Sunday 18 December 2011

Stocking the Freezer

We are all be super busy in the build up to Christmas which is why I like to put a little extra time beforehand in the kitchen so that I have to spend very little time or energy feeding everyone after the big day. Today I made two things for the freezer. Samosas and mincemeat tarts.

My samosas are a cheats version really. They are dead easy to make and can be whipped out the freezer and popped in the oven to provide an extra flavour to the post Christmas Day buffet table type meals I tend to serve up. I started by peeling and boiling some potatoes and lightly mashing them. While they were cooking I got some ginger, garlic, chili and onion.


I chopped, grated, crushed or minced - as required. Then I gently cooked these together in a little oil in a frying pan. When they were softened I added some spices.

Cumin, coriander, turmeric and mustard seeds.
I added about a teaspoon each of these to the pan and cooked them for about a minute. The amount of spice you use is entirely up to you. What is too spicy to one person can be mild to another.

When the spices were aromatic I turned the heat off the pan and added the crushed potatoes and some peas. I gave it a good mix, added a pinch of salt to taste and that was the filling completed. The next step involved filo pastry. Nothing to be afraid of. To prove it I utilised one of Santa's my little helpers.


Take one sheet of filo - making sure to cover the rest so that they don't dry out - and brush evenly with melted butter. Plop spoonfuls of the potato mixture along the bottom edge evenly apart. I got four on each sheet. Using the point of a sharp knife cut a line in the pastry down the pastry between each spoonful of potato mixture. Fold the bottom corner of the pastry over the first pile of potato gently squashing the filling down flat. (I am sorry I didn't take photos of this process - I blame Emily and the distraction she provided (joking) - but really, as long as the filling is enclosed it doesn't matter how you fold it) and work your way up the strip folding the triangle over again and again on itself until you are at the far end of pastry. They will look like this when you are done -


Emily doesn't believe that the ones that aren't perfect triangles will taste as good.
I am going to prove her wrong after Christmas.

Now, layer them between sheets of grease proof paper, seal them in a freezer bag or container and pop them into the freezer. Instant food for family and/or friends in the post holiday easy peasy quiet time. Just cook them at a medium temperature until golden brown. A little mango chutney goes really well with them.

I'll tell you how I do my mincemeat tarts tomorrow. For those of you who hate making pastry - it is the perfect recipe for you.

Susan

15 comments:

  1. Filo pastry on the shopping list tomorrow then... Perfect, thank you! x

    ReplyDelete
  2. I honestly thought samosas would be really complicated. I'm definitely going to try these, probably not in time for Christmas, but soon! Thanks for the instructions x

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you Nigella xxx (first time I hit the zzz!!).

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'll be stragiht over after Christmas! Might have to have a go myself! :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Those sound delicious! I've been in the mood to stock the freezer lately and may have to try these. Heaven knows I need all the quick meals I can get!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great job, wonder mum! Never thought to try it this way, I've made them the "proper" way before... took bloody hours and didnt even taste that good!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yum! I've recently batch made soup and bolognese sauce ready for after Christmas. I'll be at mum and dad's from the 23rd - 28th, so I was on the phone with mum earlier working out what we were making for each meal - relatively stress-free at the moment...

    ReplyDelete
  8. Im all over anything that looks that easy. I probably cant even stuff that up!

    Just did my menu for Christmas but these look like perfect summer holidays food ...they're on my list!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Yum, love Samosas and I have all those ingredients here. They will go down a treat, thanks for the recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I hate making anything but I'll happily eat them! They sound scrummy! Between you and LJ you have my mouth watering! Jxo

    ReplyDelete
  11. sounds yummo - if i pull myself away from either the pc or the new sewing machine, i might make some!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Yum yum!

    You make it look so easy!

    ReplyDelete
  13. My day off today. I planned to do some cooking - might try this. Himself has requested Lasagne for tea.

    ReplyDelete
  14. well done you! You are very organised. I spent a lot of time on the web yesterday looking for a new fridge freezer as mine has just died :-(

    ReplyDelete
  15. They sound delicious! How about you train the girls, furnish them with recipes and then send them to stay with me and Archie for a while?!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for leaving a comment. I read them all and I love them all. I do my utmost to reply to comments as often as possible. If you comment and never receive a reply from me there is the possibility that you are a no-reply commenter.