Vegan Kibbeh with squash and spinach!

Greetings simmerlings!

This recipe was a request from some of my followers, to make kibbeh bel sayniye (baked kibbeh), so this is for you Kristine and Elee!

There are so many types of kibbeh, it’s staggering! I like this recipe because everyone can eat it; omnivores, vegetarians and vegans! This kibbeh is made with squash and bulghur for the dough portion and stuffed with a spinach filling. The process can be a bit time consuming but it does make a whole baking dish, so it makes many portions.

Recipe:

For the dough:

500 grams of butternut squash, cubed
500 grams of bulghur wheat
200 grams of flour
1 large onion, chopped roughly
2.5 tsp salt
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp Lebanese 7-spice
1/2 tsp cumin

For the spinach filling:

200 grams of spinach
1 small onion, diced finely
100 grams of chopped walnuts
1 Tbsp of sumac
Juice of one lemon
1 tsp of salt
pepper to taste
1 Tbsp of olive oil

1) Blanch the spinach in boiling water for a minute and put into cold water to stop the cooking. Chop the spinach and put it into the bowl. Add the diced onion, sumac, lemon juice, salt, pepper and olive oil. Put to the side. Chop your walnuts and put them aside as well.

2) Cook your squash in the same boiling water until fork tender.

3) In a food processor, add the squash, onion, salt, olive oil and spices. Pulse until smooth.

4) In a mixing bowl, add the squash puree and add the bulghur wheat. Mix until homogenous and add the flour; mix again. Put this dough mixture into the fridge for 30 minutes to absorb some of the moisture.

5) Oil a baking a dish and separate half the dough mixture. With a bowl of water, dip your hands in to prevent them from sticking to the dough. Press half the dough mixture into the dish. Put your spinach filling evenly on top of the dough. Sprinkle the walnuts.

6) With the remaining dough, gently spread it out over the spinach mixture. Cut a diamond pattern across the dish and put two holes in the centre of the kibbeh. Brush the top with olive oil and pour 1 Tbsp of olive oil into each of the holes you created. Preheat your oven to 375F.

7) Bake for 35 minutes.

8) Serve with yoghurt or labneh and a salad, or even just by itself. Bon appetit!

-The Simmering Pot