Vegetables, stuffed with Rice, Herbs and Shredded Grape Leaves
When I go to the middle eastern grocery store in my neighborhood, I feel like a kid in a candy store, with all the colorful and aromatic spices, the huge selection of canned and fresh vegetables, the fresh and dried herbs and the somewhat exotic fruits.
Although I come from the Middle East, I grew up with a Jewish North African cuisine and some of the products are new to me. Grape leaves is one of them. I incorporated them, shredded, in this recipe as well as in many of my recipes.
12-15 assorted vegetables (mini peppers, round zucchini, tomatoes, 1 onion)
½ round rice, washed
2 tbsp. raisins
2 tbsp. toasted pine nuts
2 celery stalk
1 medium onion
⅓ cup cilantro leaves
⅓ cup parsley leaves
¼ cup mint leaves
4 grape leaves, soaked in hot water for 10 minutes and drained
2 garlic cloves
¼ cup olive oil
1 tbsp. baharat
½ tsp. cinnamon
1.5 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Black pepper
For the sauce:
⅓ cup pomegranate molasses
2 tbsp. tamarind paste
¾ cup hot water
1 tbsp. baharat
½ tsp. clove
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. cumin
1 tsp. paprika
1 tbsp. tomato paste
¼ cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
Heat the oven to 400°
Bring some water to boil for the rice and onion.
Peel off the onion and make a deep cut lengthwise but leave as a whole. Place in s pot with boiling water and cook for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Put some boiling water in a pot cook the rice for 4 minutes. Drain excess liquid. Set aside
Cut the top stem section of the peppers and zucchini off. Cut the tomatoes in half and scoop out the flesh.
Using a Parisienne scoop, scoop out the flesh of the zucchini and place it in a bowl (we will use it for stuffing)
The stuffing: in a good processor, put the herbs, celery, zucchini flesh, onion, garlic, and grape leaves. Pulse it till it’s finely chopped.
Heat the oil in a skillet and sauté the herb mix. Sauté for 5 minutes on medium heat.
Remove, add spices and raisins and mix.
Separate the onion into peels. Put some stuffing st the bottom of the peel and start folding. Place in a baking dish.
Stuff the rest of the vegetables and put in the baking dish.
Mix all of the ingredients of the sauce and gently pour over the vegetables.
Cover with foil and bake for 50 minutes.
Uncover and bake for 30 more minutes
