ampenland

I made these tonight for a client and it was the first time I'd ever had them. They turned out well. The recipe in its original form was copied from a FN post by April in Bora Bora, I believe, but I tweaked it and added some notes.


* Exported from MasterCook *

Stuffed Grape Leaves (Dolmades)

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Appetizers

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 jar grapevine leaves (1 pint)
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef or 1 lb. beef and 1/2 lb. pork
1 1/2 tsp salt and pepper
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 each onions grated
1 cup long-grain rice
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup dill
1/4 cup mint
1/4 cup butter -- melted
2 cups beef or chicken broth
juice of 1-1/2 lemons
Tzatziki Sauce:
16 ounces plain yogurt
2 each cucumber -- peeled, seeded & diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 each lemon -- juiced
salt and pepper -- to taste
1 tablespoon fresh dill
3 cloves garlic

Rinse leaves in cold water. Let stand in warm water as dolmades are prepared. Combine ground meat with next 7 ingredients and mix well. Place 1 tsp filling in center of a grapevine leaf and roll (not too tight - rice will expand). Line deep sauce pan with grapevine leaves and arrange dolmades in layers. Add broth, butter and lemon juice and cover (see notes). Simmer for 45 minutes or until rice is tender. For oven-baked, cover in deep baking pan for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.



For tzatziki sauce: combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Source:
"FN Message Boards"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 1993 Calories; 118g Fat (52.3% calories from fat); 39g Protein; 203g Carbohydrate; 12g Dietary Fiber; 182mg Cholesterol; 2885mg Sodium. Exchanges: 9 1/2 Grain(Starch); 6 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 2 Non-Fat Milk; 23 Fat; 1 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

NOTES : Per instructions on FN TV, pour just enough liquid over rolled leaves to cover (not quite to the top of leaves, but a bit below). Place a plate on top with a weight (jar filled with water) on top of that to keep rolls from bumping around. Serve with Tzatziki sauce.

Can be served warm, room temp, or frozen and served later.

Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

__________________
Culinarily yours,
Alison
Wish Upon A Chef
Personal Chef Service

decolady

Hi Alison,

I have a vegetarian version of dolmas that are delicious.

Dolmas

1 16 oz. jar vine leaves
1 cup long grain rice
1 tomato, peeled and chopped
1 onion, finely diced
4 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
4 Tbsp. chopped celery leaves
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tomatoes, sliced
4 cloves garlic, slivered
1 lemon, juiced
1 Tbsp. crushed dried mint

If vine leaves are packed in brine separate them and place in a large bowl. Pour boiling water over them and let soak 20 minutes. Drain and soak in fresh cold water - twice. If the leaves are just canned you can skip this step, though I usually rinse them. (You can use fresh leaves if you have grapes growing in your area. Get 40-50 leaves and plunge them into boiling water to wilt.)

Soak the rice in boiling water for a few minutes and rinse under cold tap. Drain well. Mix with chopped tomato, onion, parsley, celery leaves, crushed garlic, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Place one leaf on plate, vein side up. Place a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of leaf near the stem edge. Fold the stem end up over the filling, then fold both sides toward the middle and roll up like a small cigar. Squeeze lightly in the palm of your hand. Fill the rest of leaves the same way until all of t he filling is used up.

Line the bottom of a saucepan with leftover vine leaves and the sliced tomatoes. Pack the rolls in tight layers on top, seam side down, pushing small slivers of garlic in between as you go. Sprinkle with lemon juice and add about 1/2 cup water. Put a small plate over the top to hold them down and cover pan with a lid. Cook over low heat for 2 hours or until tender, adding more water as what's in the pan becomes absorbed. Add the mint with water about 20 minutes before dolmas are finished. Serve hot, cold or at room temperature.

ampenland

Copied and pasted for the future. Thanks for sharing!

__________________
Culinarily yours,
Alison
Wish Upon A Chef
Personal Chef Service

Dotti

Morning Ladies

I have never eaten Dolmades but have been wanting to try them. We are planning to visit a Greek Restaurant soon about an hour away from where we live. I would have thought the meat would be lamb but I suppose any meat can be used. If I like them I expect to be using your recipes.

Thanks for posting them.

decolady

Go for it Dotti. Often we do a variety of appetizers, rather than a sit around the table dinner. Dolmas are a favourite on those occasions.