Stuffed Grape Leaves with Rice and Tomatoes

Ingredients

• 500 g fresh grape leaf
• 2 onions (finely chopped)
• 2 Tomatoes
• 150 g rice
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 50 g currants
• 50 g Pine nuts
• 1 tsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp paprika powder
• 1 pinch Ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch allspice
• 1 lemon (for juice)

Instructions

1. 1.

   Blanch grape leaves briefly in boiling salted water, cool them, and remove the stems.

2. 2.

   Wash tomatoes, cut off the stem ends, and puree them.

3. 3.

   Rinse rice thoroughly and drain well.

4. 4.

   Sauté onions in 2 tbsp oil. Add tomato paste, rice, pine nuts, and currants; cook for a few minutes. Then add tomato purée and pour in about 1/4 l water. Season with cinnamon, allspice, paprika, pepper, and salt. Cover and simmer while stirring occasionally until the rice absorbs the liquid. Let cool, then stir in lemon juice.

5. 5.

   Lay grape leaves on a flat surface, fill each with about 2 tbsp of the rice mixture, fold the sides over, and roll tightly. Place lemon slices in a pot and lay the rolls on top. Pour about 500 ml water over them and drizzle with remaining oil. Cover with an inverted plate to keep them pressed down and let simmer for about 20 minutes over low heat. Cool the stuffed grape leaves before serving.