Grape Leaves

As most Eastern Mezze has a shared heritage, the same goes for stuffed grape leaves. What this Eastern version of Legumes Farcis lacks in size, it makes up for in flavor. Grape leaves have been cultivated in Greece since ancient times. The meat-filled variety are stuffed with a mixture of ground beef or lamb, rice, onions, parsley, cinnamon, salt, pepper, garlic, and celery leaves. They are then rolled tightly and should have a shape similar to a finger. There is a meatless variety known in Turkey as Yalanci Dolma. Yalanci literally means “false” in Turkish as true Dolma contains meat. In Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Turkey, which is occupied by both Greeks and Turks, this dish is called Koupepia.