Lockdown Recipe of the Day: Fatayer (triangular Lebanese pies)

Fatayer is the word used for pies. And there are many versions. I am going to share a few here as some of them can be successfully frozen and then warmed in the oven.

Because I have many vegetarian guests cooking in my kitchen, I came up with this filling to accommodate them.

Ingredients for the dough

(Makes about 30)

4 cups plain flour

10 g active dry yeast

320 ml warm water

1 tsp salt

½ tsp sugar

2 tbsp olive oil

 

Ingredients for a vegetable filling

2 medium white onions, chopped

olive oil for frying (plus more to wilt the spinach)

100 g pine nuts

800 g spinach, washed (you will need about 2 cupfuls once wilted)

30 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed

2 tsp baharat

chilli powder to taste

salt to taste

white pepper

2 cups labneh

 

Method

To prepare the dough, sift the flour in a mixing bowl and place in a warm oven (about 50ºC) for about 15 minutes. Dissolve the yeast in ¼ cup warm water and then add the remaining water, salt and sugar and mix well.

Remove the warmed flour from the oven, make a hollow in the middle, and pour the yeast mixture into the hollow, stirring some of the flour into it to form a thicker mixture. Cover with a cloth and leave in a warm place until frothy.

Stir in the rest of the flour, adding the oil gradually, and then use an electric mixer with a dough hook to mix for 5 minutes until smooth and satiny.

Turn onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes. Shape into a ball, rub with olive oil and cover with plastic and a cloth. Leave in a warm draught-free spot to double in size.

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

To prepare the vegetable filling, heat the olive oil in a saucepan and fry the onion until golden brown. Add the pine nuts and fry until golden brown. Allow to cool. In another pan, heat the oil and cook the spinach until just wilted. Set aside to cool. Once cool, squeeze out all excess liquid, and stir in the lemon juice. Mix the onion mixture with 2 cups of the wilted spinach, season with baharat, chilli powder, salt and pepper, and mix with the labneh.

Punch down the dough and roll out on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 3–4 millimetres. Form rounds of about 8 cm in diameter.

Place a tablespoon of the filling in the centre of each round, lightly moisten the edge of the dough with a little water (if it is too wet it will be soggy and the edges will not seal properly), and fold the sides up at three points to form triangles. Press the edges firmly to seal, leaving the top of the pie open to show some filling.

Place the pies on a sheet of baking paper and brush lightly with oil. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve warm with lemon wedges and laban.

TGIFood Tip: If using big spinach leaves opposed to baby spinach, then I suggest you chop roughly before wilting. 

 

Despite enjoying a lot of plant-based cuisine, Lebanese people love a meat filling for their pies.

Ingredients for a meat filling

1 tbsp olive oil

500 g ground lean lamb

1 large onion, finely chopped

100 g pine nuts

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

salt to taste

¼ tsp white pepper

1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed

 

Method

To prepare the meat filling, heat the olive oil in a saucepan and fry the onion until golden brown. Add the ground lamb and cook, stirring until the meat has a crumbly texture and has cooked through. Add the pine nuts, cinnamon, salt and pepper and fry for another minute. Stir in the lemon juice. The mixture should be moist but not liquid. Set aside to cool. DM/TGIFood

From Going Home (Food and Stories from Lebanon, the Land of my Forefathers) (Annake Müller Publishing)

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