Greek Indian Fusion, An Amazing Thanksgiving Hors d oeuvre

Thanksgiving morning, 7am and dark but not too cold. The November blast of winter in the western United States isn’t what they’ve made it out to be. I spent part of last evening making Spanikopita Indian Style. I adapted my Saag Paneer (Curried Spinach and Fresh Cheese) recipe. My periodic adventures into making Spanikopita have me keeping phylo dough in the freezer. I’ve loved making hors d oeuvre-sized Spanikopita. I fold them into 1" x 3" oblongs placing a dozen at a time in plastic containers and freezing. If you are going to do the buttery folding of working with phylo dough, always double the recipe, have containers ready for freezing and make a bunch. Once you are on a roll it gets smoother and is actually fun. It’s definitely something most people won’t make or think to buy. They make wonderful breakfast treats or impressive hors d oeuvres. I love to give them as gifts frozen and ready to bake. There is a disposable plastic container that holds a dozen. I tie one or two containers with a ribbon as gifts for friends or hostesses and they are always appreciated.

Lately on my quest for simplifying the preparation of delicious Indian dishes I’ve been refining Saag Paneer. I studied lots of different recipes and came up with a simple tasty version of my own that is delicious. My for-fun website on Simple Adventures with Indian Cuisine outlines the recipe and making it. https://sites.google.com/site/simpleadventuresindiancuisine/

Invited to sis-in-laws for Thanksgiving, my task is to make the hors d oeuvres. Of course I’ll bring the deviled eggs that are family tradition. The plate with brim with olives, pickled beets, dill pickles, and celery chunks with peanut butter. I wanted to bring a delicious Indian dish but the vegetables are covered. Last year I took an amazing Yam Curry (http://ourpastourfuture.blogspot.com/2008/11/aromatic-and-yummy-alternative-to.html) I kept thinking how I could expand my hors d oeuvres impressively with an Indian cuisine element. It occurred to me that the Saag Paneer without the cheese chunks would make an amazing, though different, spinach filling. So, yesterday afternoon I set about caramelizing an onion, stirring into it some garlic paste and spices and spinach then adding sour cream. I let the filling cool in the fridge and later began the phylo dough adventure.

My triangles look beautiful and I’m going to bake one for breakfast to see if my inspiration isn’t as brilliant as I think it will be. Traditional Spanikopita with spinach sour cream and feta cheese has an interesting, pleasant taste. I love them in the morning for breakfast. This Indian- inspired spinach filling will have more dimension with the blending of spices. I’m serving it with Mango Ginger Chutney for dipping. Trader Joe’s, an eclectic grocery chain out west, carries the chutney. I keep jars on hand for gifting and it’s perfect for dipping. My husband uses it, at times, as part of a cooking sauce for meat. It’s amazing in place of the mint jelly with lamb.

Buttered Croissants, broiled lamb & a taste of India

Hot, buttered croissants with coffee have to be a top morning indulgence for me. I used to enjoy them only rarely as I had to go out amidst traffic and morning chill to get them, or remember them the night before and then they were day old. Trader Joe’s is now my hero. They sell packages of eight frozen mini croissants. You take some out the night before and let them “proof” on a baking sheet over night. Then you bake them till golden brown. They are perfectly flakey, and deliciously croissanty, if I may coin a word. I discovered them by reading through the Trader Joe’s crazy little opus that they publish regularly. It’s a store that has little gems of food items up and down the aisles. Sometimes, now, I take the time to browse more in Trader Joe’s. That’s how I found what’s now a kitchen staple, their Mango Ginger Chutney. It’s a great accompaniment to my Indian dishes and Hank loves it as a cooking sauce. He used it brilliantly last night over lamb chops. No, you won’t overtly taste the ginger, it’s just a delicious sweet sauce with some complexity.

His dinner was a definite winner. Broiled lamb chops with mango ginger chutney sauce, broiled giant scallops which benefited from the sauce, as well, mashed potatoes with butter and fresh asparagus. I’ve been spoiled this week as the night before we had liver slathered in onions along with mashed potatoes (thanks to a friend who recently fixed it and inspired us). We both love liver and onions but often don’t think to fix it. Hank went to three stores trying to find veal liver but had to settle for basic beef liver. It was good, though. He told the tale of asking for veal liver at the Metropolitan Market and getting an angry stare. They might want to inquire as to the politics of their meat salespeople. Vegetarians or PETA folks should be allowed to opt out.

Wednesday afternoon I was a little down and needed an Indian food fix, both the fun of preparing it and the interesting tastes. What did I have on hand…red potatoes, a head of cauliflower that needed to be used… I went to Google and typed in potatoes + cauliflower + Indian + recipe and came up with the following dish. I put it all through the ricer topped it with a little butter for an amazing taste not at all overtly spicy!

Cauliflower and Potato Curry

From: Lisa Corsetti http://www.ivu.org/recipes/indian-veg/cauliflower-and-j.html I buy most of my Indian Spices, like Garam Masala, at a local food cooperative (Puget Sound Consumer Cooperative in Seattle) that sells spices in bulk.

Ingredients:
4 Cups potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 small cauliflower, cut into florets
a pinch of asafetida (can be omitted)
3/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
big pinch of sugar
2 tomatoes, chopped (I used a can of diced tomatoes)

1 1/4 cups water
1/2 tsp garam masala

Instructions:

Add all ingredients to a crockpot and cook on low for approximately six hours. Mash together.
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