Wanna-be Samosas

Last night was another refrigerator dinner night, so many odds and ends that could come together to make a yummy surprise. Well this night was inspired by a recipe from the Kiwi magazine that was called Curry Potato Puffs. I of course did not use the recipe for anything more than an "ah ha!" moment. I said, "Ah ha! I have puff pastry in the freezer and those look remarkably like Samosas!" I know when I started this blog I said I would not be adding any of the famous Indian recipes. That still holds true because this recipe was a first time creation, so enjoy the small peek into my Pakistani teachings! Well, my first ever journey down the culinary road of puff pastry (yes I have had it in the freezer for at least a year!) was a success. I hope you enjoy, particularly my lack of specifics about the pastry!

Ingredients
4 medium to large potatoes
3 carrots, peeled and cut into large pieces.
2 Tablespoons olive oil
One onion, peeled and chopped
1 Tablespoon + ground coriander
2 Tablespoons mild curry (if you cook Indian food like I do you have multiple types of curry. I made this for the children, so I chose a mild curry)
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1 pound ground beef (or any other but tonight I used beef)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded cheese (because I had it left from another dinner)
2 sheets frozen puff pastry.
sides of chutneys or even Raita

Process

1. Unpack puff pastry and thaw side by side on cutting board on counter top.
   
2. Peel and halve potatoes and put them in a sauce pot of water over high heat. Add some pieces of carrots too. Bring to a boil.
   
3. Preheat oven 400 degrees.
4. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium to medium high heat.
   
5. Add chopped onion and saute until slightly translucent.
   
6. Add three spices and stir to mix well. Saute some more.
   
7. Add the ground meat to the skillet, breaking it up, and stirring to mix evenly.
   
8. Remove potatoes and carrots from boiling water and rinse with cold water to cool. Drain.
   
9. Stir meat mixture, reduce heat to medium low, and cook two minutes.
   
10. Dice the potato, and cut the carrots into round slices or half slices. Add to meat mixture and stir.
    
11. Season with dashes or grinds of salt and pepper.
12. Add milk and stir into mix, cooking for one minute. Remove from heat.
    
13. This is where I will get vague with you, because having never worked with puff pastry before, things didn't come out even. What you want to do is roll out each sheet and cut it into small 5" by 5" squares. I rolled mine too thin at times, so I caution against this. I think you want it rolled out only to half of it's original width. What ever size squares you get at that point, use them! :)
    
14. In the center of each square, place a couple/few heaping teaspoons of the meat mixture.
    
15. Using a basting brush, gently wet the edges of the square.
16. Grab one corner of the square, and bring it diagonally across the square tot he opposing side. Seal edges of now triangle together and press together to adhere. Your final product should be a triangular shape.
17. Place each samosa on an un-greased baking sheet.
    
18. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until browned on top. Serve with a chutney or pickle, I served with Mom's tomato chutney I will be making again in the months to come.