Artichoke & Pine Nut Dolma

Most of us encounter these little delights in the form of their Greek cousin, Dolmades. However, these parcels of rice wrapped in vine leaves also appear in Iranian cuisine (and some other Middle Eastern cuisines) called  Dolma. The term Dolma simply refers to something which is stuffed - in this case it refers to stuffed vine leaves. Eggplant, tomatoes, potatoes and many other vegetables can also be made into Dolma, simply by stuffing with a rice filling.

I've never been very fond of dolmades when I have had them from delicatessens or bought in restaurants or supermarkets. So, I have always thought that one day I would make my own and fill them with flavours that I love in the hope that I would finally enjoy them! I certainly did - having freshly made ones made such an amazing difference and I could happily eat these in vast quantities!

Ingredients

Preserved vine leaves (available from Middle Eastern grocers in packets or jars)

1 cup long grain rice

1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts

1 large tomato

1/3 cup pine nuts

1/2 bunch dill

2 cups vegetable stock

2 tbsp olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

To Make

1. Rinse the rice in cold water until the water runs clear. Place in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes and then drain and rinse immediately with cold water.

2. Place the rice in a large mixing bowl and spread it out to allow it to dry while you prepare the rest of the filling.

3. Score the tomato with a cross on the underside and place it in a bowl of boiling hot water for about 2 minutes, or until the skin is split and wrinkled. Remove and rinse under cold water. Peel the skin off and discard.

4. Dry fry the pine nuts in a saucepan to toast for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently and watching carefully to make sure they don't burn.

5. Finely chop the artichoke hearts, peeled tomato and dill. 

6. Mix the rice, tomato, pine nuts, artichoke hearts and dill together. Season to taste with salt and pepper (optional).

7. Spread out a vine leaf (set aside any that have tears or holes and trim any long stems) and place a heaped tablespoon of rice filling at the base (at the point where the stem would have attached). Fold the two sides inwards and roll the leaf up tightly like a small cigar (because we've all done that before right??).

8. Line a wide pan with some of the ripped/discarded vine leaves and place the rolled vine leaves on them as you go, packing them in tightly so that they won't move around or unroll. 

9. Continue rolling until all the mix is used up. You will find that your dolma will vary in size because the vine leaves come in all different sizes!

10. When the pan is full, add the vegetable stock to the pan. Drizzle the lemon juice and olive oil over the top.

11. Place a plate upside down on top the the dolma in the pan to stop them moving around. Place the pan over a medium heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

12. Remove from the pan and serve warm or cold.

Makes 30-35 dolma (depending on the size of your vine leaves!).

This month I'm featuring lots of amazing Iranian recipes!

Check out my other Iranian recipe posts:

Persian Carrot and Rose Jam

Vegan Yakh Dar Behesht (Ice in Heaven)

Iranian Sugar-pickled Garlic

Sholeh Zard (Rice & Rosewater Pudding)

Salad-e Shirazi

Naaz Khatoon (Eggplant with Pomegranate Molasses)

Torshi-havij (Pickled Baby Carrots)

Mokhalafat (Traditional Accompaniments) 

Rocket Pesto Fettuccine with Tomato, Olives and Artichoke Hearts

Having the rocket pesto already made up in a jar in the fridge makes this seriously a 10 minute dinner - and it tastes so special you would never know you spent less time on it than in your morning shower. 

Ingredients

1 cup Rocket Pesto

1 packet fettuccine

2 tbsp olive oil

4 tomatoes, diced

1 cup marinated artichoke hearts

1/2 cup kalamata olives

2 tbsp fresh lime (or lemon) juice

Salt and cracked pepper, to taste.

To Make

1. Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling water until al dente. Drain and return to the pan.

2. Add the olive oil immediately and stir through the pasta - this will stop it drying out and sticking together.

3. Stir through the rocket pesto until it coats the fettuccine evenly.

4. Add the tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Stir through and serve immediately!

Serves 4.

Lentils with Artichoke and Mint

The addition of mint to red lentils gives this dish a Turkish element and makes a slightly different flavour - with delicious results. You can also add extra water and make it into a soup.

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped roughly

2 zucchinis

1 cup red lentils

6 cups vegetable stock

1 large carrot, diced

1 tbsp soy sauce

4 whole un-marinated artichoke hearts

1 cup very small macaroni (or other small soup pasta)

Half a bunch of mint, chopped finely

To Make:

1. Heat some olive oil in a large saucepan or soup pot, add the onion, garlic and ¼ cup of chopped mint. Sauté until the onion is soft. Coarsely grate the zucchini and add to the pot. Cook gently for 1-2 minutes.

2. Add the lentils, vegetable stock, carrot and soy sauce. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat and simmer gently, covered for 20 minutes, or until the lentils are soft.

3. Chop the artichoke hearts roughly into eighths and add to the pot with the soup pasta and the rest of the mint. Simmer with the lid off for 5-6 minutes until the pasta is cooked. Season to taste with pepper and serve with a sprig of mint as garnish.

Vegan Salad Medley: White Bean Salad, Garlic Artichoke Hearts and Almond Date Couscous

Sometimes when people come over you want to impress but you really don't feel like putting a lot of funds and effort in - well, a great solution is a collection of awesome salads, which are very easy to knock together and can comprise of what you have on hand mixed with a few touches that make it really special. These salads make a great complete dinner when made together but of course the nice thing is that you can break them up and just make 1 or 2 of them for dinner any night of the week.

White Bean Salad:

Ingredients:

1.5 cups of white beans (such as Great Northern Beans), soaked in water over night

2 tomatoes, chopped

400g pumpkin

1 tbsp capers

8-10 black olives

Big handful of baby spinach

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

To Make:

Boil cover the beans in water and boil in a saucepan with the lid on for 1-2 hours (until beans are cooked to the way you like them, their skins should be slightly split but the bean still firm). Chop the pumpkin into cubes, coat in olive oil and roast for 10-15 minutes in the oven until cooked.

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and drizzle with some of the oil that you cooked the pumpkin in.

Garlic Artichoke Hearts

Ingredients:

1 cup marinated artichoke hearts

¼ Spanish onion

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp olive oil

½ clove garlic

1 green lettuce

1 purple lettuce

To Make:

1. Chop artichoke hearts in eighths and dice the onion very small. Combine the artichoke, onion, lemon juice, olive oil and crushed garlic. Leave aside to marinate while you make the other 2 salads.

2. Just before serving break the lettuce into leaves and arrange on a big serving platter alternating the colours. 3. Spoon the artichoke mix into the centre of the plate and drizzle the dressing at the bottle of the bowl over the lettuce leaves.

Almond Date Couscous

Ingredients:

1.5 cups couscous

2 cups vegetable stock

½ cup dates, chopped finely

1/3 cup of slivered almonds

To Make:

1. Preheat an oven or grill to 180 degrees.

2. Put the dry couscous in a bowl and cover with the boiling hot vegetable stock, leave to soak until the couscous is fully expanded and there is no more liquid in the bowl. Fluff the couscous with a fork and mix the dates through.

3. Spread the almond slivers on a tray and toast for 2-3 minutes until slightly browned – keep a close eye on the suckers because they are really easy to burn. Once toasted mix through the couscous mix. Serve.

   Note: this couscous also goes great as an accompaniment to curry or roast vegies. To add a bit of colour to it you can also add a handful of chopped coriander.