Recipe courtesy of Sabreen Samman
Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available a the farmers’ market
- 1 pound ground beef*
- 1/2 pound ground lamb* (or add another 1/2 pound of ground beef instead)
- 1 while onion*, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons olive oil*
- 3/4 cup pine nuts or slivered almonds
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 1 egg*, beaten
- 2 packages frozen puff pastry, thawed (or can use homemade or store-bought pizza dough)
OPTIONAL: a pinch (less than 1/8 tsp) of each of the following spices: allspice, clove, ginger & cinnamon
Directions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and stir in the ground beef and ground lamb, chopped onion, pine nuts, cinnamon, and salt and black pepper (plus the optional spices if desired). Cook and stir until the meat is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease.
- Let the meat mixture cool.
- Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.
- Roll out the thawed pastry sheets to about 1/8-inch thickness. Using a sharp 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out at least 9 rounds per sheet. Lightly brush the inside edges with a little water, and place about 2 teaspoons of filling into the middle of each round. Fold the pastry round in half to cover the filling and seal the edges well. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and repeat with the remaining dough circles.
- Brush each pie with a little egg wash. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
She initially began offering pocket pies, which were modeled after a food common in and around Jordan. The pies, like the accompanying recipe, were made with pizza dough; filled with combinations of vegetable, cheese, and meats; seasoned with spice blends of the Mediterranean; folded at the top, and then baked. 
