Any recipes out there that can make use of grape vine leaves?

Perhaps the leaves can be used as a wrapping food parcels that can be steamed? Are the vine leaves edible? We have a grape vine plant in our garden.

Any recipes out there that can make use of grape vine leaves?
Being Greek, the best recipe I know is Dolmathes. This is a tried and true recipe in our family, and we make it several times a year for holidays like Christmas and Greek Easter. I've tried Dolmathes made by others many times, and I've never tasted anything as good as this variation:





Dolmathes





Recipe By : Art of Greek Cookery, adapted by my mom





1 lb ground lamb, turkey, or beef -- (uncooked)


1 large onion, finely minced -- or shallots


3/4 cup uncooked rice -- Uncle Ben's


Salt %26amp; Pepper to taste


1 tablespoon Dried mint leaves, crushed


1 13+ oz can Chicken broth


1 pound jar Grapevine leaves


2 whole lemons





Mix together lightly (do not compact mixture) the first 5 ingredients listed above. Squeeze juice of one lemon and add to meat mixture. Mix in and set aside.





Discard brine from jar of grape leaves. Fill sink with cool water and immerse all the leaves in the water. Rinse them and place them on a large towel, to help blot up the moisture. Note the the leaves should be placed with the shiny side down, or if shiny is not obvious, place with vein side up. Vein side is the normal underneath side of the leaf. Shiny side is the normal top side of the leaf.





You want to put a dab of meat mixture onto the vein side so that when you roll them up, the shiny or top side will be out. Hope you get that. Make sure you trim off any stem of the leaf that might have survived the canning process and discard.





Place a small amount of meat near the stem end of the leaf. Cover meat with a bit of the stem end; fold in each side of leaf over to the center. Then roll meat to the pointed end of leaf. You should end up with a small roll, the meat completely sealed inside the grape leaf.





Place damaged, huge or unattractive leaves (unfilled) to cover the bottom of a heavy saucepan with lid. Place the little rolls tightly side by side in rows, making one layer. Keep them going the same direction if possible. Turn saucepan 90 degrees and make a second layer, fitting them in tightly. Rotate pan again 90 degrees and make a 3rd layer. That is usually an incomplete layer, but no matter.





Open can of chicken broth and pour NO MORE than 1/2 cup over dolmathes. Place a heavy plate (or something flat and heavy) on top of the rolled up dolmathes. This keeps the rolls from opening up as the rice cooks. Cover with a lid.





Place on low heat and cook for several hours. You will have to add more broth from time to time, but be careful, because it will boil over easily. Best way to find out if meat and rice are done, is to taste one. Please note that the dolmathes burn easily, and the heat must be kept low-med.low. Time can be 2 to 3 hrs.





When they are completely done, meat cooked, rice and grape leaves are tender, remove from heat, remove heavy plate and allow to cool for a short time. Place them in refrigerator to keep - 3 days at most - or freeze them, tightly packed. They freeze well.





To serve, reheat and place on a plate. Slice 1 lemon into wedges and decorate the dolmathes with the lemon. Serve as an appetizer or whenever.





Serving Ideas : Mezedakia (appetiser in Greek)





Size matters. Grape leaves vary. I place the fattest or largest ones on the bottom, on top of the protective layer of leaves on the bottom - which you will discard. Next comes medium, then the smallest ones on top. I repack them them the same way after they have cooked. The bottom gets the most heat, therefore obvious.
Reply:Yes they are edible. You must wash and let them dry first!





Put 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, juice of one lemon, crushed salt and black pepercorns, add shredded fresh coriander, shredded fresh parsley, 1 teaspoon of chilli powder and stir. Soak your wine leaves in the mixture for a couple of minutes, after pricking them with a fork in about 6 places (So they'll absorb the mixture.





Use them to wrap a mixture of cooked rice (Cold) with sun dried tomatoes chopped finely, anchovies (Chopped finely as well)





Put dish in the fridge for a few hours, cover with finely shredded mint and serve immediately.





I sometimes stuff them with a mix of rice, chopped prawns and chopped crab sticks as well as a little crushed garlic.
Reply:grape vine leaf soup
Reply:Turkish, also Greek style. vine leaves (pickled), used to wrap meat, or rice... taste is great, u'll never forget. go for recipes on Internet, for exact preparation
Reply:Here you go there are several recipes on the link below


http://www.cooks.com/rec/search?q=Grape+...
Reply:I think there are a few Greek dishes that use grape leaves. Sorry I don't know what they are.
Reply:Dolmades





Blanch large leaves in salted wated


saute' finely chopped onions in olive oil


add pinch salt, dash of pepper and some pine nuts and raw rice, cook for 10 mins over low heat


add chopped dill, chopped parsley, chopped mint lemon juice and water cover %26amp; simmer till rice cooked (drain off excess water when done.


spread vine leaves dull side up on a plate and place a teaspoon of stuffing on, wrap up by folding the stalk end over the stuffing then the right side then the left then roll (like they wrap chips in a chipshop!)


Place some parsley stalks on the bottom of a pan


arrange the filled dolmades on top


cover with a clean plate (to keep them still and down


barely cover with water with a dash of olive oil and a dash of lemon juice in it


simmer for 1 and a half hours


remove from stove and leave in water to cool overnight


serve chilled (and of course drained) garnished with lemon pices and sprigs of parsley
Reply:My Own Famous Stuffed Grape Leaves


Submitted by: Patti Moschonas


Rated: 5 out of 5 by 17 members Prep Time: 40 Minutes


Cook Time: 1 Hour Ready In: 1 Hour 40 Minutes


Yields: 12 servings


"These are grape leaves, stuffed with a tantalizing mixture of rice, fresh dill, mint and lemon. 'Yum' is the only one word to describe these. These can either be a main dish or an appetizer, depending on your appetite. Serve with good crusty bread and a Greek salad, if desired."


INGREDIENTS:


2 cups uncooked long-grain


white rice


1 large onion, chopped


1/2 cup chopped fresh dill


1/2 cup chopped fresh mint


leaves


2 quarts chicken broth





3/4 cup fresh lemon juice,


divided


60 grape leaves, drained and


rinsed


hot water as needed


1 cup olive oil


DIRECTIONS:


1. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, saute the rice, onion, dill, and mint for about 5 minutes, or until onion is soft. Pour in 1 quart of broth, reduce heat to low and simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until rice is almost cooked. Stir in 1/2 of lemon juice and remove from heat.


2. Take one leaf, shiny side down, and place 1 teaspoon of the rice mixture at the bottom (stem) end of the leaf. Fold both sides of the leaf towards the center, roll up from the broad bottom to the top, and place into a 4-quart pot. Repeat with all leaves, leaving no gaps as leaves are placed in pot (to prevent from opening while cooking). Sprinkle with remaining lemon juice and with olive oil.


3. Pour chicken broth over all to cover grape leaves. Cover pot and simmer for about 1 hour (do not boil, because this will make the stuffing burst out of the leaves). Remove from heat, remove cover and let cool for 1/2 hour. Transfer to serving dish and serve.
Reply:A delicious Middle Eastern inspired recipe which I have adapted from a recipe in the Australian Women's Weekly's 'SLIM: non-fat eating for life', a title which really sums up so well my understanding of the underlying goals of the Healthy for the Holidays Challenge: finding new recipes and adapting our favourite recipes so that our everyday choices of what we eat are lower in fat. This recipe has plenty of flavour - from the vegetables, the spices, the brandy and the lime juice - but not from ingredients high in fat. The recipe includes baharat. If you cannot buy this, in the Notes below, there are instructions for making a substitute. If you cannot obtain fresh grapevine leaves, they can be bought in bottles in brine. With the grapevine leaves, this is an elegant dinner party meal; without the grapevine leaves, a really easy week night meal, especially if (like me) you have roasted red capsicum as a staple in your fridge!





2 large red capsicums


1 medium eggplant, cut crosswise into 12 slices


1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped (for Americans) or 1 brown onion, finely chopped (for Australians)


4 garlic cloves, crushed


500 g ground lamb


2 teaspoons baharat


1 tablespoon brandy


1 tablespoon tomato paste, see Notes


1/2 cup beef stock or vegetable stock, see Notes


1 tablespoon lime juice


1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted


1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped


8 fresh grape leaves





Quarter the capsicums and remove the membrane and seeds; place the capsicum skin-side up, and the slices of eggplant, on a lightly oiled oven tray under a preheated grill or in a pre-heated hot oven, until the skin blisters; cover the capsicum with plastic wrap for 5 minutes; peel the skin away, then slice thinly. Cover the eggplant and capsicum with foil, to keep them warm.


Cook the onions and garlic in a lightly oiled non-stick pan, stirring until the onion just softens; add the minced lamb and baharat and cook, stirring, until the minced lamb changes colour.


Stir in the combined brandy, tomato paste and stock and bring to the boil.


Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, while stirring, for about 2 minutes or until the liquid has reduced by half; remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lime juice, nuts and parsley. Cover to keep warm.


Place the grapevine leaves in a large pan of boiling water, uncovered, for about 30 seconds or until just pliable; and drain in a single layer on absorbent paper towelling. Or, if you are using bottled grapevine leaves, rinse them thoroughly under cold water, then place them in boiling water for 10 seconds, then drain in a single layer on absorbent paper towelling.


Place one leaf on each plate; layer each leaf with one slice of eggplant, a few capsicum slices, 1/4 cup of the minced lamb mixture and then cover with another grapevine leaf. Repeat the layering, ending with a layer of the minced lamb mixture.





NOTES: Baharat is an aromatic all-purpose spice blend that is used throughout the Middle East and is often sold as Lebanese seven-spice. It can be found in Middle-Eastern food stores. To make a substitute for baharat, combine 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 1 tablespoon ground coriander, 1 crushed clove and 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.