Stuffed Wine Leaves

Wednesday another eventful day…few months left and I’ll be done with college, however my attitude is like I’ve finished already. In fact when I should be home writing up my dissertation findings I seem to able to find any other unnecessary activities way more appealing, and I would like to highlight way more appealing.

So today I went to the hairdresser…I love my new hair cut but every time I come back my hair are shorter and shorter I am going to shave them all off very soon J then I went to Pilates class. 

Then with Magda to visit our “Bosnian parents”,that sell Burek in the the best shopping mall in Dublin, More Mall, in More street!

Now if I need to explain what is Burek …I am gonna have to write a poem on my never-ending love for this food…that is popular in all Balkan countries, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burek#Bosnian_burek.

Magda and I first tried Burek in Sofia and had to have one every in each interraling destination, until we reached Italy. It is call it differently in each place but more or less is the same.

At Interrail over, we were wondering how could we live without Burek. But surprisingly when we came back to Dublin we found this café and now once a week we have to go, plus as I said the couple are like our parents so they will be missing us, wouldn’t they??

After the Burek me and Magda purchase 380gr. of Halva in the Moldovian shop and sometimes in the Polish shop they sell it by Kg. a great Bargain! We had 80% of it and give a 20% to Matranga (see the Pancake recipe) which btw today fixed my Paulì …my beloved bike which I have been cycling for the last 3 weeks with only one break and a jumpy chain! He took a couple of hours, but now is brand new!

So anyway since I had to wait for my bike to be fixed I sent my sous-chef at home to cook some rice to make, one of my favorite dish…Stuffed wine leaves! I made sure I gave her good instruction over the phone, “two teaspoon of this, two of that, fry here, add there” and she did a great job, I am glad I trained her well! Now here is my easy recipe!

Shopping Lists

40 Wine leaves (soak and rinse the leaves in water, if preserved in brine, if you have  fresh ones, soak in ho

200 gr. of rice (I use brown rice because is healthier)

½ onion

1 clove of garlic

1 teaspoon of chili pepper powder (or more if you want)

5 tablespoons of tomatoes paste

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Salt & Pepper t.t

For the Citronette

1 tablespoon of  extravergine olive oil

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Salt & Pepper t.t

Let’s get on with this

Boil the rice

Gently fry the onion and the garlic and add the rice the paste and the spices

Let it cool down

Proceed to filling the leaves (I would give you instruction on how to do it but I am not good myself either so just try it it will be grand!)

Make a citronette, french dressing made of salt, oil and lemon juice and pour it over the leaves and let them soak for a while

Are you Ready To taste them? I am