"Self-sufficiency does not mean 'going back' to the acceptance of a lower standard of living. On the contrary, it is the striving for a higher standard of living, for food that is organically grown and good, for the good life in pleasant surroundings... and for the satisfaction that comes from doing difficult and intricate jobs well and successfully." John Seymour ~ Self Sufficiency 2003

Saturday, 1 August 2015

Winter fare

Isn't it funny - you can have the best intentions in the world, but winter always gets the better of you.

I promised myself this winter I would be a good girl.  But, I haven't been.  1.0kg heavier already and still a couple of months of cold weather to go sigh

And, it's all the Rosie's fault.  And my new all the bells and whistle's fridge.  Now that I have freezer space to store "snacks", I'm taking full advantage of it.

RMan and I love nibbling - especially when it's cold.  But, the "ready made snacks' available in the supermarkets are revolting, and a complete rip-off.  More pastry than filling - if you can find any filling at all...

So, I decided that I would make my own.

I boiled up an entire chicken, and when it was cooked, and cold, used the chickeny / herby / garlicky water it had been boiled in to make a gravy.

I stripped the chicken away from the skin and bones and added it to the gravy.

Then I pulled out the phyllo pastry which was in the fridge.  Slathering each sheet with a good dose of olive oil I  cut the sheets into strips.  I used only one strip - you'll see why now...

Taking one of the strips, I added a spoonful of the chicken mixture - right at the end.
The corner of phyllo pastry got pulled over the chicken...
 ... and the corner got folded again...
 ... and again...
 ...and again...
... and again...
 ...and again...
 ... and again...
 ...and again...
That last little bit of phyllo pastry got folded up
against the samosa
 ...and then folded again for the last time.  I didn't worry about the uneven triangle I had created - as long as the filling is securely enclosed and doesn't leak out during the cooking process, to my mind all those bits of phyllo pastry edges which are visible in the pic above = extra crispy crunch in the mouth :)  .
A whole plateful of homemade chicken samosas :)
What was I left with?

 A whole plateful of chicken samosas.

 One strip of phyllo pastry got folded 10 times - equivalent to ten layers of phyllo pastry :)

3/4 of the plateful has gone into the freezer.  The other 1/4?  As soon as we light the Rosie later this afternoon, and it gets to temperature, I'm going to have a nibble :)

(I can't wait to posts this, so I'll add a pic of the cooked samosa's when they're ready :) )

1½ hours to cook / simmer the whole chicken (which also became chicken pie and chicken à la king), 15 - 20 minutes to boil and reduce the stock and make the chicken gravy, ten minutes to strip the cooled flesh from the carcass and 20 minutes to roll the chicken and gravy mixture spoonfuls in the phyllo pastry.  Effectively, it took 30 minutes of actual work to make enough chicken samosa's to last us a month (I hope...lol)

Who needs to buy ready made nibbles, when they are so easy to make yourself?

 Update:
Baked at 200°C for 20 minutes and served with a
chopped side salad and some chilli sauce.
Dunno what happened to the sauce, but they
tasted full of moist chicken - goal accomplished :)
RMan wanted to know how many I made, and how many I had left in the freezer.  He says 24 is not enough... ;)

 They were, even if I say so myself, absolutely, excellently yummy, crispy, and tasty!!
Posted by Dani at 15:35:00
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10 comments:

  1. kymber1 August 2015 at 17:59

    "Who needs to buy ready made nibbles, when they are so easy to make yourself?"

    EXACTLY! and you chicken phylo pastries look sooo deelish! i would be snacking on those all day long! right now we are in the heart and heat of proper summer - so our snacks are locally-available fruits. but your kind of snacks are what i love for winter snacking, too.

    i left you another comment on your previous post - let me know if you want some lupin seeds. sending much love! your friend,
    kymber

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dani2 August 2015 at 14:38

      kymber - Yeah, who needs to eat hot snacks in summer - salads chunks with a yoghurt / cream cheese dip or homemade dressing is what we want then :)

      Delete
  2. Mum1 August 2015 at 19:24

    Naughty girl. Thanks for the recipe.
    xx

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kirsty1 August 2015 at 22:21

    Yum, you made me hungry before bed, tut tut!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dani2 August 2015 at 14:38

      Kirsty - Nothing better than a midnight snack every now and then... ;)

      Delete
  4. Quinn2 August 2015 at 13:39

    Do you bake them? Fry them?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dani2 August 2015 at 14:39

      Quinn - Baked at 200oC for 20 minutes ;)

      Delete
  5. Bill3 August 2015 at 11:49

    Oh my goodness, they do look delicious. :)

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to comment - it makes my day and removes the "loneliness' of sitting at my screen blogging supposedly to myself ;) I try and reply as quickly as possible so please forgive me if sometimes my response is delayed.

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