Sheesh Barak

Ingredients:

• Flour, 1 cup
• Salt, 1 tsp
• Oil, 2 tbs
• Water, 1/4 to 1/2 cup
• Ground beef or lamb, 500 gr
• Onions (thinly sliced), 2
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Allspice, 1 tsp
• Dried mint, 2 tbs
• Plain yogurt, 2 cups
• Corn starch, 1 tbs
• Garlic cloves (minced), 4
• Pine nuts (toasted for garnish)
• Cilantro (finely chopped), for garnish

Preparation:

In a large bowl, mix the flour, oil and salt until it becomes crumbly.

Add the water gradually, kneading well until form a dough that has an uniform surface.

Place the dough back in the bowl, cover and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, then cut with a round shape cookie cutter or a small cup as many circles as possible.

In a large frying pan, cook the meat together with the onions and spices. Set aside and let it cool down before using.

Place around 1 teaspoon of filling on each circle, fold the sides of the dough on each other, then fold again around to form a hat shape of the dough.

Set aside in a cookie sheet (previously lined with baking paper).

Bake on a previosly pre-heated oven at 200 °C just to get them set.

In a saucepan mix the yogurt with the cornstarch and a little cold water. Cook on high heat stirring until it boils.

Add the sheesh barak to the boiling yogurt. Let it boil on low heat for 15-20 minutes.

In a separate pan sauté the garlic and dried mint until fragant. Mix into the saucepan.

Garnish with some more dried mint, a little spicy ground red pepper, the cilantro and the pine nuts.