Stubborn

As I write this, I am wearing a sweatshirt with the hood pulled up and have a mug of hot cocoa next to me. By mid-late April I would much rather be outside in a sundress, but clearly Mother Nature has other plans this year.  After reaching over 80*F last Sunday, this week it was near freezing for two of my morning commutes!  Finally, yesterday morning I dared to leave the house without gloves, feeling strongly that they shouldn't be a necessity in April.  Unfortunately, this conviction was not enough to keep my hands warm as the high was a paltry 57*F.

One way that I keep warm is by getting active in the kitchen.  I cooked twice this week, and both dishes had a little kick to them that made the house smell good and generated some heat in my tummy.

Meal 1--Chicken & Sausage Gumbo from All New Low Carb Recipes.  I found this book at my aunt's house, and was intrigued by the numerous dessert options in the back.  I surprised myself by choosing to make my first recipe from the front of the book instead.

The recipe came together easily, and I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor, since most of the ingredients were pretty basic.  I also sabotaged the "low-carb" nature of the recipe by serving it with a scoop of grits.

Meal 2--Spicy Chickpea Samosas with Raita from Cooking Light.  I first made this recipe in November 2013, but it doesn't appear to have made it onto the blog.  I know when I first made it because just like my mother, I am now putting the date and a letter grade on all of the recipes I make in my binder full of magazine cutouts.  Another way I recently discovered I am exactly like my mom?  Spending an inordinate amount of time comparing the color combinations of multi-pack tissue boxes to best "match" my decor.

Anyway...samosas!  I think the recipe is intended to make appetizers for a small group of people, but both times mine have turned into generously sized triangular pockets, two of which make a decent meal.  One benefit to going the appetizer route is the samosas will all be consumed while the outsides are still crispy.  This is not one of those meals that makes even better leftovers.

The ingredient list is a bit lengthy, but a good portion of the list are spices or other pantry staples.  The process is also pretty straight forward--chop, saute, season and fold.

My fillo dough had been chillin' in the freezer (pun intended) since the first round of this recipe last fall, so it was drier than usual and a little tricky to work with.  But coating them with melted butter and popping them in the oven at 400* for 10 minutes certainly helped cover up any flaws.

While the samosas baked, I prepared the raita.  Last time I remembered having a lot leftover, so this time I only used a 1/2 cup of yogurt, rather than the 3/4 called for in the recipe.

Served with a side of roasted brussel sprouts.

A nice veggie-rich dinner meant more room for Cadburry Mini-Eggs afterwards.  Even if the weather isn't cooperating as nicely as I want it to, it's still spring!