Ghoogra

Ghoogra belongs to a class of snack meals with samosas and batata vadas. There are many varieties of ghoogras. I prefer the savory ones to the sweet ones, and I eliminate the deep-frying by baking instead.

Ingredients:

• Green Peas
• Shredded coconut
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Green Chillies
• Cinnamon
• Lime juice
• Sugar
• Salt
• Unbaked pie crust or filo dough

• Heat a tablespoon or so of oil. Brown the green chillies in the oil. If you do not like ginger and/or garlic to taste strongly, lightly saute them in the oil too. Or, leave everything raw for stronger flavours.
• Add green peas, crushed garlic and ginger and saute for a short while. Or leave everything raw, especally if you're using frozen peas that have been thawed.
• Add all the spices, sugar and salt. My preference is to add a hint of cinnamon, some red chilli powder, maybe some coriander powder. Add just enough sugar that the mix gives a slightly sweet taste.
• Add shredded coconut depending on taste and turn off the heat a short while later. Overcooked coconut isn't tasty. Sprinkle lime juice. experiment with a little cinnamon, some black pepper, coriander powder, cloves, red chilli powder for spice, or garlic and ginger. Once again, it's perfectly fine to mix all of the stuff without cooking them.
• Make pockets with the pie crust. Pillsbury pie crust works just fine, but may be too fatty a choice. Fill the crust pockets with the peas and spices filling. The pockets should cover the filling entirely. Pie crusts tend to have lard in them, so you may want to make your own. If you have the patience and know how to work with filo dough, that's a good choice for wrapping up the filling as well.
• Pre-heat oven to 400F. Dust a baking pan with flour and place the filled pockets on the pan with some space between them. Bake for 10 minutes at 400F, then for 30 minutes at 350F or till the crust crumbles when cut. Filo dough requires different baking times - check the package.
• Serve hot with chutney.