Koobe Hamooth (Stuffed Dumplings in Soup)
Dough:
2 cups semolina
1 slice white bread, soaked in water and squeezed dry
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
3/4 cup water
Stuffing:
1/2 pound ground beef
1 small onion, chopped fine (approx. 1/4 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Soup:
3 tablespoons oil
1 medium onion, chopped (approx. 1/2 cup)
8 cups water
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1 large celery rib with leaves, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 zucchini, about 1/2 lb, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Mix all the dough ingredients to form a malleable dough. Set aside.
Mix stuffing ingredients and set aside.
To make the soup, heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion
and stir-fry over medium heat until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the
water and bring to a boil. Add the tomato paste, salt, pepper, lemon
juice, celery and zucchini. Boil uncovered for 10 minutes. (Note:
the prepared kibbeh/koobe need to be added to the soup at the end of
this ten minutes of boiling. Depending on your skill stuffing kibbeh,
it may be
necessary to delay starting the soup until you are well into the
kibbeh making, so your timing is correct.)
Press the dough into a roll approximately 1-inch thick. Break off
walnut-sized pieces of the dough and roll each one into a ball.
Moisten your thumb in cold water and push it into the ball nearly to
the other side. Push about 1 teaspoon of meat stuffing into the
hole. Then roll the ball to close the dough back over the hole.
Moisten hands with cold water to facilitate this step. Repeat this
process with each of the
balls. You should have 40 kibbeh/koobe.
Add 10 dumplings at a time and allow the soup to simmer over a
moderate heat for 2 minutes. Repeat this process until all the
kibbeh have been added. Cover the saucepan and simmer over a low
heat for 45 minutes.
Serves 8.
This recipe comes from Copeland Marks' book, Sephardic Cooking |