Lamb Stuffed Tomatoes Middle Eastern Style Recipes

STUFFED LEG OF LAMB, MIDDLE EASTERN STYLE

Steps:

• Marinade: In a small bowl, mix together 1/4 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon zaatar mix and 3 cloves of garlic, crushed and minced. Season the trimmed leg of lamb with salt and pepper, to taste, and put it into a resealable plastic bag. Pour in the marinade and seal the bag. Refrigerate and let sit as long as you can, even overnight.
• Light the grill, putting the coals all on 1 side.
• Stuffing: Put the remaining garlic cloves in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the feta and pulse just to break it up, then slowly drizzle in just enough olive oil so the consistency is just barely creamy but not too loose (about 1/4 cup), stopping to scrape down the sides. Add the blanched spinach, 1 tablespoon of the zaatar spice mix, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon salt and a little black pepper, and mix until blended but still a little chunky.
• Take the lamb out of the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the inside with lemon zest and fresh thyme, then add a layer of arugula leaves. Carefully spread stuffing over the inside of leg, being careful not to spread it all the way to the edge. Grab the end closest to you and slowly roll the leg up. Tie well with butchers twine. Liberally sprinkle the outside of the lamb with shawarma spice.
• Put the lamb directly over the coals on the hot side of the grill and sear it quickly, until the outside develops a nice crust, maybe 2 minutes per side. Then move the lamb away from the coals, cover the grill and let it cook for 45 minutes or so, checking after 30 minutes and turning several times. When the lamb is done, take it off the grill, put it on a cutting board and let it rest for about 10 minutes. To serve, cut in 1 1/2-inch thick slices, and arrange on a serving platter, making sure to remove any pieces of twine.

LAMB-STUFFED TOMATOES, MIDDLE EASTERN STYLE

Steps:

• Stand tomatoes on stem ends. Cut off top 1/4 of tomatoes (reserve tops for another use). Using melon baller, scoop out seeds and pulp from tomatoes. Sprinkle insides of tomatoes lightly with salt. Place tomatoes, cut side down, on paper towels and drain 20 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly oil 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Mix lamb and all remaining ingredients in large bowl to blend. Fill tomatoes with lamb stuffing, mounding slightly at top. Arrange tomatoes in prepared dish.
• Bake tomatoes until stuffing is cooked through and meat thermometer inserted into center of stuffing registers 160°F, about 1 hour. Let stand at least 10 minutes. Serve tomatoes warm or at room temperature.

MOROCCAN STUFFED TOMATOES

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Brush a baking dish, large enough to hold the tomatoes snugly, with a little olive oil. Arrange the tomatoes in the dish, cut side up, and sprinkle lightly with salt.
• Place a large frying pan over medium-high heat, and add 3 tablespoons olive oil. Heat until shimmering. Add onion and sauté until golden and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and zucchini, and sauté until the zucchini is just starting to soften, about 2 minutes.
• Remove pan from the heat, and add cilantro, chile flakes, and 2 tablespoons pistachios. Season with salt to taste, mixing well. Divide the filling equally among the tomatoes, mounding the tops.
• Bake for 45 minutes, or until the vegetables are cooked as desired. Garnish with the remaining pistachios. Serve warm or at room temperature.

TOMATOES STUFFED WITH LAMB AND RICE (YEMISTES DOMATES ME RIZI)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cut the top off of the tomatoes and clean out all of the pulp, leaving a 1/2-inch thick skin. Reserve the pulp. In a medium saute pan, heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until the onions are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, reserved tomato pulp, and rice, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the lamb, pine nuts, parsley, dill, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and continue cooking until lamb is browned.
• Fill the tomatoes with the lamb mixture, sprinkle the tops with cheese, and drizzle with the remaining 4 teaspoons of olive oil. Place in a 9-by 13-inch baking dish. Pour water in the bottom of the dish and bake for 1 hour. Serve warm.

TOMATOES STUFFED WITH SPICED LAMB AND RICE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut off top third of tomatoes; chop tops and reserve. Scoop out seeds, juice, and pulp from tomatoes and discard.
• Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until tender and golden, about 8 minutes. Add lamb and sauté until browned, about 7 minutes. Add chopped tomato tops, wine, mint, 2 tablespoons parsley, and cinnamon. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until mixture thickens, stirring frequently, about 12 minutes. Stir in cooked rice.
• Place tomatoes in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon lamb mixture into tomatoes. Sprinkle each tomato with 1/2 tablespoon breadcrumbs, then 1 tablespoon cheese. Bake until heated through and cheese begins to turn golden, about 25 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons parsley.

SPICED LAMB STUFFED TOMATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Remove a thin slice from the top of each tomato.
• Using a grapefruit knife, cut out the centers of the tomatoes, scrape out pulp and seeds, sprinkle insides with salt and turn upside down to drain.
• Place a large non stick skillet over high heat, add lamb and onion, stir breaking up clumps until lamb is barely pink, drain any excess fat.
• Reduce heat to medium low, add sugar, allspice, cayenne, lemon juice and simmer 5 minutes.
• Reduce heat to low add ricotta, garlic, salt and pepper and simmer 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat and stir in dill.
• Stuff tomatoes with lamb mixture and bake 20- 25 minutes.

HASHWEH ("RICE STUFFING") MIDDLE EAST, PALESTINE

Steps:

• Brown meat lightly in butter. Add rice, salt, and spices. Stir for 2 minutes.
• Add 3 1/2 cups of hot water. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer over low heat for 25 minutes.
• Add the sauteed pine nuts and/or blanched almonds. Mix well. Mixture is ready to stuff lamb, chicken, etc.
• This can be also served seperately. If you are going to do this instead of stuffing a chicken, etc., simmer it 5 more minutes or until rice is very tender.
• *I also add one 20 oz. can of chick peas to this recipes, adding it the same time I add the pine nuts and almonds, and it turns out just wonderful! Enjoy!

MIDDLE EASTERN-STYLE DOLMA (STUFFED VEGETABLES)

Steps:

• Combine ground beef, 2 1/2 cans of tomato paste, parsley, green onion, butter, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.
• Before adding uncooked rice, rinse until water runs clear; this keeps the rice from becoming sticky. Add rice after rinsing and mix contents until blended well.
• Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil; add cabbage. Boil until just tender enough to fold, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Meanwhile, hollow out bell peppers, eggplants, and zucchini.
• Stuff hollowed vegetables with meat mixture. Set in a large pot (pack vegetables together so there isn't much room in between them). Fill cabbage leaves with 3 to 4 tablespoons of leftover meat mixture and set in the pot with the other vegetables. Pour water in the pot on top of the vegetables until almost covered. Stir in remaining tomato paste. Weigh down the food by placing a heavy, heat-proof plate on top.
• Bring water to a boil; reduce heat to medium and cover the pot. Let cook for 1 hour. Drain half of the water in the pot (leave heavy plate until done cooking) and recover, reducing heat to a simmer, and allow to slow cook for 1 hour more. Serve warm and enjoy!

MIDDLE EASTERN LAMB-STUFFED WONTONS

Steps:

• Mix together the lamb, spices, raisins and pistachios until well combined. Brush the edges of 1 of the wonton skins with water. Place 1 1/2 teaspoons of the filling in the center. Bring the corners of the skin together over the filling and press the edges together to seal tight. Repeat with the remaining skins and filling.
• Working in batches, deep-fry the wontons until nicely browned. Make sure the oil is not too hot or the skins will brown before the filling is cooked through. Drain on paper towels and serve immediately.

MIDDLE EASTERN STUFFED ZUCCHINI

Steps:

• Mix together the ground lamb, basmati rice, 2 tablespoons tomato puree, 1/2 teaspoon mint, salt, and pepper; mix well, and set aside.
• Slice the ends off of the zucchinis and hollow out the centers using an apple corer. Stuff with lamb mixture.
• Stir together the remaining tomato puree with 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large skillet. Place the stuffed zucchini into the sauce, and add enough water to cover the zucchini. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
• Stir in the garlic, lemon juice, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of mint. Recover, and simmer an additional 15 minutes. To serve, cut the zucchini crosswise into rounds and arrange on a serving plate. Spoon sauce over the top.