Baked Phulkopir Singara /Samosa

 New year is knocking at our doors!

2013 already, can you believe it?

I've been thinking about you all and my little blog world all this while, just that the real world didn’t give me a breather  to step into my virtual space.

 The real world where I live in is reeling under cold waves. Its teeth chattering cold. They say that it may get even colder. Duh!, and really don’t hold your bellies and start laughing for New Delhi is not North Dakota or nowhere near the numbing blizzard of the Poles, and if by any means you are reading this post from the snow covered Alps . I envy you!! SNOW FALL eludes me here, but the city is everything else and the chill very much fazes city dwellers in North India who don’t have the comfort of centrally heated houses. The Heat blower is well a silly heat blower.

The other day I slept in my jeans with my jacket on. Just so you know.

I’m a winter person.  I love the way I can create ripples in the fog while speaking. That makes me love winter, but it is just too cold for me. Caps, boots , coats, are all doing their job very well, and once back home its back to the heat blower and oversized sweaters, and now even they  aren’t helping the cause. So I have to look for more ways to stay toasty: like my daughters teddy, a hand knit blankie wrap on my feet while I’m at my desk and (from time to time) this:

Yes, nothing like a crispy Phulkopir Singara (or a Samosa, if you must call it with that name) with tea on a wintry evening. A melt in your mouth flaky samosa with spicy cauliflower,potato and peas  filling in its healthy baked Bengali Phulkopir Singara avatar. It's still not calorie free,but makes me feel so much better at the thought of mindlessly reaching out for the seconds. I still need to learn to discipline myself before I reach out for that third. It's that wicked good. 

Baked Phulkopir Singara /Samosa 

Ingredients for Phulkopir Singara/Samosa dough

21/2 cups All Purpose flour
3/4 cup vegetable oil
A pinch of salt
1/2 cup lukewarm water

Ingredients for Phulkopir Singara/Samosa filling
1 cup boiled mashed potatoes
1 cup steamed and finely chopped Cauliflower
2 medium sized onions, finely chopped
½ cup green Peas
1 inch ginger juliennes
1-2 chopped green chillies

Spices
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
A handful of peanuts (optional)
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
2 tsp chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp cumin powder
Oil for Brushing (or Frying if you going for the deep fried version)

Procedure for Phulkopir Singara/Samosa Stuffing 

In a deep pan add 1 Tbsp oil and temper with Cumin seeds. Now add the chopped ginger, garlic and chilies and sauté for 2 minutes, and then add the chopped onions and green peas. Fry until the mixture has taken a golden hue.

Add the spices, salt and steamed cauiflower and mashed potatoes. Fry for a few minutes more at low flame.

Top it with peanuts, cumin powder, garam masala powder and coriander leaves.

Mix well and let it cool.

Procedure for Phulkopir Singara/Samosa Casing

Knead the flour, salt and ¾ cup oil. The Oil should be able to bind the dry mixture together.If not, add more.

Wrap in a towel and keep aside for 20-25 minutes

Now add the lukewarm water to make stiff  but pliable dough.

Divide the dough to 12 equal portions, and roll each dough ball into a thin round strip

Divide each rolled piece into 2 halves as shown in the picture.Turn it into a cone and add 2 tsp of the filling. Now seal with a touch of water around the edges. Seal it.

Brush oil on the stuffed Phulkopir Singharas or Samosas and bake in the pre-heated oven at 400F/180C/gas mark 7 for 15 minutes. Keep checking at regular intervals. After 15 minutes brush them with oil again and bake for 5 more minutes.

If frying, then dang, take a deep bottomed pan, put as much oil and heat it. Once done drop the Phulkopir Singhara’s one by one. Fry till golden brown.

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Chire Nonta while Soaking Some Winter Sun

Winter day.  Sunny day. Our fun day. To celebrate the balmy winter sun with some good company before the onset of the holidays, we die hard laughin- gauwwafin-foodilin –groupie of S-I-X-kindred spirit went for a girls day out. It was as silly and frivolous as you can imagine.

We went to a mall with the intent of window shopping, and sooner than we could blink we went the ACTUAL shopping route. Coats, sweaters, shoes, bags we bought it all. And of course none of us needed anything –we still did because we wanted to have some fun without a reason.

We walked around giggling non stop.We got our fill of mall-walking carbs courtesy of a cheesily named Italian restaurant called ‘Prego’ , I’m not sure what it means in Italian but for our Indian bellies we filled it till we actually looked the part ;)

You must be thinking, now that I have shopped, roamed, eaten, burped. Why am I still going on with my story – well my friend. To start with, this is a bong belly.It’s so not satiated with Italian.The day must end with a familiar food, bong if I may add, and if the belly is full then I cringe and search for a nonta (savory snack)to go with my evening tea at home.I'm smart, so I make it beforehand for days like these.


It’s a crunchy digestive I’m told. Try if you don’t agree.

Roasted Chire Nonta (Savory Poha/Flattened rice)

Ingredients:
1 Cup Thin poha/chire
50 gms Roasted peanuts
1-2 Green chillies
1-2 Dried red chilly

For the tempering
1 tbsp vegetable Oil
A few springs curry leaves
1  tbsp Chana dal (chickpea lentil)
1 tsp Mustard seeds
Salt to taste

To serve 
A handful of fried cashews (optional)


Method:

In a wide kadai add oil and temper with the mustard seeds, red chilly,curry leaves and chana dal. Once the leaves are well fried and the seeds start to splutter add the chire (poha/flat rice), salt and roast it all well. Keep roasting on low heat till it turns crispier(you have to taste to check it). Now transfer it into a bowl. Now add the roasted peanuts and fried cashews. Its ready to serve.

I sometimes like to soak all the extra oil by pouring out in an old newspaper first  and most often have it straight from there. Of course I ensure that no-ones looking!

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Pujor aahar -- Vegetarian Kobiraji Cutlet

Durga Pujo to us Bangalis is as much about Ma Durgar Pujo as its about our little own Pet Pujo. Every Bangali worth his fetish for Pheesh , Phootball and Phoron, knows the role of food during these four days of Pujo...and of course the Bijoya days that follow. This year while vacationing with my family back in Lucknow, I gratefully realised that not much as changed since my growning up years. Bijoya Pronam is still followed by a plateful of mishti--that's a wide variety of assorted sweets , some home cooked and some store brought with narkel nadu (coconut laddu) making its presence felt in almost every household, ghooghni(chick peas dried curry), nonta(salty savories) and a signature dish to add as a suprise element. Now this signature dish is anything from a devilled eggs to kobiraji cutlet to a kid friendly version of the menu such as mini burgers. And the taste ah! it tastes all the more incredible, as its that time of the year when the bright october sun mixes warmly with mami and mashi' excited banter, and the mild smell of shiuli flowers add to the heady aroma of freshly fried cutlets. I dont know whether its my nostalgia speaking, but as I'm writing i feel that there is this tiny sadness clutching onto faint corner of my heart , as much miss those Pujo days , I also miss my mom's famous cutlets, this to me is 'wishful craving', this to me is also nostalgia, can anyone tell me why...?

2 cups boiled cholar dal (I'd use a pinch salt and haldi for boiling)
2 onions chopped fine
1 t ginger paste
1 pinch asafoetida(heeng)
1 tsp garam masala
1 chopped green chili
2 tomatoes, skinned and chopped alternatively can use 1.5 tsp aamchur powder
2 T ghee
2 eggs for coating
1/2 cup bread crumbs
ghee/oil for frying cutlets
1/2 t sugar
salt to taste

Add to the chana dal a pinch of turmeric and some salt. Place in a pressure pan with just enough water water and cook. Around 4 whistles or let it boil until the dal is cooked and quite soft. Let teh extra water remain.

Heat ghee in a pan. Add onion, ginger, turmeric , a pinch asafoetida and green chillies. Mix
well and fry 3 or 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and finally the boiled dal. Mix thoroughly, adding salt and sugar to taste. Add garam masala when the water dries off.

Remove from fire when the dal mixture has browned and appears well mixed. Cool.
Divide mixture into desired shape about quarter inch thick. Makes around 10.

Beat the eggs and now coat the cutlets in egg mixture, and finally roll in bread
crumbs .Heat ghee in frying pan and fry cutlets until well browned on both sides.


Serves 5, calories : 175-190/cutlet.