Vegetable Puffs

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 measures Maida (all-purpose flour)
• 3 Tablespoons Vanaspati (vegetable shortening) (heaped)
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• Ice water (as needed to knead the dough)
• 2 Tablespoons Finely chopped onion
• 3 அல்லது 4 Potato
• 1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric powder
• 2 Tablespoons Shelled green peas
• as needed Salt
• 1 Carrot
• 5 Beans
• 1/2 Teaspoon Garam masala powder
• 1 Lemon
• Oil (as needed)
• Ginger (1/2-inch piece, to grind)
• 3 cloves Garlic (to grind)
• 2 Green chili (to grind)
• Milk or egg white (to brush on top before baking)

Instructions

1. Mix the maida with salt and knead into a soft dough using ice water. Oil your kneading surface and beat and knead the dough repeatedly until elastic. Cover with a damp cloth, weigh down with a plate, and rest for 1/2 hour.
2. Masala method: Finely chop the carrot and beans. Pressure-cook the potato, peas, and chopped vegetables. Peel and mash the cooked potato.
3. Heat oil in a pan, temper cumin, and add the ground ginger-garlic-green chili paste. Add the chopped onion and saute until reddish. Add garam masala powder, chili powder, turmeric powder, and salt, mix for a minute, then add the cooked, drained vegetables. Saute for a few minutes until fragrant. Squeeze in the lemon and scatter coriander leaves before removing from heat.
4. Puff-making method: Knead the rested dough once more. Melt the vanaspati on the stove, then refrigerate it again for 10 minutes. Once set, beat it well by hand until it turns soft and butter-like, and place it in a bowl. Divide it into three equal portions.
5. Oil the work surface lightly and roll the dough out into a very thin rectangle, using maida as the dusting flour. Mentally divide the rectangle into three equal sections. Take one portion of the whipped vanaspati and spread it over two-thirds of the rectangle, leaving a 1/2-inch border all around.
6. Fold the unspread third of the rectangle inward first. Then fold the spread portion's remaining third over the top. Roll it out gently with a rolling pin -- you'll get a rectangle again. Spread vanaspati and fold this the same way, and repeat a third time. (If it's hard to roll, cover it with a damp cloth and refrigerate for 10 minutes after the first fold, then continue.)
7. The rectangle you now have will have nine layers. Cut it into smaller 3" x 4" rectangles with a knife, place a little masala in the center of each, and fold diagonally across the middle (once folded, the puff will be triangular). Dab a little water and press the edges to seal. Cover with a damp cloth and refrigerate for 1/2 hour.
8. Preheat the oven to 250°C. Dampen the baking tray lightly with water and arrange the puff triangles on it with a little space between each. Brush the tops with a little milk or egg white and bake until golden on top (this can take 40 to 50 minutes). Serve hot with tomato sauce.
9. Note: mix the dough the way you would chapati dough, then beat and knead it well to loosen it up -- that's what lets it roll out thin. If you don't have an oven, you can make these in a 50/50 sandwich toaster instead. You can also mix butter and margarine in with the vanaspati. The puffs can also be made square: cut a square, fold it in half through the middle, and you get an oblong shape. If you don't dab on enough water to seal it, the layers will separate during baking and the masala will show through.