Borekitas De Berengena

Eggplant and Cheese pies. Turkish, traditionally made in the Jewish community in and around Istanbul. Slightly adapted from "The Book of Jewish Food" by Claudia Roden. The dough is initially cut into 2 pieces to make it more manageable than rolling out the whole thing. From each half, roll thin and cut out the smaller rounds, gather your scraps and roll again. The small filling is perfect for a 10-cm (4-inch) round folded in half. If you want to use the two halves to make a large (9-inch) double crusted pie, then add the extra egg as noted in the last step.

• Ready In: 55 mins
• Serves: 10

Ingredients

• For dough

• 1⁄2 cup  vegetable oil
• 1⁄4 cup warm water
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 2  cups flour
• 1  egg yolk, mixed with 1 tsp water, for glazing
• 3  tablespoons  grated  kashkaval (optional) or 3  tablespoons parmesan cheese (optional)

• For filling

• 1  lb eggplant
• 4  ounces feta cheese
• 1  cup  grated  kashkaval, gruyere or 1  cup parmesan cheese
•  salt and pepper, as desired

Directions

1. Beat the oil with the water and salt and add just enough flour to make a soft malleable, oily dough.
2. Prick eggplants with a fork and turn under the broiler until they are soft inside.
3. Put into a colander and peel eggplants. Smash the flesh of the eggplant in the colander to release juices, press to drain them.
4. In a bowl, mix eggplant pulp with feta cheese and kashkaval, mix well.
5. Salt and pepper as desired.
6. Divide pastry into 2 balls, roll each one out thin and cut into 10-cm (4 inch) rounds. You will not need flour for rolling -- the dough does not stick.
7. Top each round with 1 heaping tablespoon of filling, fold round over and crimp edges.
8. Place pies on a baking sheet, brush with egg glaze mixture. Sprinkle with grated cheese if desired.
9. Bake 350F for 35 minutes or until lightly browned.
10. If desired, can make one large pie by rolling out 2 large crusts from dough. If doing so, add 2 beaten eggs to the filling.