Potato Samosa Bites with Raita Sauce

1. Scrub the potatoes. If some of your potatoes are a lot bigger than the other, halve or quarter the larger ones so that all the pieces are about the size of the smallest potatoes. (If the potatoes are all quite small, you can just leave them whole).
2. Put the potatoes, garlic cloves, and kosher salt in a large saucepan. Pour in cold water until it reaches one inch above the top of the potatoes and set the heat to high. Once the water has come to a rolling boil, let the potatoes cook for 3 more minutes and then turn off the heat. Allow the potatoes to cool to room temperature in the water. (If you’d like, you can drain the potatoes at this point, discarding the garlic, and store them in the refrigerator for up to two days before making the samosa bites.)
3. When you’re ready to make the samosa bites, put the raisins in a heatproof bowl and pour in about a cup of very hot water. Preheat the oven to 450 °F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Finely chop the cooked potatoes; you should have about 5 cups of them.
4. Put the ghee in a very large skillet over medium heat and add the cumin seeds. When they start to sizzle, add the shallot and sauté for about 3 minutes, until somewhat softened. Reduce the heat a little and add the jalapeño and ginger. Cook, stirring constantly, until the raw, pungent aroma subsides, about 2 minutes. Stir in the coriander, black pepper, cardamom, and cinnamon, raise the heat to medium high, and add the potatoes. Stir until the potatoes are heated through, and then mix in the scallions.
5. Drain the raisins, reserving the soaking liquid. Add the raisins to the potato mixture, stir well, and turn off the heat. Use a potato masher or the bottom of a heavy jar or glass to mash the mixture a little so it holds together better. Stir in the egg.
6. Use a greased tablespoon measure (or cookie scoop) to portion out rounded tablespoonfuls of the samosa mixture onto the baking sheet. You should have about 30 samosa bites. Bake for 15 minutes, or until they’re sizzling and nicely browned on the top and bottom. Enjoy hot with raita (recipe below).

Raita Sauce

1. If you’re making the raita with cashews, make sure you’ve soaked them in warm water to cover for 2-4 hours. (If you’re using yogurt, skip to the next step.) Drain and rinse the cashews, and then place them in a blender with the lemon juice, water, and salt. Blend, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the blender jar with a spatula, until you have a very smooth cashew cream. This can take up to three or four minutes in some blenders.
2. Put the cashew cream or yogurt in a bowl and stir in the minced cucumber and cilantro. Taste and add more salt if desired. Serve cool or at room temperature with samosa bites or your favorite spicy dish.

Notes

Keep in mind that you’ll also need to leave about 2 hours for the potatoes to cool after you cook them. It may help to cook the potatoes the day before you want to eat the bites.