Lentil Sambusas

I discovered a love of Ethiopian food when I was living in Kenya and I've been enchanted ever since. I was recently introduced to an Ethiopian restaurant in Baltimore called Dukem. The menu is fantastic for both meat lovers and vegetarians and everything has been very tasty so far. If you haven't had Ethiopian food yet, I strongly recommend you give it a try.

As soon as I tried their veggie sambusas with lentils, I immediately knew I wanted to try and recreate them. With the help of Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian and his recipe for Ethiopian lentils, which I modified a bit to suit my tastes, I had my filling for the sambusas in a jiffy. Although these take a little longer to prepare, they freeze well uncooked and would be great to have on hand to pop in the oven when you are looking for something different for dinner. Make smaller sambusas and serve as a great little appetizer at your next party. No matter what size you make them, I can guarantee these will be big on flavor!



Lentil Sambusas
Makes 8

2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 c onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp cumin seed
1/2 c dry red wine
2 c vegetable stock
1 c lentils
1/2 pkg phyllo dough, thawed

In medium saucepan, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic, and saute until tender. Add paprika, ginger, allspice, cayenne, coriander, cardamom, and cumin seed, and saute for 30 seconds. Add red wine, vegetable stock, and lentils, turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer, cover, and simmer until lentils are tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Preheat oven to 375. Remove phyllo dough from package and unroll. Cover with slightly damp tea towel. Remove one sheet, brush with olive oil, layer with another sheet. Repeat 2 more times for a total of 4 sheets. Cut sheets in half lengthwise for 2 long strips. On the corner of one sheet, place about 1/4-1/2 c lentil mixture. Fold sheet over and fold like a flag making a triangle shape. Fold all the way to the end, sealing the overlap with oil. (For a visual demonstration, check out this link) Place on cookie sheet lightly sprayed with cooking oil. Place into preheated oven and bake 20 minutes, flipping halfway through, until sambusas are golden brown and flaky. Serve and enjoy!