Fatayer Recipe (Arabic Pies)

Welcome to The Storied Recipe! I host a unique podcast where every guest gives me a recipe that’s significant to their culture, life, and memories. I make, photograph, and share the recipe with you. I invite you to listen to the story of my husband, John Hadeed, as you try this Fatayer Recipe (Arabic Meat and Spinach Pies).

The first time I met my husband's large Palestinian family, it was for a feast. The next time - another feast! And then, the third time - well, you get the idea. At first, confronted with a table of unfamiliar foods, I wasn't sure what to try! I quickly realized I liked ALL of it. My favorite was the tabbouleh. My husband's favorite has always been the spinach pies.

Now, I make these Fatayer - (Fatayer is simply Arabic for "pie") - for my husband only on very special occasions, because they are time-consuming. However, if you're up for a fun project, there is a lot of deliciousness waiting for you at the end! The pies are well flavored with just the right amount of acid and Middle Eastern spices.

My recipe came from the cookbook shared by all the women in his family. It's named Sahtein, meaning "Good Health". Their recipe for Fatayer gives you options for spinach, meat, and cheese pies. John's family always made the spinach pies in closed triangle shapes, the meat pies in open circles, and didn't make the cheese pies at all. I'm not sure why this is, but it's how I do it now too!

Would you like to know more about Fatayer? A friend of mine is an expert! Cosette Posko is the daughter of two Lebanese immigrants. Her father is a professional cook of Lebanese food and is actually known as “the pie man” because of his expertise in making these very pies! Cosette is a food blogger over at Cosette’s Kitchen and has just opened up online cooking classes, available to all, with a focus on Middle Eastern food for many sessions. You can sign up on her website here. (P.S. this is NOT a paid advertisement! I simply believe in what Cosette's doing and want to support her work!)
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Episode Related To This Recipe

Visit the Episode Post:

Ep. 063 Arabic Feasts with My Husband, John Hadeed

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Fatayer Recipe (Arabic Pies)

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by John Hadeed + Guest of The Storied Recipe Podcast Difficulty: Medium

Servings

50

servings

Prep time

2

hours 

Cooking time

20

minutes

Total time

2

hours 

20

minutes

Fatayer – small hand pies stuffed with meat, spinach, or cheese – are staples of Middle Eastern Feasts.

Cook Mode

Keep the screen of your device on

Ingredients

• Dough

• 2 lbs 2 flour

• 2 tablespoon 2 butter or shortening

• 1 envelope 1 dry yeast

• 1 tablespoon 1 salt

• 2 cups 2 lukewarm water (approx)

• ½ teaspoon ½ Mahlab (black cherry kernels; optional)

• ½ teaspoon ½ sugar

• Cheese Stuffing

• 2 cups 2 chopped Syrian cheese or Feta crumbs

• 1 cup 1 parsley, finely chopped

• 1 1 onion, finely chopped

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Meat Stuffing

• 2 lbs 2 lamb meat, coarsely ground (I use ground beef)

• 1 large 1 onion, finely chopped

• ½ c ½ pine nuts, lightly browned

• 1 teaspoon 1 salt

• ½ teaspoon ½ pepper and allspice

• ¼ c ¼ lemon juice or vinegar

• ¼ c ¼ butter or margarine

• Spinach Stuffing

• 2 lbs 2 spinach

• 2 large 2 onions, chopped

• Juice of 2 lemons

• ¾ c ¾ oil

• ½ teaspoon ½ sumac

• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

• Dough
• Dissolve yeast in ¼ cup of warm water. Sprinkle with sugar. Cover and let rise.
• In a large pan mix flour and salt.
• Add the yeast mixture and butter or shortening.
• Gradually add the lukewarm water, mixing and kneading until dough is smooth and tender.
• Cover with a blanket and put in a warm place for 2 hours or until dough rises.
• Cut dough into pieces 2″ or 2.5″ in diameter. Form into balls by tucking the dough underneath the balls to make them round and smooth. Let rest for 30 minutes between blankets.
• Cheese Stuffing
• Mix all ingredients together. Use to stuff dough.
• Meat Stuffing
• Saute onions in butter until tender. Add meat and spices. Saute until tender. Add browned pine nuts and lemon or vinegar. When cool, use for stuffing.
• Spinach Stuffing
• Wash spinach. Chop. Sprinkle with salt. Let stand for 15 minutes, then squeeze out the extra moisture.
• Mix with all the ingredients and set aside.
• Make the Pies
• Pinch of 2.5″ balls of dough and roll out to 4″ circles.
• Put a healing tablespoon of filling on each circle.
• Fold up from the bottom to the middle and bring sides to center to form triangle. Press down seams firmly and pinch ends together.
• Grease pan. Place pies on pan and brush tops with olive oil.
• Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven until pies are golden brown (20 minutes for crunch exterior; less for a soft exterior.)

Notes

• Make sure to listen to John on The Storied Recipe Podcast, Arabic Feasts with My Husband, John Hadeed while you make his Fatayer recipe!

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