Lahm bi ajeen translates to "meat in dough." Variations of the dish are eaten throughout the Middle East. Despite the fact the one most commonly seen in the US is the Turkish lahmacun, lahm bi ajeen is considered to be the grandfather of them all. You can use any store-bought or homemade pizza dough, or even substitute in a round flatbread, such as pita or naan. I was thrilled to break out the GF dough recipe I created when featuring Georgia.
Toum, the fluffy garlic spread, is not for vampires. It is a typical Lebanese spread for grilled meats, falafel, and grilled veggies. Some of my garlic-loving family happily used dabs of it on the lahm bi ajeen and as a veggie dip. Others said it was too strong for them. To temper the taste, you can soak the peeled cloves in lemon juice for a few minutes before puréing. But if I make it again, I will try it with roasted garlic. It will no longer be toum, but likely will be quite tasty!
Lamb Pizza (Lahm bi Ajeen)
1/2 lb uncooked pizza dough*
1 medium onion, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 cup fresh parsley leaves
½ cup fresh mint leaves
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup tomato paste
12 ounces ground lamb or beef
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 lemon
*I used the GF dough from found here.
Heat oven to 450° F. Adjust oven racks to the top third and bottom third of the oven. Line two large baking sheets or half-sheet pans with parchment paper.
In the large bowl of a food processor, fitted with a blade, add onion, garlic, parsley, and mint. Pulse a few times to chop. Add in all the spices and salt and pulse a few more times to incorporate. Add meat, tomato paste, and olive oil and pulse again until well-combined.
Divide the pizza dough into either two or four equal balls. Four is more traditional and will provide individual servings, but if you want to save time, two works.
Working with one ball of dough at a time, place on a floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out into as thinly as you can to a disk.
Place one flatbread disk on one of the prepared pans. Reshape as needed. Spoon either a quarter or a half of the topping onto dough (depending on how many dough balls you have made) and spread topping evenly to edges, leaving a thin border.
Bake in heated oven for about 7-10 minutes or until dough and meat are fully cooked (dough will be a little crusty around the edges.)
Repeat steps 5 and 6 with the remaining dough.
Squeeze lemon juice on top. Serve hot or at room temperature.Â
Fluffy Garlic Spread (Toum)
1 head of garlic, divided into cloves and peeled, to make about ½ cup*
1 teaspoon kosher salt (reduce to ½ for table salt)
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
1½ cups neutral oil, such as canola oil
*Raw garlic is traditional, but quite strong. To reduce the pungency, you can soak the peeled cloves in lemon juice or vinegar for about 15 minutes, discarding the liquid after. Alternatively, you can use roasted garlic, which is a newer twist, but quite tasty!
Place the garlic and kosher salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse garlic in short bursts until finely minced, occasionally removing the lid to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a flexible rubber spatula.
Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice and continue processing until a paste begins to form.
With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in ½ cup oil in a very thin stream, followed by another 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Repeat with another ½ cup oil. Continue the process, alternating between oil and lemon juice, until all have been incorporated.
Transfer toum to a container and store in the fridge for up to 1 month.
FUN FACTS:
The ancient Phoenicians, who lived in what is now Lebanon, are credited with inventing the alphabet.
In 1920, with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Lebanon was ruled by France. It remained under French rule until it became an independent country in 1946.
Byblos, Lebanon, has been continuously inhabited since the Neolithic period, around 5000 BCE. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.
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