Baked Squash Kibbeh
By Stephanie PixleyPublished on October 16, 2019
Time
2¼ hours
Yield
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Before You Begin
You can use medium-grind bulgur here, but the texture of the kibbeh will be more coarse and moist.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 9-inch springform pan with vegetable oil spray. Microwave squash in covered bowl, stirring occasionally, until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Process cooked squash in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute; let cool.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, coriander, and five-spice and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in pureed squash and cook until slightly thickened, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer squash mixture to large bowl and let cool.
- Meanwhile, place bulgur in separate bowl and add water to cover by 1 inch. Let sit until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain bulgur through fine-mesh strainer, then wrap in clean dish towel and wring tightly to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
- Stir bulgur, flour, cilantro, mint, salt, and pepper into squash mixture until well combined. Transfer to prepared pan and press into even layer with wet hands. Using paring knife, score surface into 8 even wedges, cutting halfway down through mixture. Brush top with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and bake until golden brown and set, about 45 minutes.
- Sprinkle with feta and pine nuts and continue to bake until cheese is softened and warmed through, about 10 minutes. Let kibbeh cool in pan for 10 minutes. Run thin knife around inside of springform pan ring to loosen, then remove ring. Slice kibbeh into wedges along scored lines and serve.
Time
2¼ hoursYield
Serves 4 to 6Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
Kibbeh is a combination of finely ground beef or lamb, bulgur, and onions that's either formed into balls and deep-fried or pressed into a pan and baked. Variations are enjoyed throughout the Middle East. For a vegetarian version of this flavorful dish, we loved the idea of pairing butternut squash with warm, inviting spices. We combined the squash with hearty bulgur, spices, and aromatics. To streamline our recipe, we microwaved the prepped squash; in just 15 minutes, it was tender enough to be pureed. We preferred baking our kibbeh over the mess of deep frying, but we swapped the traditional 12-inch baking pan for a 9-inch springform pan, which made slicing and serving the baked kibbeh easier—plus the thicker slices baked up more moist and tender. Because bulgur soaks up a fair amount of liquid as it cooks, when we stirred raw bulgur into the squash, the kibbeh initially turned out dry and crumbly. Soaking the bulgur in water for 10 minutes solved this problem. A garnish of feta and toasted pine nuts added some creaminess and crunch.
Before You Begin
You can use medium-grind bulgur here, but the texture of the kibbeh will be more coarse and moist.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 9-inch springform pan with vegetable oil spray. Microwave squash in covered bowl, stirring occasionally, until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Process cooked squash in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute; let cool.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, coriander, and five-spice and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in pureed squash and cook until slightly thickened, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer squash mixture to large bowl and let cool.
- Meanwhile, place bulgur in separate bowl and add water to cover by 1 inch. Let sit until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain bulgur through fine-mesh strainer, then wrap in clean dish towel and wring tightly to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
- Stir bulgur, flour, cilantro, mint, salt, and pepper into squash mixture until well combined. Transfer to prepared pan and press into even layer with wet hands. Using paring knife, score surface into 8 even wedges, cutting halfway down through mixture. Brush top with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and bake until golden brown and set, about 45 minutes.
- Sprinkle with feta and pine nuts and continue to bake until cheese is softened and warmed through, about 10 minutes. Let kibbeh cool in pan for 10 minutes. Run thin knife around inside of springform pan ring to loosen, then remove ring. Slice kibbeh into wedges along scored lines and serve.
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