1 karen mintzias
1 jar grapeleaves (or fresh)
FILLING
2 tbsp oil
1 lb ground beef or lamb
2 onions, chopped
1 garlic clove, pressed
2 cup water
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup rice
2 tbsp chopped mint
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1 pepper to taste
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup currants
1/4 cup port wine (optional)
1/4 cup pine nuts or walnuts
2 cup water
1 lemon (juice only)
SAUCE
3 eggs
2 lemons (stained juice only)
1 cup hot broth
Directions
If using canned grape leaves, rinse off brine by floating leaves in a
basin of cold water. Prepare fresh vine leaves by pouring a cup of
boiling water over them in a bowl. Drain. Spread 5 or 6 leaves out
at a time on a flat surface. Lay leaf stem side up. Snip off stem
with kitchen shears.
MAKE FILLING: Heat oil in large frying pan. Fry meat, onions and
garlic on medium heat for 5 minutes, mixing it as it cooks. Add water
and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Cover. Reduce heat to
simmer and cook 10 minutes, until water is absorbed. Set aside until
cool enough to handle. Put 1 teaspoon of filling near stem. Bring
left side of leaf towards center, then bring right side towards
center. They will not always meet. Pick up stem end of leaf, tucking
in the filling. Roll away from you. It will be an oblong roll like a
sausage.
Line the bottom of a large skillet with 4 leaves. Place each roll so
that the tucked under end is on the bottom. Arrange each roll snugly,
one next to the other, until all the leaves (except 3), and filling
are gone. Place these leaves flat on top of rolls. Place a flat dish
on top of rolls also to prevent their unravelling during cooking.
Add water and lemon juice. Bring to a boil. Cover. Reduce heat to
simmer and cook 45 minutes. When done, remove pot from fire. Make
Egg and Lemon Sauce and add to broth immediately or serve without
sauce either cold as an appetizer or as a hot entree.
EGG AND LEMON SAUCE: Beat eggs until thick and light yellow, at least
5 minutes, with an electric beater or 10 to 15 minutes by hand. Add
juice slowly, beating all the while. Mix 1 cup hot broth into beaten
eggs, stirring it in quickly with spoon (or wire whisk) so heat will
not curdle the eggs. Cook over very low heat until thickened.
From: "The Complete Greek Cookbook" by Theresa Karas Yianilos. Avenel
Books, New York.
Typed for you by Karen Mintzias
Servings: 60 servings
Byzantine Dolmathes (Stuffed Grapeleaves) Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Fruit
The History of Recipes
It is quite feasible to follow the history of written cooking instructions far back into ancient history, at least as far into history as early Egypt, and maybe further still. Interesting though that is, in the main part, these early cookbooks were just basic pictorial, hieroglyphic or cunieform instructions for meal preparation.
Interestingly, the oldest recipe found, according to historians are some clay tablets in Sumerian which describe the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made anyone who drank it feel wonderful and blissful. During Roman times 25BC a roman called Apicius created a collection of scripts detailing recipes cooked by his fellow Romans. In his scrolls, he recounts how the meals were divided into starters, main meal and dessert, something we still use today. Additionally, he informs us how the Roman cooks used a wide range of spices and herbs, including many that are still in use today such as bay, fennel and dill. Later, in the 15th century, people returning from the crusades brought us many foods and herbs from the Middle-East, including coriander, parsley, and basil. These new foods and tastes was responsible for an explosion in publications on food, most of which are kept safe in private cookery archives. Like it or not, the introduction of TV gave us TV cookery programs and the recipe books that accompanied them. Which pretty much brings us up to date and the invention of the internet, permitting us all to search through thousands of recipes just like those on this recipe site. |
We hope you enjoy this Byzantine Dolmathes (Stuffed Grapeleaves) recipe.
