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At the start of our foray into Middle-Eastern cooking, I purchased a book by Julie LeClerc called, “Taking Tea In The Medina“. It’s an absolutely gorgeous book with breathtaking photography, and features wonderfully rich details about the origins and particulars of each dish.

One of the first thing that grabbed my attention was the Lamb Sambousek.  According to LeClerc, Sambousek were discovered during the Crusades, and are supposed to have “later inspired the development of meat pies and Cornish pasties in Britain”. Whilst commonly deep-fried, LeClerc recommends oven-baking the Sambousek to avoid making the pastry so heavy.  I wholeheartedly agree – I’m not really into overly-fatty pastries, and I think that the oven-baked pastry really allows the filling to shine.

This was my first try at pastry crimping, too, so you mightn’t be surprised to learn that my first few Sambousek were a little wonky-looking! All in all, though, I really enjoyed cooking these little parcels of savoury goodness. The recipe didn’t specify the yoghurt dressing, but after the first batch came out of the oven, we really thought that a cool, flavoursome yoghurt would contrast nicely with the cinnamon-sweetened lamb and the texture of the pine nuts.  It was a perfect addition, and we enjoyed the Sambousek with tall glasses of iced cranberry juice – hopefully we’ll get to enjoy them with a glass of Middle Eastern Lemonade next time around.

Lamb Sambousek

Pastry

• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup cold water
• extra flour for kneading and rolling
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water (to seal pastries)
• (Sunflower oil for deep-frying, if you prefer)

1. Sift flower and salt into a bowl. Add just enough water to form an elastic dough, mixing the dough with a knife.
2. Remove from the bowl and knead on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes until smooth.  Return dough to bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to rest.
   NB: if you wanted to save some time, you could easily alternate pastry for pre-made shortcrust pastry sheets

Lamb Filling

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 375g lean lamb mince
• 3 tbsp toasted pine nuts
• 2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp chilli powder
• Juice of 1 lemon

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, and cook onion and garlic for about 5 minutes until onion is softened and golden brown. Add lamb mince and cook until browned, breaking up the mince as it cooks.  Drain off any excess fat.
2. Add pine nuts, mint, spices and lemon juice and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cool mixture before using to fill pastry parcels.

To assemble Sambousek

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 3mm thick. Use a pastry-cutter to cut out 9cm circles.
2. Place a tablespoonful of lamb filling in the centre of each.  Dampen edges with the egg mixture, and fold the pastry in half, covering the filling to form a crescent shape.  Press edges together with your fingers to seal, and then crimp edges with a fork, or by making tight, overlapping folds.
3. To deep fry: Heat oil to 170°C or test temperature by adding a crust of bread – if it bubbles and gently turns golden brown the oil is the correct temperature.  Cook pastries in batches of 4 or 5 at a time, until golden brown.  Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel.
4. To bake: Line baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Preheat oven to 200°C and bake pastries for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.  You can brush the pastry with egg first, if you want a nice glossy finish.
5. Serve with Mint & Garlic Yoghurt, and dress with sprigs of mint.

Mint & Garlic Yoghurt

Combine 1/4 cup freshly chopped mint, 1 clove finely chopped garlic, and 1 cup natural greek yoghurt.

(Makes 24)