Ingredients
200 grams of medium sized grape leaves (fresh are the best)
Salt to taste
juice of 1 lemon (I usually use more)
2 cups plain yogurt *or* Hommus
Hashwet Lahmeh wa Rezz - Meat and rice stuffing:
About 3/4 cup white short grain rice
About 230 grams finely ground fatty lamb
2 tablespoons of water
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of allspice
1 /4 teaspoon of finely ground black pepper
salt to taste
Wash the rice in two or three changes of cold water, drain and put in a mixing bowl. Add the minced meat, water and season with cinnamon, allspice, pepper and salt to taste. Mix with your hands to blend well.
If you're using preserved leaves, they're in brine, so you may want to cut down on the salt.
Put the vine leaves in a colander and run boiling water over them to make them easy to roll. Take one vine leaf, cut away the stem and lay it flat with the stem end toward you. Arrange about 1 teaspoon (more or less depending on the sides of the leaf) of stuffing in a thin raised line across the top of the leaf. The line should be about 1/2 inch away from the tip of the stem and again the same distance short of either side. Fold the sides over the rice, in a line that slightly tapers towards the bottom, then fold and tuch the top edges over the stuffing and roll neatly but loosely, leaving enough space for the rice to expand during cooking. Place the rolled vine leaf, with the loose end down in a square casserole container.
If, when you get tired of rolling them,(and believe me, you will) you have any stuffing left over, put it in a small pan ad an equivalent amount of water, cook for 20 minutes and serve on the side.
Pour enough water over them to barely immerse them, add salt to taste, and swirl the water around to mix it. Cover the pan and place on high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and boil gently for 50 minutes. Add the lemon juice and cook for another 10 minutes.
Once the leaves are done, turn off the heat and leave to sit, covered for about 10 minutes. The traditional way of serving this dish is to turn the vine leaves over onto a serving platter like an upside down cake, which is why you need a square container.