Baked vegetable curry samosas

It was not too long ago that I first heard the word "samosas". I clearly remember I had eaten them only once, in a restaurant, and I remember myself thinking it was not the next big thing for me. But I thought they offered a lot of possibilities. They were a bit too greasy and heavy for me then. The ones I had were fried, and their filling was a bit too heavy. I liked the idea, but while eating them, I was already making mental notes for the changes I would do in my head.

And no, my first impulse was not making samosas. My first idea was to make vegetable pies. I had bought two types of dough: brik pastry and philo pastry, and I had quite a clear idea on what to do until I saw a dish like the one I had though of, made by another blogger for the same contest.

Yes, we have similar ideas. Yes, almost everything hs already been invented.

So making a virtue of necessity I though I had to go a step further with the vegetables and pastry, and I remembered those samosas, and in that same moment I decided that my samosas would be good, very, very  good.

To get started, I was going to put vegetables in the filling. No hummus, or other legumes. And finally, the dough had to be golden and crisp, but not fried. Should be lightly toasted and dissolve in the mouth as a wafer.

And inside, vegetables, spicy and crunchy. Some sesame seeds to add even more crunch, and some curry to decorate the plate and is all that is needed to enjoy the vegetables differently.

Baked Vegetable Curry Samosas

Ingredients: (for 8 samosas)

4 sheets of brik pastry
1 eggplant
1 onion
1 zucchini
1 red pepper
1 green pepper
1 or 2 teaspoons curry

1/2 plain yogurt (or 75 ml of coconut milk)
A few drops of Tabasco (optional)
Sesame seeds
Oil
Salt

Preparation

Cut all vegetables into medium pieces. Spread in a baking pan, sprinkle with salt, add a drizzle of olive oil and roast in the oven at 180 degrees until toasted. Turn over and repeat with the other side.

In a large skillet heat the yogurt (or coconut milk), add the curry, stir until dissolved. Add vegetables and cook with curry for 5 minutes over medium heat, to catch the flavors. Taste and add Tabasco if desired.


Mount the samosas following package directions so that they are triangular shaped. Place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone sheet. Preheat oven to 180 degrees, dipping slightly samosas, sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake for 7-8 minutes or until lightly toasted and crisp. Serve immediately.

Almond chicken soup

It is my belief that a good bowl of soup can fix almost, almost anything. It does not even need to be a hot soup in the middle of a flu or in a cold night after a horrible day. Even in summer, I love a cold soup, or a liquid custard for dessert.

I guess my love for soup will be an advantage when I become a venerable old lady with no teeth. Until then, I love soups in all their forms and I never get tired of making soups and custards. The secret, in all cases, is a good stock as base, either beef, chicken or vegetables. I usually prepare my own stock in quantity and freeze to go using it as required. But now you can find a full range of quite good quality commercial stock types so you can prepare soup in a moment. Another advantage of  this recipe is that everything is cooked in the same pot, so if you have the stock ready,  in just 15 minutes you'll have your soup on the table, and cleaning the kitchen will not take longer than that.

Almond Chicken Soup

1/2 onion
50 grams of raw almonds, chopped or powdered
1 clove of garlic
Fresh parsley leaves
400 grams chicken breast into cubes
1 liter of chicken broth
A few sprigs of thyme or herbs to taste
Oil

Preparation

In a heavy bottomed pan, put a few drops of oil and sautée the onion over medium heat. Add a few tablespoons of water to finish cooking onion, until it is transparent. While onion is cooking (it takes about 5-7 minutes), mash in a mortar the almonds with diced garlic and parsley until you have a paste. If necessary, you can add a tablespoon of the broth to bind it.

Once the onion is cooked,  add the crushed mortar and fry lightly. Add chicken cut in dices of similar size and fry lightly. Do not worry: cook just the outside, the inside will cook later. Add broth and thyme sprig or herbs to taste. Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium and cook about 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked thoroughly.

Naturally flavoured water

It has never been a problem for me to have my 8 water glass a day. I do not need to remind myself to drink water,quite the contrary.

Wherever I am, I have a mug or a glass, or a bottle that I drink along the day.

This late summer I decided to give a note of flavor and color to the water. Actually, this is an idea you can use whenever you miss summer.

And, on top of it, a very simple test with an idea that also brings color to the table, becoming a table center piece effortlessly.

All you have to take into account is that water really gets flavored, so keep that in mind when combining it with your dishes.

It is not exactly an infusion, not that much, but you will notice the taste for sure.

These photos are two of the bottles I prepared at the same time and got to photograph, but you can really do almost as many combinations as you like.

I prepared some water with cucumber and lime, which is perfect for starting your meal, with a salad, gazpacho or the like, as cucumber and lime add a refreshing touch the water.

And to continue, or take in the afternoon, or really, when you want, there is the other one which has raspberry and basil. The raspberry gives it a touch of acidity, basil puts the perfume.

The preparation could not be simpler and you could not have a more dramatic result with less effort. What about you, what do you put on your late summer water?

Naturally flavored water

With lime and cucumber

Ingredients

1 liter of mineral water (so it has no taste of its own)
1 cucumber (there will be letfovers)
1 lime

Directions

Thoroughly wash the lime and cucumber, dry. With a mandoline or a vegetable cutter, cut the cucumber thinely, lengthwise. You will need 6 or 8 will of these, depending on how intensely flavored you like it. Cut the lime into quarters. Put ingredients in a wide-necked bottle that can go to the fridge and fill with water.
Leave in the refrigerator at least 12 hours, preferably 24.
Serve with plenty of ice.

With raspberry and basil

Ingredients
1 liter of mineral water
2 handfuls of raspberries (in my case, frozen.)
Fresh basil leaves.

Preparation

Wash the basil and cut the stems, leaving the whole leaves. Put the basil leaves together with raspberries in a wide-necked bottle that can go to the fridge, and let it rest to absorb flavor (and color in this case) between 12 and 24 hours. Serve with plenty of ice.