Kumpir-style sweet potato

Kumpir-style sweet potato with baby spinach, sheep's cheese, red onion and low-fat quark – an oven dish with a creamy filling.

At a glance

• Serves 2
• Prep time: 10 min
• Cooking time: 45 min
• Total time: 55 min
• Calories: 380 kcal per serving
• Protein: 16 g
• Fat: 12 g
• Carbs: 48 g

Ingredients

• 1 sweet potato
• 1 handful of baby spinach
• 50 g sheep's cheese
• 1 red onion
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 spoonfuls of low-fat quark

Method

You’ll need: oven · frying pan · chopping board · knife

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C (180 °C fan). Scrub the sweet potato thoroughly, prick it all over and rub it with olive oil and a little salt.
2. Bake the sweet potato at 200 °C for 40–45 min, until the skin starts to split slightly and the inside is soft. A knife should go in without any resistance.
3. Shortly before the end of the baking time, soften the red onion in a frying pan with a little olive oil. Add the baby spinach and cook only until it wilts.
4. Cut the hot sweet potato open lengthways and fluff up the inside with a fork. Add the sheep's cheese and mix it lightly with the spinach and red onion.
5. Stir the low-fat quark until smooth and season to taste with herbs, salt and pepper if you like.
6. To serve, top the filled sweet potato with the quark and eat warm straight away.

Good to know

When something turns crispy outside and soft inside, I'm in straight away. This is exactly that kind of food: uncomplicated, hearty and pleasantly fresh to finish.

Swaps

Sheep's cheese → cottage cheese (more protein, milder flavour) Low-fat quark → skyr (more protein, creamy) Red onion → spring onion (milder) Olive oil → avocado (gives a creamy texture and natural fats)

Allergens

The recipe contains milk (sheep's cheese and low-fat quark). Usually fine for children – with raw onion or lots of spinach, see how they get on; in pregnancy, pasteurised dairy is the safe choice.

Frequently asked questions

What's in sweet potatoes nutritionally?

Sweet potatoes mainly provide carbohydrates, fibre and beta-carotene, plus smaller amounts of vitamin C and potassium.

Is the oxalic acid in spinach a problem?

Spinach contains oxalic acid. For most people that's not an issue in normal amounts; if you're prone to kidney stones, it makes sense to be mindful of it.

Why can red onion cause problems for some people?

Red onions contain fructans – fermentable carbohydrates. Some people are fine with them, but with a sensitive gut or IBS they can cause wind.

What nutrients do the sheep's cheese and low-fat quark provide?

Both provide protein and calcium, plus some vitamin B12. Sheep's cheese usually contains more fat and salt, while low-fat quark has more protein per calorie.

Why does olive oil work well here nutritionally too?

Olive oil mostly provides monounsaturated fats.