I am pleased to share an authentic Indian paneer cheese recipe today from Susan Saldanha. She is a Columbus cook originally hailing from India who teaches custom cooking classes about Indian culinary traditions for groups and individuals in your home. Contact Susan by email to experience her healthy, delicious take on Indian cooking.

June 2012 was memorable because I went back home to India after eight long years. Landing in Mumbai India I was hit by the heat, the humidity, the flood of humanity and a hunger in your belly. I began to realize I missed all of this so much.

My mom grumbling to a visiting neighbor awakened me one sweltering afternoon. In muted tones she said "Mrs. Advani, please stop sending food. All the neighbors bring her food claiming it was her favorite dish when she was a girl and I don’t get a chance to cook for her. After all, she’s my daughter visiting after eight years."

In India, Food= Love and believe me I had a lot of good “love” growing up.

Today I will share with you a taste of my Motherland: a Paneer cheese recipe. This is often eaten in the US as Mattar Paneer (peas and paneer) or Palak Paneer (spinach and paneer). Paneer comes from Northern India. It is a fresh milk cheese that is easy to make. Highly nutritious, it is a great source of protein. Its subtle flavor profile allows it to absorb the Indian spices very nicely but can be eaten by itself as a delicious ‘anytime-snack.’

How to Make Paneer

Ingredients

4 cups of whole milk
3/4cup sour cream or yogurt (sour cream adds a decadent lusciousness to the paneer)
Cheesecloth folded over to give you four layers
Colander
Heavy bottomed pan

Method:

Bring the milk to a boil on a medium flame in the heavy bottomed pan. Keep the flame on medium as milk burns very easily and will add a burnt taste to your paneer.
Add the sour cream and keep stirring gently. Turn the heat up to high to facilitate the curdling process.
The milk will begin to appear lumpy and will have light green whey around it.
Strain the whey in a cheesecloth lined colander.
While the paneer is still in the colander run cold water over the paneer till it cools down. Squeeze as much of the extra water out of the paneer as you can by twisting the lose ends of the cheesecloth.
While still in the cheesecloth place the paneer under a weight (a heavy pan or a foil lined brick) on your counter for about 1-2 hours.
Unwrap the paneer and cut it into cubes. It’s ready to eat.
Paneer keeps in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Freezing is possible and cutting it into cubes before you freeze it is a good idea. After thawing you have to lightly fry (preferably in homemade ghee) on both sides before you use it in cooking or else it tends to break apart.

Serving suggestions:

In my home we eat paneer fresh and love it with a slight drizzle of honey or on a toothpick with a small piece of pineapple and a sprinkle of chaat masala. (Chaat masala is a spice blend used on a variety of snacks and has spicy, salty, and sweet tones. It is available in any Indian grocery store.)

Note from Rachel: Our favorite Indian cooking book is 1,000 Indian Recipes by Neelam Batra.

On a recent Saturday morning, I woke early and drove to the Worthington Farmer's Market. I was on a mission to buy sour cherries and meet AJ of Sassafras Bakery. Fruit in tow, I introduced myself to the sweet bombshell that is AJ and chatted with my friend Patti who happened to be working the bakery stand too. I couldn't leave without purchasing Sassafras' most hyped treats - the potato & bacon pocket pie and kitchen sink granola bar. I shared the pie with Alex, who was still hobbling around with a piece of an axe in his thigh. It was flaky and savory and oh so delicious. "I could eat a dozen of these," I sighed. "Me too. They're like breakfast samosas," agreed Alex.

One thing led to another and that night we were folding, filling, and frying samosas for the first time.

We used the tome 1,000 Indian Recipes as a guide for the recipe. While I'm not sure we will ever work our way through the whole book, the few recipes we have made are spot-on to the Indian cuisine we eat in the US and what Alex has had on his trips to India. The samosa recipe was another one to add to our permanent file.

The dough is a barely mixed flour and oil one that rests for a few hours to develop gluten. It is divided into equal pieces and rolled into balls. Each ball is then rolled into a thin circle and cut in half.

Each half folds into a triangle pocket by sealing one side from middle of the base across the rounded edge. The other corner is brought across and sealed to the outside. Filling stuffs in and the third edge is sealed.

The filling can be made of practically anything. Alex and I opted for a fairly traditional potato, onion, and chickpea filling while Lil filled her pieces with leftover chicken.

While stuffing our faces with the savory, slightly spicy, crisp samosas, we realized that the recipe is vegan. Though a little heavy on carbs and not at all low fat, I'll keep samosas in mind for parties where I want to feed people with a variety of dietary needs.

We made a double batch of dough and filling and fried all of the resulting 48 samosas. What we didn't eat on Saturday we froze.

To reheat with crispness, we pop them in the toaster oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees F. When we are feeling lazy, 1 minute in the microwave works, though the texture of the wrapping sogs a bit. Potato Chickpea Samosas from 1,000 Indian Recipes by Neelam Batra makes 24

Traditional Samosa Dough

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour + 1 cup for dusting 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground ajwain seeds (available through Pensey's) about 1/3 cup water 2 cups oil for deep frying

1. Mix 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, salt, 3 tablespoons vegetable oil and ajwain seeds in food processor and pulse a few times to mix.

2. Run motor and slowly pour water until the flour gathers into a semi-firm ball that does not stick to the sides.

3. Remove to a clean bowl, cover with a towel or plastic, and let rest 1-4 hours for the gluten to develop. Dough can be refrigerated at this point.

Potato Chickpea Filling

2 tablespoons canola oil 1 teaspoon cumin seeds 2 teaspoon coriander seeds 1/2 teaspoon ground fenugreek 1/2 teaspoon tumeric 1/4 teaspoon curry powder 1 teaspoon chili garlic paste 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger 1 vidalia onion 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste) 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste) 1 cup / 8 ounces cooked chickpeas (1/2 can) 2 medium yukon gold potatoes, peeled, cubed and boiled until tender in salted water 1/2 cup water

1. Grind cumin and coriander with a mortar and pestle.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add all spices, chili paste and ginger to the oil and stir for one to two minutes, being careful not to burn them.

3. Add onion into seasoned oil. Cook covered for 20 minutes or until caramelized and very tender, adding water after five minutes.

4. Stir in potatoes and chickpeas. Cook for another five minutes while slightly mashing potatoes. Add a little more water to cook as necessary.

5. Allow to cool before stuffing into samosa dough.

Assembly and Cooking

1. Heat oil to 350 degrees in a large deep pan.

2. Divide dough into 12 balls.

3. Roll a ball into a thin 12 inch circle and cut in half.

4. Fold each half into a triangle pocket by sealing one side from middle of the base across the rounded edge. Bring the other corner across and seal it to the outside.

5. Stuff in a tablespoon or so of filling and seal the third edge.

6. Fry in hot oil for 4-5 minutes. Remove to a paper towel lined plate or rack to drain excess oil. Serve warm.

PS. Meet and bid on a date with AJ at the Local Matters benefit Hills Foodie Fair this Saturday.

Added to Hearth and Soul 58.