Stuffed Grape Leaves

Mark Bittman; he recommends if you cannot get fresh grape leaves, you may prefer using cabbage or chard leaves instead of bottled grape leaves, which he says have little flavor.

• Ready In: 1 hr 30 mins
• Yields: 30 appetizers

Ingredients

• 40  large grape leaves (you will need extra because some will be imperfect)
• 2  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for garnish
• 1  cup  minced onion
• 1⁄4 cup pine nuts
• 1  cup long grain rice
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1 1⁄2 cups  chicken stock or 1 1⁄2 cups  beef stock or 1 1⁄2 cups  vegetable stock or 1 1⁄2 cups water
•  fresh ground black pepper
• 2  tablespoons  minced of fresh mint or 2  tablespoons fresh dill
• 4  tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil; parboil grape leaves, a few at a time, until they are tender and pliable, just a couple of minutes.
2. Drain leaves, then cut off the stems and remove any hard veins near the base of the leaves; pat dry with paper towels.
3. Meanwhile, add olive oil to a large, deep skillet over med-high heat.
4. One minute later, add in the onion; cook, stirring, until it is tender, about 5 minutes.
5. Add in the pine nuts, rice, allspice, 1 teaspoon salt, and stock.
6. Cover, decrease heat to med-low, and cook about 10-12 minutes, until the rice is somewhat tender but still quite al dente.
7. Cool in a large bowl, check flavor for salt, and add lots of pepper, the mint, and half the lemon juice.
8. One at a time, place the grape leaves, shiny side down, on a work surface; put 1 tablespoon rice mixture in the middle of the leaf.
9. Fold over the stem end, then the sides, then roll toward the tip, making a neat little package.
10. Don’t roll too tightly, as the rice will continue to expand during cooking.
11. Place the packages side by side in a roasting pan or skillet (layering them is fine), add water (or even better, more stock) to come about halfway up the rolls, and weight with a heatproof plate.
12. Cover the pan/skillet and cook over low heat for 30 minutes, until most of the liquid is absorbed.
13. Drain; serve at room temperature, sprinkled with remaining lemon juice and a bit of olive oil.