Recent Posts

• Caramelised Banana-Peanut Butter Ice Cream (Vegan)
• A no-machine Coffee Ice Cream and Ice Cream Basics
• Life’s about to get dangerous.
• Trashy Tuesdays
• Quinoa and Roasted Pepper Salad
• The proof is in the licking … and H2Ope for Haiti.
• Frozen Yumminess
• 100% Whole Wheat No-Knead Sandwich Loaf
• Workplace Harassment
• Chana Masala / Chole (Chickpea Curry)

We had a little mutiny at our place last week. An army of potatoes took over our couch. They refused to vacate until they got their own designated seating.

Couch Potatoes

“Bucket seats and popcorn would do nicely,” growled the one-eyed don.

In our home, the three main food groups, in that order of preference, are potatoes, bread and chocolate. Can’t afford to piss off the spuds.

Phyllo dough to the rescue. We built them custom recliners.

We’ve never used phyllo/filo dough before. When our friend Sayed dropped in and demonstrated how he makes his died-and-went-to-heaven baklava, we realised how versatile and forgiving this product is. Unlike puff pastry, it’s also almost fat free.

Phyllo, also known as filo or fillo dough, (Greek ????? ‘leaf’ ) consists of paper-thin sheets of raw, unleavened flour dough. The Turkish name for phyllo is yufka, though there is also a Turkish flatbread named yufka.

Phyllo dough is made with flour, water, and a small amount of oil. It is almost always used in multiple layers separated by melted butter. When these are baked, they become crispy and the result resembles puff pastry, though the method is very different, and they are generally not substituted for one another …

In Turkish cuisine pastries prepared with phyllo are called börek, in Egyptian cuisine they are called gollash, in Albanian cuisine they are called byrek, in Austrian-German-Hungarian cuisine the dough is called Blätterteig and pastries made from phyllo are called strudel. (Source)

PHYLLO CUPS/RECLINERS

These are perfect party eats. The phyllo cups can be made a day or two in advance and stored in an airtight container. They are so crunchy and good, we ate several of them before the potatoes could occupy them.

Makes 16

Thaw phyllo dough and bring to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

A tip we learnt from Sayed: To minimise tearing, use two sheets at a time. It also halves the amount of fat used.

Like THIS.

Take
2 sheets of phyllo dough

and put them on an aluminum baking sheet or cutting board.
Cover the rest with a damp towel, else they dry out and become brittle. Using a pastry brush, smear all over with ghee/melted butter (vegans can use vegetable oil).

We need about 1/4 cup melted butter/oil for easy dipping, though we will end up using only about half of it. You can flavour the oil with herbs/garlic/spices if you wish.

Put 2 more sheets of phyllo on top.

Brush again. Take a knife or pizza wheel, and cut into 16 pieces. (or 12 if you want bigger cups or have only one muffin tray)

Gently stuff these layers into muffin cups and open up the middle a tad. Prick the bottom with a fork. If the dough tears a bit, no problem.

Bake them for 7 to 9 minutes until they are golden brown and crisp. Put them on a wire rack to cool.

Out of curiosity, we made the second batch using the way it is described in most recipes - brushing butter one layer at a time. They turned out more melded.

See the difference. One sheet at a time (above) and two sheets at a time (below)

Tastewise, they were the same. The two-sheet method uses half the fat, involves less tearing, and less work.

The filling is a modified version of Ashwini’s Batata Song. For the tempering, we used dill seeds, ‘cos we happened to find some in our pantry. Cumin or crushed coriander seeds work fine too.

3 cups potatoes cubed to small pieces (we used new red potatoes)

Put them in a bowl with 1/4 cup water, cover and microwave on HIGH for 5 minutes.

Grind
6 dry red chillies
1 almond-sized piece of tamarind
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp coriander seeds

with just enough water to make a smooth paste.

Clockwise from bottom left: Dill seeds, garlic, tamarind, shallots and dried red chillies

Heat 1 tbsp oil.
Add 1 teaspoon dill seeds (cumin seeds work too)
Stir for a few seconds until they are toasted, add

2 chopped shallots

Fry until translucent, add some salt and the ground paste along with the potatoes (drain any leftover water).

Cook them on high until dry and coated with the spices. The potatoes should be cooked and mash easily when pressed with a fork.

Meanwhile, cook 1/2 cup fresh peas with 2 tablespoons of water covered in the microwave on HIGH, or just thaw them if frozen.

Just before switching off the flame add the peas and 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper (optional). Stir once, take off the heat. Adjust the seasonings and add

1/4 cup chopped cilantro.

Let this mixture cool a bit.

Spoon the filling carefully into the cooled phyllo cups.

This manual on Getting Potatoes off your Couch goes to Dhivya’s Potato Fest @ Culinary Bazaar and Sia’s Ode to Potato @ Monsoon Spice.

Not to forget, this dish is my Valentine’s Day offering to my darling J, along with a poem.

to my beloved

b.

Pouches of Potato Love

These also go to dear Pooja @ My Creative Ideas for her Valentine’s Day event.

Also see: Bouquets for My Valentine

55 Comments

1. Miri says:

   February 13, 2008 at 10:20 pm

   :laugh: :laugh: Great ode and a beautiful Valentine’s day treat Happy V day to you!

   Reply
2. Anjali says:

   February 16, 2008 at 12:13 pm

   Hee hee..I’m gonna be laffing in my sleep too…good night

   Reply
3. Apu says:

   February 19, 2008 at 7:19 pm

   Super Bee! Filo is a favourite with me too, I love its versatility. The poem rocks!!

   Apu

   Reply
4. Vegeyum says:

   February 22, 2008 at 1:52 am

   Oh my goodness, these look so very good. And the poem too - aren’t you a romantic! Cool.

   Reply
5. Dee says:

   April 23, 2008 at 10:16 pm

   Bee, Your site is the most entertaining one , especially when Im a little low….I was browsing through your site , early this week and stumbled upon this recipe… Loved the poem :D. made the phyllo cups and they were fantabulous!! Love your site guys !! Hugs to you U make me smile Thankyou !!

   Reply