Best 3 Middle Eastern Lamb Pizza Recipes

LAMB FLATBREAD WITH ZA'ATAR

Steps:

• Make the dough: In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve yeast and sugar in water. Stir in 1 cup flour to form a thin batter. Leave to rest until mixture is bubbly, about 20 minutes.
• Add remaining flour, olive oil and salt. Mix until dough comes together, then knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. The dough should be soft and a bit sticky; dust lightly with flour as necessary. Return dough to bowl, cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. (Alternatively, put dough in a resealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight.)
• Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Put 3 tablespoons olive oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add onions, season generously with salt and stir to coat. Cook, stirring, until softened and nicely browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
• Add lamb to skillet and mash into onions with a large spoon until crumbled. Sprinkle with salt, then stir in pepper, clove, allspice, cayenne, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, sumac and pomegranate molasses. Turn heat to low and stir to combine. Cook for 5 minutes, until meat is just cooked through. Transfer mixture to a rimmed baking sheet and spread out to cool. (You will have a bit more lamb filling than you need - it's good on buttered toast for a cook's treat.)
• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Punch down dough and divide into 8 2 1/2-ounce pieces. Knead each piece into a ball. Cover with a damp towel and let dough rest 20 to 30 minutes, then roll thinly or stretch each piece into a 6-inch round. Make the dough as thin as possible.
• Arrange 4 rolled-out dough rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush each with a generous amount of za'atar-oil mixture over dough (all the way to the edges or you'll get a puffed up "lip"). Make a layer of thinly sliced or crumbled feta, then sprinkle 1/4 cup of the cooled lamb mixture over the entire surface. Sprinkle on a few pine nuts, if using. Press topping down with the palm of your hand.
• Bake 4 flatbreads at a time, on the upper rack of the oven, for 5 to 8 minutes or until puffed and lightly browned. The dough should still be soft and pliable, not crisp. Serve hot or at room temperature, garnished with parsley, mint and cilantro leaves, whole or roughly chopped.

MIDDLE-EASTERN LAMB PIZZA

Steps:

• In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, combine yeast, milk and egg and mix until combined. Add flour and mix on low until flour is nearly incorporated. Remove paddle and scrape clean. Replace paddle with dough hook; mix on medium-high 5-10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Add salt and olive oil after about 2 minutes of mixing.
• Coat a large bowl with a little more olive oil. Transfer dough to bowl, turning over to coat the surface. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until risen and puffy and about double its original volume, 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
• Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions, sprinkle with salt, reduce heat to medium, and cook until onions are meltingly soft. Add lamb, breaking up large chunks with the edge of a spoon, and cook until no longer pink, 4-6 minutes. Add garlic, cinnamon, cumin, cloves, pepper and sumac. Add tomatoes, sugar, and mint. Cover and simmer until thickened. Adjust seasoning to taste; it should be really well-spiced, so add more pepper and/or cumin if needed.
• Preheat oven (preferably with a pizza stone) to 450°F . Coat a 12" pan with more olive oil; stretch the dough to cover the pan. Let stand 15 minutes until slightly puffed again. Spread the warm filling on top; it should not be too thick a layer. Let stand a further 15 minutes. Bake in preheated oven 15 minutes, until golden and puffed. If filling appears to be drying out, cover with a piece of oiled parchment paper after 5-7 minutes.

MIDDLE EASTERN LAMB 'PIZZA'

Steps:

• Chop whole onion. Heat medium nonstick pan until it is very hot, reduce heat to medium-high and add oil. Saute onion until it begins to brown.
• Meanwhile, with food processor running, place the garlic through the feed tube and mince. Remove the fat from the lamb, add it to the food processor and grind. Remove to small bowl, and mix well with the sumac, hot red-pepper flakes, cumin, salt and pepper. When onion is soft, stir in the lamb to break it up and cook until it is brown. Set aside.
• Wash unpeeled cucumbers, and cut into cubes. Wash and chop the mint and cilantro. Add the cucumbers, mint and half the cilantro to the yogurt, and stir well.
• Heat two of the tortillas either directly over a small gas flame or by wrapping in aluminum foil and heating in toaster oven set at 400 degrees for about three minutes.
• Slice the tomatoes, and cut each slice into small wedges.
• To serve, spread 1/4 of the yogurt mixture on each of two tortillas. Top with 1/4 of the meat; then, top with 1/4 of the tomatoes and sprinkle with 1/4 of the remaining cilantro.
• Repeat with the remaining tortillas, yogurt, meat, tomatoes and cilantro.