In the weeks to come Girl Guides Canada will be marking World Thinking Day and also celebrating the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. In light of this, we were approached by the Brownies’ leader to host a night of fun and ethnic cooking at the Flow Kitchen with 16 young and eager ladies. We decided that we would try our hand at making a classic Indian appetizer known as the samosa.

We made a green tamarind chutney to go with the fresh vegetarian samosas and for dessert we opted for classic Ooey Gooey “Brownies” with a Chocolate Cookie Butter Cream icing made with their very own Girl Guide Cookies.

I had a blast. And I’m sure the kids did as well. I believe it’s important to help our kids realize that food is very important on so many levels. It’s essential to think about where food comes from, how to utilize the product in various applications resulting in a variety of outcomes. Let’s just say I love inspiring today’s youth and watching them develop their interest and cooking skills in the kitchen.

Keep your recipes simple and add more complexity as you become more comfortable in the kitchen and different ingredients. Happy cooking!

Green Chutney Recipe

(make ahead)

1/2 tsp toasted cumin seed

1/2 tsp toasted mustard seed

1 bunch of coriander, large stems removed

1/4 small onion, roughly chopped

1/2 piece of ginger, roughly chopped

2 Serrano chilies (or other spicy green chili)

2 lemons, juiced

2 tsb tamarind paste

1tsb brown sugar

Salt to taste

In a blender combine all ingredients and mix until smooth (you might need to add water to adjust the consistency).

Vegetarian Samosas

Pastry:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1tsp salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp oil

Sift flour in a large bowl, add oil, salt and garlic powder and mix until its crumbly. Slowly add ice-cold water, mixing well until it forms a dough-like consistency. Cover and rest for 20 minutes.

Samosas Filling:

3 tsp oil

1 small diced onion

2 green chilis

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp garlic

1 tsp coriander seed

1 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro

1/2 tsp garam masala

1 cup freezer peas

2 large potatoes, boiled and diced

Add oil to large pan on medium heat. Add diced onion cook for 3 minutes, then add your chili, garlic, ginger and coriander seeds and sauté for another 3 to 5 minutes;

Add garam masala and fold in your cooked diced potatoes and freezer peas; adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and set aside;

Dust a large surface with flour, place your dough on it and portion it into small 1-oz. balls. Using a rolling pin or empty beer bottle, roll it out thin and use a 5” oval punch to cut it out;

Place fill on the dough and run a moist finger along the seam;

Once you have made all of them, fry them off in 350F oil;

Serve with your favourite chutney.