Recipe - Lamb And Dried-Tomato Strudel

12 17by 12inch phyllo sheets

FOR FILLING
1 One half cup Boiling water
One half cup Dried tomatoes not packed in
oil; (about 2 ounces)
One half pound Mushrooms
Three fourths cup Kalamata or other
brinecured black olives or
pitted ripe black olives
1 tablespoon Olive oil
1 pound Ground lamb
1 teaspoon Dried rosemary; crumbled
1 teaspoon Dried basil; crumbled
One half teaspoon Dried hot red pepper flakes
1 One half cup Crumbled feta; (about 8
ounces)
One half cup Grated mozzarella; (about 3
ounces)
About 5 tablespoons olive
oil

Cover stack of phyllo with 2 overlapping sheets plastic wrap and then a
damp kitchen towel.

Make filling: In a small bowl pour boiling water over tomatoes and soak 5
minutes. Thinly slice mushrooms. If using brinecured olives, pit them.
Thinly slice olives. Drain tomatoes well and thinly slice.

In a large heavy skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but
not smoking and sauté mushrooms with salt and pepper to taste, stirring,
until liquid they give off has evaporated. With a slotted spoon transfer
mushrooms to a large bowl. Add lamb to skillet and cook, stirring and
breaking up any lumps, until no longer pink. Transfer lamb with slotted
spoon to bowl with mushrooms and discard fat. Stir tomatoes, olives,
rosemary, basil, and red pepper flakes into lamb mixture and cool 10
minutes. Stir in feta, mozzarella, and salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat oven to 425°F and lightly grease a large shallow baking pan.

Stack phyllo between 2 sheets of wax paper and cover with a dry kitchen
towel. On a work surface arrange two 20inchlong sheets of wax paper with
long sides overlapping slightly and facing you. Put 1 sheet of phyllo on
wax paper and lightly brush with oil. On this, layer and brush 5 more
sheets of phyllo in same manner. (Oiled phyllo stack should be 6 sheets
thick.)

Spread half of filling in a 3inchwide strip, mounding it, on phyllo 4
inches above the near long side, leaving a 2inch border at each end. Using
wax paper as a guide, lift bottom 4 inches of pastry over filling, folding
in ends, and tightly roll up strudel. Carefully transfer strudel, seam side
down, to baking pan and lightly brush with oil. Make another strudel with
remaining ingredients in same manner.

Bake strudels in middle of oven 25 minutes, or until golden. Cool strudels
to warm in pan on a rack.

Cut strudels into 1inch slices with a serrated knife and serve slices
warm.

Serves 6 to 8.

Gourmet December 1997 Sugar & Spice; Kristina Antolin Davies, Helvetia WV

Posted to recipeludigest by Sandy sandysno@pctech.net on Mar 16, 1998