Samsa: Uzbek meat pastries

Samsa is a food that comes from Uzbekistan.  It is a dough pastry filled with meat and is commonly prepared with ground lamb.  In the US, at least on the East Coast, ground lamb can be hard to find and when it is found, it is usually expensive.  I instead use ground beef or possibly a mixture of ground beef and ground lamb.  It is flavored with cumin and I like to use a lot of it, both as ground cumin and cumin seeds. 

These little guys are so delicious.  I love to take one or two with me for lunch with some vegetables.  I just like to make sure that there microwave around to heat them up, they are better warm.  Yes, I am using puff pastry again.  I find it to be so versatile and really easy to use for different ethnic dishes, as well as appetizers, main dishes, and desserts.  And it is easy to work with!

Ingredients
1/2 pound of ground meat (Use ground beef, ground lamb, or a mixture)
1 medium sized yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 sheets of Pepperridge Farm puff pastry dough
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon olive oil

1.  In a medium frying pan, cook the onion and garlic with 1 tablespoon of olive oil on low heat until the onion is soft.

2.  Add the ground meat to the frying pan, and cook the meat until browned.  It is okay if the meat is still a little red since it will also be baked.   To the meat, add the coriander, salt, ground cumin, and rub the cumin seeds between your fingers.

3.  Let the meat cool for about 20 minutes before forming the pastry, otherwise the puff pastry dough will not hold.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

To form the pastries:

4.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Separate one sheet of the puff pastry into 6 equally sized pieces.  The other 1/3 sheet of dough should be cut in half.

5.  Divide the meat into 8 portions.  Put one portion of the meat onto half of the piece of puff pastry.

6.  Fold the dough in half and push the ends of the dough together to close the pastry.

7.   Mix the egg yolk with a few drops of water in a bowl.  Use a pastry brush to coat the tops of the pastry with egg.

8.  Cook for about 25-30 minutes until the dough is brown. Let cool and then serve warm.

Enjoy!

~Rona

Spinach Cheese Rolls

I tend to cook with Pepperidge Farm puff pastry dough really often.  Any time I host a dinner party or my family has guests over, I make these pastries.  Seriously, they are really easy to make, I have not met a person who didn't liked them, and I have given out the recipe for these many times!  I highly recommend making them!

However, after making the same recipe so many times, I started to think about alternatives and luckily found one right on the puff pastry box.  These spinach cheese rolls are also really good, and they are easy to modify to your taste: you can add less spinach and more cheese.  Also, depending on the cheese that I have in my fridge, I choose from a variety of parmesan, mozzerella, cheddar, or anything else!  And if you like food with more of a kick, you can add extra pepper and make them taste a little spicy.

Spinach Cheese Rolls
Adapted from Pepperidge Farm's puff pastry recipe
Makes about 18

2 sheets of puff pasty, leave at room temperature for about 30 minutes before beginning
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, cooked in boiling water and drained
1 cup feta Cheese
1/4 cup green onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 egg yellow
Additional shredded cheeses (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Work with one sheet of pastry at a time and carefully unfold them so that the dough is flat.  If it is still frozen, the sheet may separate into 3 pieces, so it is better to wait until the dough softens.

2.  In a bowl mix the spinach, cheese, green onion, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and any additional cheese that you want.

3.  Spread the cheese and spinach mixture evenly over both sheets of puff pasty.  Roll the sheets and press down the dough at the end to seal it.

4.  Cut the roll of dough into about 9 pieces of equal size and lay them on the baking tray. Using a pastry brush, rub the sides of the rolls with egg yolk.

5.  Cook for about 30 minutes or until the sides of the rolls begin to brown.

Enjoy!
~Rona

Cheese Pastries

This past week has been so busy that unfortunately it has not included a lot of time for cooking. Instead, I was visiting Boston because Alyssa graduated over the past weekend. She is officially a college graduate! Yay!

After two weeks of poor eating habits due to studying, and then a long weekend in Boston spent eating at restaurants each meal, I have been craving some home cooked food. I decided to start with one of my favorite recipes: cheese pastries. I have made these pastries many times for different groups of people and I haven't encountered a person who hasn't liked them.

The idea of these pastries came from hatchipuri, a Georgian cheese bread, that I first tried when visiting Russia. They are also similar to a borek that can be found in Israel, Turkey, and other Mediterranean countries. But whatever you call them they taste delicious.

I love using Pepperidge Farm puff pastry dough, it is do easy to use and very versatile. You can find it in the freezer section of most grocery stores.

Makes 12 pieces

1 box of Pepperidge Farm puff pastry
2 cups of crumbled feta cheese
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
2 eggs

1. Start by defrosting the dough for about 30 minutes, I like to work with it before it gets too soft. Preheat the oven to 375° F and line a large baking tray with aluminum foil or parchment paper.

2. Mix together the feta cheese, egg, and pepper in a large bowl.

3. The box contains two sheets of dough. Cut the dough into 12 pieces, 3 pieces along the fold and then 4 more even pieces and then do the same for the other sheet.

4. Lay all 12 pieces on the baking tray and place a large spoon of the cheese mixture in the middle.

5. Lay a piece of dough on top of the cheese and pinch the edges together until the dough forms a closed pastry.

6. Beat an egg in a mixing bowl. Use a pastry brush to coat the top of each pastry with egg.

7. Bake for 30-40 minutes until the dough rises and the tops are golden brown.

Enjoy

~R