Slightly spicy, full of flavour, my easy vegan filo samosas are yummy comfort food, and since they are baked, contain a fraction of the calories of fried ones.
I know, I know, samosas are not supposed to be made with filo pastry but I had a half a pack in the ‘fridge which needed to be used up, and y’know what? It totally works.
Y’know what else works? Ensconcing yourself in the kitchen, cooking all the things, while you eagerly await a call from your son, telling you that you are now a granny.
I know, right!
I can’t tell you how many times I’d been checking my ‘phone, to make sure it really was not on silent.
I badly needed a distraction.
Introducing My Granddaughter
Weighing in at a healthy 7lbs, Raven finally put in an appearance at 8.30pm April 10th, and I couldn’t be happier for Josh & Vicky. I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed my son being so completely over the moon!
Why have I waited a couple of weeks to post this recipe? Because baby cuddles. Obvs. And lots of them.
My beautiful granddaughter, Raven - isn't she so perfect and gorgeous? I am so completely in love with her.
Vegan Filo Samosas
Even though when we were in India and Malaysia, I both bought and made a megaton of samosas, I tended to always make them with the more traditional peas, potatoes, and spinach (when it was available). However, since we were heading off to the UK for the aforementioned schnuggles, I wanted to use up everything in the 'fridge.
I laugh in the face of tradition. Eheheh.
To be honest, I could have made yet more soup but really, after almost six weeks of living on little else than soups, smoothies, and congee (due to my dental surgery), I wasn’t sure I was quite ready to face yet more soup. Now that I can eat again (albeit very carefully), I’m getting hankerings for burgers, sausages, sandwiches, and in general, things which are pretty substantial... although I do still have to be careful about what I eat.
My samosas are really easy to make, and of course, are open to interpretation (use your favourite veg combo). If you want to be more traditional, you can deep-fry them. Some of us need to watch our waistline though (oh hello, me), hence baking them in the oven; they are no less delicious, and in fact, are a good deal less greasy than some of the ones I've bought from street carts.
The most difficult part of this recipe is folding the filo but once you have the hang of it, it’s actually not complicated. Simply follow these images, and you’ll be fine.
Start by cutting a sheet of filo into strips about 10cm wide. Take a strip, and wet it all over with cold water. Place a spoonful of the samosa filling into a corner, and smoosh it down a little.
Fold the bottom corner upward to meet the top of the strip of filo, and press the edges down. It doesn't matter too much if the pastry tears a little. Next, flip the parcel over, along the long vertical edge, and again, press down to seal. Then flip along the diagonal edge. Press to seal.
Once again, flip the samosa along the vertical edge, and seal. Finally, either trim off, or fold over and seal any excess filo. Press down all around the edges, brushing with a little more water if necessary, to make sure that all edges are sealed. Gently smoosh the filling a little more if necessary, to get it to spread out toward the edges a bit.
Place on a baking tray, spray with a little oil, and then bake in a hot oven for around 15 minutes, until the samosas are golden and crispy around the edges.
Enjoy!
BTW, if you want to see lots of picspam, check out the yummy food in Fort Kochi!
📖 Recipe
Easy Baked Vegan Filo Samosas
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seed
- 1 large leek finely chopped
- 2 tablespoon garlic ginger, and chilli paste*
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 large aubergine finely-diced
- 2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon mango powder amchur
- 200 g fresh spinach
- Dash sea salt
- 150 g filo pastry
- Spray oil for baking
Instructions
Make the filling:
- Heat the coconut oil over a medium-high heat, and splutter the cumin seeds for 30 seconds.
- Add the leeks, and fry for around 10 minutes, until they begin to soften.
- Stir in the garlic, ginger, and chilli paste, and continue to fry for another couple of minutes, until the garlic has lost its raw aroma. Mix in the turmeric.
- Add the aubergine to the pan, mix in, and fry for 15-20 mins or so, until it becomes soft.
- Mix in the coriander, garam masala, and amchur, stir well, reduce the heat, and fry for another couple of minutes.
- Add the spinach, and allow to wilt by covering the pan for a few minutes.
- Once the spinach has wilted, uncover the pan, and stir everything together.
- Taste and season, then lightly mash the vegetables. You want a chunky mash, not a smooth one.
Heat your oven to 200°C, line a baking tray with parchment
Make the samosas:
- Take a sheet of filo, and cut into 10cm strips (you should get four strips from each sheet).
- Take a strip, and wet it all over with cold water.
- Place a spoonful of the samosa filling into a corner, and smoosh it down a little.
- Fold the bottom corner upward to meet the top of the strip of filo, and press the edges down. It doesn't matter too much if the pastry tears a little.
- Next, flip the parcel over, along the long vertical edge, and again, press down to seal.
- Then flip along the diagonal edge. Press to seal.
- Once again, flip the samosa along the vertical edge, and seal.
- Finally, either trim off, or fold over and seal any excess filo. Press down all around, brushing with a little more water if necessary, to make sure that all edges are sealed. Gently smoosh the filling a little more if necessary, to get it to spread out toward the edges a bit.
- Place on a baking tray, and repeat for the rest of the samosas.
- Spray the top of each samosa with a little oil, and then bake for 15-20 minutes (depending on your oven), until they are golden and crispy around the edges.
- Serve hot or cold, and keep any leftovers in an airtight container for a couple of days. If they stick around that long.
Notes
- 1 cup = US cup = 240 ml
- 1 tablespoon = US/UK = 15 ml
- 1 fl oz = US = 30 ml
Corinne
Hi!
I'm thinking of making these in advance. Any idea about whether they keep well in the freezer pre-baked?
Thanks a lot and congrats on your granddaughter!
Nico
Thanks so much, Corinne!
Yes, they can be baked and frozen; it's best to reheat them from frozen too. Enjoy! xx
Sophie33
Ooh waw, these look just stunning & oh so fabulous even! Thanks for the step-by-step guide!
Congrats on the grand-daughter too! She is a beauty!
Nicole
So glad the step-by-step is useful, Sophie. I hope you enjoy the samosas as much as we do... I have to admit though, that it takes all of my willpower to not stuff my face with them!
Sarah @ Champagne Tastes
These look awesome! I love the idea of baking them instead of frying- so much less grease! And your grandbaby is gorgeous!
Nicole
Thank you Sarah!
Although I loved buying samosas from the street food stalls in India, I do have to admit that my waistline suffered! Baking them is a much better option, as is using filo, as opposed to samosa dough. A win all-round, methinks!
And yes, Raven is gorgeous, isn't she? (Biased granny here!).
Thank you so much for commenting, I really appreciate you taking the time to leave a message. 🙂
Chris @thinlyspread
Oh LOOK at her! She's gorgeous! Huge congratulations 🙂 And that massive pile of samosas looks amazing, I have wanted to visit India for as long as I can remember - a huge population of vegetarians and the promise of delicious food calls very strongly to me! I've made samosas with filo too, I think it works REALLY well and you have now planted them back in my head, I shall have to make some soon!
Nicole
Isn't she just! Of course, I am hugely biased. 😉
One of the reasons we decided to go to live in Fort Kochi was the food. I'm not kidding! I'd love to say that we'd thought about it for ages, and looked at all the pros and cons but no, when we were planning where to go once we left Morocco, our first thought was, "Where can we easily get yummy, veggie food?"!
Where we lived in Morocco was very short on veggie options as far as eating out was concerned; we found precisely three places we could eat at in the city we lived in, and one of those, we discovered, simply fished out the meat before serving it to us! Fortunately, I had a basic kitchen, and the souk was full of fresh produce (and I made friends with a couple of the stall holders, so was able to buy food at local prices). Even so, after five months of vegetable tagines and salads, we both craved variety.
Mind you, what I wouldn't give for a ready supply of mint and coriander - neither of which are easy to come by here in Slovenia!
We chose Fort Kochi on the strength of one of our favourite Indian restaurants in Northampton, which specialised in Keralan food. It was truly wonderful to spend almost half a year in a town where actually, eating meat was not the norm. So much so, that eateries which served it, made a point of advertising - 'we also serve non-vegetarian food'! I actually think that Keralan food is the best I've ever had, anywhere in the world. And I really miss fresh mangoes, bananas, and coconuts straight from the tree.
I am so glad I made friends with the owner of our favourite restaurant in Fort Kochi though, and that she taught me how to cook Indian food 'properly'. Until then, I'd always considered that my curries were great; actually they were(!) but they were not in any way authentic Indian, more British Indian (which is no bad thing, of course). At least now, wherever I am in the world, I can always make Indian noms (I always travel with a spice kit!).
I really hope you get to experience India for yourself, it is a truly amazing country, with warm, friendly, lovely people (only don't ever expect things to work as they would 'back home'!). Have you seen 'Rick Stein's India'? Although he cooks a lot of meat in it, it's a really good series, and it makes me miss Kerala so much!
Enjoy your samosas, Chris!
Nayna
A nice twist given to the Indian samora.I like the greek/Indian fusion. Many congratulations on the birth of your grand daughter.
Nicole
Thank you, Nayna! And yes, I hadn't thought of it as a Greek/Indian fusion but yep, it totally could be, couldn't it?! 🙂
Louise
Oh Wow... These look delicious! I'm a big fan of filo pastry to make everything taste extra delicious. Which reminds me I have some in the freezer!
And congrats on your beautiful Granddaughter.. awww.. xx
Nicole
Thank you, Louise - she's a beaut, right?! LOL!
I love filo too... which is just as well because it's such a part of everyday life here in Slovenia (which means it's really cheap to buy)!
Thank you for commenting, I really appreciate it! xx