Friday, May 2, 2008

Chard Pies - Fatayer bil Sili'- فطائر بالسلق



In this recipe I am not gonna give exact serving ingredients because it depends on the amount of dough made or the size of the pies. I made each pie size enough for 1 person this time, I made 3 big pies with this filling. If you have a crowd or a party it's better to make the pies smaller so they can be served as appetizers.

Ingredients:
Ready dough mix (follow instructions on the box)
For the filling:
1 cup of onions, finely chopped
3 cups of chopped swiss chards leaves
4 tablespoons of olive oil
A handful of pine nuts
1 teaspoon of sumac spice (found in Middle Eastern stores or online)
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
Salt & pepper to taste.

While the dough is rising, in a pan, add onions, olive oil and the pine nuts and cook for 1 minute then add the chards, once they start wilting, add the sumac spice, salt and pepper. After they cook, add the lemon juice and set aside to cool off.
When the dough is ready, roll to about 1/8 inch thick and cut into rounds (the size you want) place the filling in the middle and fold 3 sides over the filling to obtain the shape of a triangle. Secure your triangle by pressing on the edges that you folded to secure the triangle from openings.
Bake in a 425 degrees oven until it's golden brown. They can be served hot or cold.

PS: You can substitute the chards with spinach. Also the sumac is optional if it can't be found. You can add more lemon juice in this case to substitute the taste.

RED CHILLI GARLIC CHUTNEY


Ingredients:

Fresh red chillies ............ 15
Garlic................................ 1 pod
Tomato puree ................ 2 tbsp.
Vinegar ............................ 1 tbsp.
Salt to taste
Oil

Method:
Wash and cut the red chillies. Grind all the ingredients to a smooth paste.
Heat about 2-3 tbsp. of oil and fry the chutney. Simmer for 3-4 mins.
It stays good for 8-10 days in the refrigerator.You can also freeze it.