Burek (Ground Beef Pie)

     Burek is a pie (pita) stuffed with ground beef found in cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire. Pita is a popular dish in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and it can be stuffed with a variety of ingredients such as potatoes (krompirusa), cheese (sirnica), and spinach (zeljanica). Although all of these versions of pita are great, burek is my favorite. 

As the saying goes, sve su pite pitice, samo je burek pitac...

Ingredients for the dough (or you can choose to layer phyllo dough):

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups water

Combine all the ingredients and knead until dough begins to form. 

Ingredients for ground beef mixture:

• 1 pound of ground beef
• 2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 2 tsp salt
• 4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Combine all these ingredients and mix well until uniform.

To begin, place the dough onto a floured surface, and begin rolling out with a rolling pin. 

Continue to gradually roll out the dough, adding flour over the top to prevent it from sticking.

Once the dough is rolled out as thinly as possibly, without breaking, begin filling it with the ground beef mixture.

Roll the side of the dough over the beef mixture and continue to roll until the beef can't be seen through the dough.

Cut the dough and begin coiling around itself.

Continue repeating this process, and placing the dough coils into an oiled cooking pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F for about 1 hour. 

Serve warm with some yogurt (kajmak) and sparking water (kisela voda) on the side.

Ricotta Lemon Pancakes

3 tbsp melted butter

2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 cups buttermilk

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp grated lemon rind

2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

Melt the butter in the microwave and allow to cool. 

Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, mix all wet ingredients including the melted butter.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix thoroughly.

Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan on low to medium heat.

Scoop the batter into the saucepan and flip once bubbles begin to form on top.

These are best served with a dusting of powdered sugar!

Guacamole

• 3 avocados, mashed
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper (optional)

In a bowl, first mash the avocados. Then, add the rest of the ingredients, and mix well. Serve immediately, or place plastic wrap over it and refrigerate.