Mung Dal Paneer Samosa/Lentil and Paneer Stuffed Pastries

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amosa or Singhada (as we call them where I come from) always makes me nostalgic. I remember buying and treating on hot samosa from school and college canteen (which to me still is the best I have eaten till date) almost every other day. For the time when I was enjoying these crispy goodies - atleast for sometime - it would help me forget the dread of science and math classes! When at home, I remember when guests would visit during evening tea, serving samosa with tea was almost a given. My brother (a well known samosa fanatic) would keep waiting and dropping hints on what a great idea it would be to get some hot samosas. Papa, pretending to catch the hint, would hand him a ten rupee note. He would run over to the halwai shop at the corner of the street and get a dozen fresh out of the fryer for everyone ~ ahh! Can you believe samosas were 75 paise each back then!

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Malai kofta - healthier version!

alai kofta is an exotic and another classic dish from the northern parts of India.
The cuisine in north India very much reflects the wonderful fusion of Indian, middle eastern and Mughlai styles of cooking and is characterized by its fragrant rich sauces, aromatic spices, saffron, milk and fresh cream, yogurt, cottage cheese, ghee (clarified butter), dry fruits and nuts. 

Malai Kofta is all of the above and more, a delightful vegetarian alternative to meatballs or meat koftas. Malai is hindi for cream and koftas are dumplings made with paneer/Indian cheese, stuffed with nuts and raisins and simmered in a buttery, creamy fragrant sauce. A sinful indulgence and a must have on every Indian restaurant's menu around the world!

I like eating this dish but don't like all the deep frying and cream involved in the recipe. Earlier I used to make it at home often but stopped making it for a long time. My (kofta deprived) hubby used to ask me to make it and I just used to ignore him ;) then one day he was finally able to convince me to make it again but then me being me I tried to make it a little healthier.
So, this 'malai kofta' is sans all the malai and sans the deep frying. I make the koftas in my oven and they turn out very good a big hit without feeling guilty afterwards! Both hubby and I are happy. I now make it almost regularly and he gets to eat his fav malai kofta. For some special occasions I still revert back to the old method, but on a regular basis this one works great. If you like the fried kofta better you can always fry them. But if you are into healthy but tasty eating do try this and you will not be disappointed and see your taste buds falling head over heels in love with this tempting curry!

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