Khoresht-e Bademjan (Eggplant Stew Pie) with a Lavosh Crust

{Persian Pie with a Lavosh Crust}

Prepare Lavosh dough in advance and rest in fridge for at least an hour

Ingredients for Khoresht-e Bademjan (Eggplant Stew Filling)

1 cup olive oil
2 medium/large egglplant
2 tsp salt
2 tsp garlic powder
1 yellow onion, diced
1 lb stew beef, cut into one-inch bite-size pieces (I also use sirloin)
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 hot peppers, seeded and chopped (I use jalapenos, because of my Texas roots, but Anaheims will do nicely too.)
3 limes, fresh squeezed
3 cups tomatoes, diced (I’ve also used one large can of tomatoes)
¼ cup tomato paste
1 cup water, or as needed

Prepare:

Blanch the eggplant so that it’s not bitter tasting: Slice eggplant into one-inch rounds. Lay them out in one layer on several papertowels. Sprinkle with salt, and set the timer for 8 minutes. The eggplant will sweat, water bubbling out. At the end of 8 minutes, wipe off the water with a papertowel. Turn eggplant over and repeat on other side. Once the eggplant is blanced, cut into one-inch bite-size pieces. Sauté the eggplant pieces over high heat in a large heavy bottom saucepan until they are browned. Remove them from the pan; season them while still warm with the salt and garlic powder.

Add the onions to the same pan and sauté until they just begin to turn brown, and then add the beef, continuing to sauté over high heat until they turn brown. Add the turmeric and black pepper, stirring until the beef absorbs it.

Add lime juice, tomatoes, tomato paste, along with the eggplant pieces. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover and simmer for one hour or until the beef is fork tender. Add water only if necessary to achieve the desired thickness for a pie filling.

Assemble:

Remove dough from fridge and let it sit out for about 15 minutes. Once it’s ready to work with divide into two parts, one slightly larger than the other.

Roll out the bottom crust to fit in a 10-inch pie pan. Fill with Khoresht- Bademjan mixture. Roll out top crust and lay on top of pie filling or create a lattice top—the stew is a beautiful red against the golden color of the baked crust.

Lavosh Crust

{Short Cut Flaky Pastry}

2 sticks plus 2 TBS sweet butter
2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
¼ cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp white sesame seeds
2 tsp black sesame seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp poppy seeds
pinch of salt
½ cup ice water, use only as much as needed.

This crust is best made with your hands, but can also be made with a Cuisinart. To work with your hands, place the butter in the freezer 30 minutes before you begin to harden. Put both flours, seeds and salt into a large mixing bowl. Once the butter has hardened, using a cheese grater, grate it into the flour mixture. Work quickly so the butter stays hard and doesn’t melt in the warmth of your working hand. With your hands, work the butter and flour mixture together until blended into small clumps. Sprinkle the water on 1 TBS at a time, until the mixture forms a dough. Add water as needed. This dough, because of the seeds and the whole wheat flour will need a slight bit more water as the whole wheat makes it dryer and tougher. You don’t want it to be soggy either, so add as needed. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least an hour before using.