10.27.11_Samosa Baked Potatoes

I love samosas. And I love potatoes (they are actually in my top 5 favorite foods). So when I saw a recipe for samosa inspired baked potatoes there was no question whether or not these would be made sometime in the near future. I mean honestly, who would not want these?

As always, this recipe could not have been an easier. It was basically like making twice baked potatoes but with samosa seasoning. Pierce two potatoes with a fork or knife and bake them in a 400 degree oven for about an hour. Towards the end of the hour prep the other ingredients. Saute half an onion (I used one large shallot instead), 1.5 tsp minced ginger,  1/2 tsp mustard seeds, and 1.5 tsp curry powder for about 5 minutes in a little olive oil.

Once the potatoes are fully baked, slice them open and scoop out all of the potato while keeping the skin in tact as much as possible. Combine the potato, onion mixture, 1/8 cup cilantro, 3/4 cup peas, and 3 TBS of butter. I used frozen peas that I quickly defrosted in the microwave. I feel like canned peas would not be very good in this dish, but what do I know? If you don't have fresh cilantro you could substitute the dried stuff, but don't use nearly as much! I looked up online how much dry spice to use instead of fresh and ended up using about 2 TBS of dried cilantro. It worked just fine but I think the fresh would make a big difference.  Next, mash it all the ingredients together with a fork or potato masher and add S&P to taste. Then scoop the potato mixture back into the potato skin and that's it.

I topped mine with a dollop of plain yogurt. I really liked the addition of the tangy yogurt with the flavors of the potato. So simple and incredibly filling and delicious. I originally thought I would make a vegetable or something on the side but we ended up not needing it because the potatoes were so filling on their own.