Blue Cayenne

I’ve eaten samosas all over the world.

In my experience, the best ones were in Hyderabad, India, and in Colombo, Sri Lanka, but there were  close competitors served from a street food stand in Nairobi, Kenya, and at Udipi Palace, a small Indian restaurant in Artesia, California’s wonderful Little India.  But, truth be told, I’ve savoured every. single. samosa. I’ve ever been served–usually dipped in a fiery hot green cilantro sauce. 

History has it that the samosa originated in Central Asia, probably in Persia, and probably as a delicacy served in a Persian royal court stuffed with meats, spices and dried fruits. The pastries were first mentioned in literature by Persian poet Abul-Fazl Beyhaqi in the 11th Century. By the 16th Century, Persian poets and artists were singing the samosa’s praise and sharing recipes on the decorated pages of Persian miniature paintings. Here are two “how-to” pages describing how to make the delicacies. Everyone lined up in that painting looks pretty eager to serve the guy on the throne a samosa! You gotta believe there were a lot of “tastings” that led up to that moment.

As the great migrations that followed moved people across the world, the samosa moved with them and was adapted to the needs of  travelers, traders and soldiers as a large portable pastry filled mostly with meat. In many of the places along those routes, the samosa took root as a part of the local cuisine and remains so today.

When the samosa reached India (where it is most associated today), it was quickly adapted to the varied cuisines of that vast land mass–sometimes as a court delicacy, sometimes as a cheap street food for the masses, often vegetarian to comply with religious and economic exigencies. In the process, the spicing of the dish was adapted to local tastes; cumin, coriander, peppers and myriad other popular trade route spices found their way into the preparation of the filling.

When the British occupied India, the samosa’s reach was further widened to Britain and other British holdings like the African colonies. 

In modern times, the samosa’s reach and popularity has been further expanded by the vast Indian diaspora.  

Want to know more? If you love a good samosa as I do, here is a great BBC piece on Indian samosas: here.

The samosa recipe in this Blue Cayenne post  is adapted from the King Arthur Baking site. You can find KAB’s original recipe here. This samosa is baked in a flaky pastry rather than fried in the traditional manner.  I’ve added cashews and raisins to the filling because…well…because why not. I served these as an hors d’oeuvre at a recent Friendsgiving party with some special friends and, trust me on this, there were no leftovers!

Green Chutney Recipe:  Blend 1 large bunch cilantro, 1 clove garlic, 1 T. minced fresh ginger root, 1 minced hot green chili pepper, 1 T. peanuts, salt to taste, and 2 T. lemon juice together in your blender. If the mixture does not liquify, add a small amount of water until your have a liquid consistency. Store in the refrigerator. This chutney mellows as it is stored in the refrigerator.

So many interesting holidays. So little time.

Nowruz, the Persian New Year, was celebrated on March 21, the Spring Equinox. With spring just “springing” here in Southern California, this is a belated nod to that celebration.

Nowruz has been celebrated for more than 3000 years.  To celebrate, people gather with friends, exchange gifts, feast, recite poetry, ritually jump over fire. (The fire ritual is meant to symbolically burn away the negativity of the previous year. )

For the young at heart, here is a Disney Junior video aimed at helping children understand and celebrate Nowruz: Nowruz.

For those with a love of poetry, here is a century Nowruz poem, Bani Adam, by  Persian poet Sa’adi Shirazi. The poem celebrates the unity of mankind. Seems like we could use a little of that right now. 

Human beings are members of a whole,
since in their creation they are of one essence.
When the conditions of the time brings a member (limb) to pain,
the other members (limbs) will suffer from discomfort.
You, who are indifferent to the misery of others,
it is not fitting that they should call you a human being.

Interestingly, a Persian carpet hangs on the wall of the U.N. bearing this quotation.

For those with a love of sweets, here is a great Persian Walnut Cookie, a nan-e gerudi. The original recipe was posted on the King Arthur Baking Site here.

Scones!

The biscuit-like quick breads originated in Scotland in the 16th Century. By the 18th Century, they were a fixture on the English afternoon tea table.

More recently, they were popularized by Queen Elizabeth II who reportedly adored them topped with bespoke strawberry jam from Balmoral and clotted cream. So proud was she of her scones, that she served them to President Eisenhower when he made a state visit in 1960. After he left, the Queen dashed off the recipe and mailed the note (shown below) to him. 

Here is a variation on the Queen’s recipe from America’s Test Kitchen’s cookbook Boards: Stylish Spreads For Casual Gatherings. You can find the book at your local bookstore or on Amazon here.

For my “afternoon tea,” I enjoyed the scones with mascarpone and English strawberry jam (Tiptee’s Little Scarlet Jam) as Juliet sat corgi-like at my feet hoping to cadge a few crumbs.

I’m with Elizabeth R; they’re pretty wonderful!