December 28, 2021

Appetizers of the Year – Ground, Spiced Lamb in Phyllo

As Covid continues to surge for the second winter, we unfortunately don’t expect to see many friends this holiday season, at least not up close and personal. That means any big New Year’s Eve plans may have to be put on hold yet again. And it means my tradition of serving appetizers to chase out the old and ring in the new will be scaled back to just feed my wife and kids, if either of them are home.

As I look back at 2021, my list of appetizers for the year is thinner than usual. Because gatherings have been sparser than in a normal year, I have experimented less and prepared fewer than usual. Yet, several still stick out. Here is a list of the best appetizers I cooked this year, along with links to their recipes. In addition, I provide the recipe below for a new favorite, spiced, ground lamb and pine nuts tucked in a crunchy phyllo wrapper.

Similar to sweet Almond Fingers, one of my father’s favorites, these savory treats can be ordered in some Middle Eastern restaurants as Lamb Cigars. They are similar to Spiced Ground Lamb in Pita Panini, but with a flaky, crunchy phyllo wrapper. I also stuff a similar filling into Kibbeh Stuffed Peppers. It works well in all these applications, but is especially good wrapped in layers of buttery phyllo dough.

The Year in Appetizers

about 1½ hours, makes about 50

½ lb. phyllo dough from a 1 lb. package, defrosted if frozen

1 Tbsp. olive oil

2 large onions, finely chopped

1½ lbs. ground lamb

1 tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground allspice

½ cup pine nuts, toasted

½ stick butter, melted

If frozen, defrost phyllo dough in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator to come to room temperature on the counter unopened about an hour before using.
Heat olive oil on medium in a 10 to 12-inch skillet. Add onions and sauté until soft, but not browned, about 10 minutes. Remove onions to a small bowl and set aside.
Add the ground lamb and sauté until starting to brown, about 10 minutes. Drain off and discard all but a tablespoon of lamb grease. Add salt, pepper, cinnamon, and allspice. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is browned, an additional five minutes. Stir in reserved onions and set aside to cool. Add the toasted pine nuts to the meat just before stuffing phyllo dough.
Preheat oven to 350 ^oF.
Melt butter in a small pot on the stove or in a bowl in the microwave. Set aside.
Remove about half the sheets of phyllo from the package and lay out flat, long edge of the dough parallel to the edge of the counter. (Return unused phyllo to its package and seal. Place in the refrigerator for another use.) Using a very sharp knife and slicing towards you through all layers, cut the stack of phyllo sheets into thirds. (Each piece should be around 12 by 5 inches.) Set aside, covered by a kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out.
Remove three or four individual sheets, covering the rest, and arrange them next to each other on the counter with the long edge facing away from you, short side parallel to the edge of the counter. Brush an upside-down capital “T” of melted butter on each sheet, starting near the bottom and continuing up the middle of the phyllo dough.
Place a heaping teaspoon of the filling (or more or less, depending on the size of your sheets – it may take a little trial and error to get it right) on the butter at the end of the sheet closest to you. Fold the bottom edge of phyllo away from you over the filling. Fold both long sides about ½ to ¾ of an inch in towards the center. Starting at the bottom where the filling is, roll the pastry and place it on a parchment or silicone mat-lined sheet pan, seam side down. Continue stuffing and rolling until all the filling or phyllo dough is used. They can be placed close to each other on the sheet pan, but not touching. They will not expand as they cook, but you want the heat of the oven to get around each pastry on all sides to make them crisp. (They can be frozen at this point on the sheet pan covered with plastic wrap. Transfer to a sealed plastic container when completely frozen.)
Bake in hot oven for 12 to 15 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot.