Lebanese Meat Pies

Who doesn't like a neat little hand pie?  Every culture has a variation of these and for good reason.  They are delicious.

To make the dough, pour 1/4 C. of vegetable oil in the bowl of your mixer.  Add 1 egg and 3/4 C. of whole milk.  Add 1 tsp. of rapid rise yeast and 1/2 tsp. of salt.  Mix in 3/4 C. of flour and add additional flour until you have a nice smooth ball.

Place it in a greased bowl and flip it to cover.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise while you make the filling.

You can choose the spices you like.  I used cumin, turmeric, garam masala and garlic. Lots of garlic!

Dice a large onion very fine and mince your garlic.

Saute' them in a bit of olive oil.  Sprinkle your spices in so they toast.  I used about 2 tsp. of cumin and 1 tsp. of the other two.

Add 1 pound of ground lamb and 1/2 pound of ground beef.  Stir until the meat is browned then add a small bag of spinach.

Add about 3 T. of pine nuts.

Next, add fresh lemon juice.  I used 3 whole lemons.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Remove it from the heat and let it cool a bit and then add 1/2 cup or more to taste of crumbled feta cheese.

Cut off pieces of the dough about the size of golf balls.  Roll them out very thin.

Place a scoop of the filling in the middle and pull the sides towards each other.  Pinch and turn the edges to seal.

Place them on a parchment covered cookie sheet and brush them with oil.

Bake them ate 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until they turn golden.

This recipe made about 3 dozen.  It might sound like a lot but they do not last long.  They are even good cold out of the fridge.