Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Jamie Oliver's Egyptian Stuffed Flatbread

Last night I tried the recipe below from Jamie Oliver's America.  It took about an hour and a half, and would have been a much better option if I was using left over meat that was already cooked or lamb...instead I cooked some left over chicken, pork and beef and just mixed them. I served it with salad, but wish I just had chopped up a cucumber, celery and red bell pepper to dip in the hummus an yogurt.

I was able to find the Sumac at Central Market, but the za'atar was a little more tricky. I talked to the "Foodie" at Central Market (which by the way, I hope can be my job when I'm old and bored) and he looked it up to find that it is a mix of dried sumac, thyme and sesame seeds. I wanted to mix the 3 to substitute, but as I did not have sesame seeds, I had to settle for some thyme and extra sumac. I used "Ground Comino" (which is apparently ground cumin seeds) and I'd like to try it with the whole seeds that the recipe calls for.
For the flatbread, I halved pitas (creating 2 thin circles) and spread the meat mixture on half. I would have done a little less meat filling and made more pitas...I also would have used regular baking pans rather than the air bake cookie pans.

My hummus was a whole can of chickpeas with some of the juice, 2 chopped cloves of garlic, juice from half a lemon, and 1-2 Tbsp olive oil. I seasoned it with garlic powder, cumin and paprika to taste. I'd like to try it with the tahini in the future, but I'm just so cheap!!!

4 c leftover cooked lamb, beef, pork or chicken
1 lemon, finely zested
1 tbsp sumac
1 tbsp za’atar, plus extra
1 tbsp cumin seeds, plus extra, toasted
1 tsp paprika
2 large eggs, preferably free-range or organic, beaten
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced 
4 large flatbreads or flour tortillas
Olive oil
4 heaped tbsp hummus
Good-quality extra-virgin olive oil
4 tbsp natural yoghurt
A small handful of fresh mint, leaves picked
Heat your oven to full whack. Spread your leftover meat on a board and, with a large knife, chop it up into rough chunks. Put it into a large bowl with your lemon zest, then halve the lemon and squeeze over the juice from one half. Add all your spices, the eggs, a pinch of salt and pepper, and most of your spring onions. Mix everything up with a spoon.
Lay out your flatbreads. You’re going to fold them in half, so cover half of each with the filling, leaving a 1cm gap around the edge. Use a spoon to spread the lamb mixture, then fold over your flatbreads and gently press the two halves together, so you have a half-moon shape.
Get two big baking trays, roughly the same size, and lightly rub one of them with olive oil. Lay your flatbreads on the oiled tray, then lightly rub the underside of your second tray with oil and pop this on top of your flatbreads. If your trays aren’t big enough, you may need to do this in two batches. Whack the trays into your preheated oven and cook for 6-8 minutes. Using the two trays this way ensures that your flatbreads get lovely and crisp on both sides.
Slice the flatbreads, arrange them on a big chopping board or serving platter, and dollop your hummus next to them. Make a small well in the centre of the hummus, so it’s like a little dish, and drizzle in some extra-virgin olive oil.
Scatter over your reserved spring onions and sprinkle with a little extra cumin and za’atar. Mix your yoghurt with some chopped mint, a good squeeze of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Have a taste, adding an extra squeeze of lemon if it needs it. Spoon it over, then tuck in.

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