure oil and milk and put into a mixing bowl with the eggs.
2. Beat well (use hand mixer if possible)
3. Add flour, sugar and baking powder.
4. Beat again until smooth (3 to 4 minutes)
5. Line the base of a 9 inch cake tin with greaseproof paper.
6. Pour into greased cake tin.
7. Bake in a hot oven (gas mark 4 or 180°C) for approximately 30 to 45 minutes.
8. Leave to cool.
9. To turn into a chocolate orange sponge pudding, take out 28g/1oz flour and replace with 28g/1oz cocoa.  Use 70g/2 1/2oz orange juice instead of milk and add the grated zest of an orange into the juice. Serve with chocolate custard.

Recipe supplied by HC3S – Hampshire County Council’s catering service. For more information visit www.hants.gov.uk/caterers or phone 023 8062 9388.