Fatayer bi Sabanikh
These little triangular-shaped pies are a famous Lenten specialty of the Orthodox Christian communities of Syria and Lebanon. You can serve them hot or cold. They are meant to be tart and lemony. The filling must not be wet or the dough will get soft and will stick to the baking sheet and tear when it is baked. For this reason it is best to use frozen spinach, squeezed dry.
Recipe information
Yield
makes about 50
Ingredients
For the Filling
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare the pie dough as described on page 137.
Step 2
For the filling, put the spinach in a colander and press out the water, then squeeze the leaves between your palms to get rid of any remaining liquid. Coarsely chip the spinach and mix in a bowl with the rest of the filling ingredients.
Step 3
Punch down and knead the risen dough briefly. Divide into 4 or 6 balls for easier handling. When rolling out one ball, keep the remaining ones wrapped in plastic.
Step 4
Roll out each ball on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin, and keep turning over the dough and dusting underneath with flour so that it does not stick. Roll out as thinly as possible (the dough is very elastic and springs back). Cut the sheet into 1 1/2- to 2-inch rounds with a pastry cutter. Pick up the scraps, roll them into a ball, and roll out again to make more rounds, so as not to waste any dough. Take each round and roll out again, then pull out and stretch until it is paper-thin and about 3 to 3 1/2 inches in diameter.
Step 5
Another traditional way is to take walnut-sized lumps of dough, flatten them between your oiled palms, and pull and stretch the dough out as thinly as you can.
Step 6
To make the pies, take each pastry round, lay it flat on one hand, and put a tablespoon of filling in the middle (1). Shape into the traditional 3-sided pyramid with a rounded base by lifting up 3 sides (with both hands) and bringing them together over the filling (2). Pinch the edges together, making thin, ridged joints in the shape of a 3-sided star and closing the pies (3). Place the pies on a lightly oiled baking sheet and press down a little to flatten their bases.
Step 7
Bake in a preheated 450°F oven for 10 minutes, or until golden.
Fatayer bi Jibn (Cheese Pies)
Step 8
Make as the preceding recipe, fatayer bi sabanikh, but replace the spinach filling with 1 pound feta cheese mashed with a fork and mixed with a little pepper and 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil.
Fatayer bi Labneh (Drained-Yogurt Pies)
Step 9
Make as the preceding recipe, fatayer bi sabanikh, but replace the spinach filling with yogurt that has been drained in a cloth until it is a soft creamy cheese (see page 112), mixed with salt, pepper, and a little grated onion.
Fatayer bi Hummus (Chickpea Pie)
Step 10
A Lebanese Lenten specialty is rounds of pie dough (page 137) rolled out thinly, with a handful of cooked chickpeas pressed in.
