Lamb Pie (Lebanese Sfeeha)

Lebanese sfeeha or sometime called lahm bi ajeen, which basically means lamb in dough, are amazing little meat pies that full of flavour and simply delicious. The dough is basically like a pizza dough and they are either served open face like a mini pizza or sometimes the meat is wrapped within the dough like a turnover. It is made with the spice blend known as Lebanese seven spice which consists of equal part of ground: nutmeg, ginger, allspice, fenugreek, cloves, cinnamon and black pepper. You can make it yourself or find it at your local Middle Eastern store. These would make a lovely lunch with some tabbouleh or as part of a mezze like we did for our Lebanese feast.

Dough:
2 cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
1 pkg active dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
½ tsp. sea salt
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
½ cup warm water

Filling:
1 lb ground lamb
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ bunch parsley, finely chopped
½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, finely chopped
hot chili pepper (Aleppo pepper) to taste
1 Tbsp. paprika
1 Tbsp. Lebanese 7 spice
4 oz pine nuts
2 Tbsp. olive oil

For the Dough:
Prepare the dough by mixing together the flour, sugar and yeast in a large bowl.

Pour warm water, not too hot, and mix without kneading for a minute.

Add in the vegetable oil and salt and knead for 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and does not stick to the edge of the bowl. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes.

For the Filling:
In a sauce pan put the olive oil and fry the onions and garlic on medium heat until the onions are translucent.

Stir in the paprika and seven spice blend, chili pepper and stir for a couple of minutes.

Add the lamb to the pan and mix well, add the herbs and tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste and let simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In another pan dry roast the pine nuts until roasted taking care not to burn them by stirring constantly.

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C, Gas Mark 6). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper

When the 45 minutes is up for the dough, knead it for a minute and divide it into 15 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and roll out into a thin circle with a rolling pin.

Place the dough on a baking sheet. Divide the filling on top of each circle of dough. Press the filling down with a fork so that it lightly adheres to the dough. Garnish with the toasted pine nuts.

Bake for 10-15 minutes. They are done when the crust turns golden on the edges.

Serve warm.

Makes 15 mini pies.