My grape leaves cake.
Queen of the table,
The one that’ll conquer everyone and make you the star of the holiday.

The grape leaves cake is suitable for celiacs,
Suitable for vegetarians and vegans,
Suitable next to a good meat or fish dish
And just fits the bill!

Full of flavors of grandma and home,
And has intoxicating smells and a lot of holiday atmosphere.

I made the recipe simple for you.
The steps are very basic and require very little work.
In 30 minutes from now you could put this cake in the oven.
And you’ll have the most perfect addition to the holiday table.

I like to spoil people close to my heart with it on special occasions.
It’s the ultimate gift –
Delicious, beautiful and full of glam.

After this introduction, let’s see if you can avoid making it.

Happy holidays to all 🙂

Grape Leaves Cake. image: Essy Roz

Grape Leaves Cake

Ingredients:

• 20-25 units fresh / preserved grape leaves (for alternatives, have a look at “A little extra from me”)
• 1 Finely chopped medium red / white onion
• 3 chopped garlic cloves / 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 peeled and diced green apple
• ½ bunch roughly chopped mint leaves, about 2 handfuls (not a must)
• 2 cups unwashed rice
• 1 cup raisins
• 5½ cups boiling water
• Juice of a large lemon
• Spices (put all the spices in a bowl beforehand): a spoonful of salt, a spoonful of turmeric, a spoonful of sweet paprika, a spoonful of cumin, a spoonful of dried ginger, ½ spoonful of white pepper, a spoonful of cinnamon and a spoonful of baharat
• 2 clusters of grapes for decoration (not a must)

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C) on turbo mode.
2. In a pot with a wide rim, fry chopped onions, a little salt and olive oil until golden. When the onion starts to become transparent, add the garlic, the apple cubes and the mint and fry a little until the mint leaves are tired looking. Put everything in a large bowl and set aside.
3. In the same pan, heat a little olive oil and open all the spices in the hot oil while stirring briefly. As soon as there are strong smells of spices, add the rice and mix it together with the spices. Let them cook a little for about 2 minutes of cooking.
4. In a large bowl, mix the seasoned rice, onion and apple mixture and add a cup of raisins. Mix to a uniform mass and let it rest for a few moments.
5. Oil a medium pot well (including the sides) and line it with grape leaves, with their rough side facing the inside of the pot and their smooth side facing the sides and bottom of the pot, so that the grape leaves cover the entire pot including the edges.
6. Fill the pot lined with grape leaves with our rice mixture, cover the rice with more grape leaves and arrange them nicely. At this stage you can arrange two clusters of grapes on top of the pot for decoration.
7. Add the liquids carefully to the contents of the pot. Seal the pot well with two parchment paper sheets and aluminum foil, so that the pot is well sealed. and bake for 1¼ hours.
8. When the pot is ready, take it out of the oven and let it rest. Don’t open it to check it (don’t worry, it’s ready if you followed the instructions). After resting for about 30 minutes, remove the cover and take off the clusters of grapes, if you chose to use them.
9. Turn the pot over with a plate: Place a wide plate the size of the pot on the pot, grab the two handles of the pot with the plate on top and turn the pot over. Let the pot remain upside down for a few minutes. Remove the pot and straighten the vine leaves that were folded, so that they cover the entire surface of the cake. Place the clusters of grapes on top of the cake and serve.

A little extra from me:

• The grape leaves cake can be kept in the fridge in a sealed box for 4 days.
• If you choose to use fresh grape leaves, plunge them in boiling water for 10 minutes before preparation. Before preparation, it’s important to filter the grape leaves well.
• If you choose to use preserved grape leaves (preserved in a jar of grape leaves in salt water), they must be filtered and soaked in water at room temperature for about 5 minutes before preparation. Before preparation, it’s important to filter the grape leaves well.
• You can add potato slices to the pot. I recommend cutting them to the ½ finger thickness and placing them at the bottom of the oiled pot before laying out the grape leaves. One medium potato is required for this, it must be salted a little.
• I recommend serving the dish at room temperature.
• It’s possible and even preferable to use round rice / sushi rice. It’ll give the cake more stability. Important – don’t wash the rice before cooking.

The spice bowl, prepared in advance. image: Essy Roz

Layer the grape leaves in the pot. image: Essy Roz

The grape leaves cake before adding the cooking liquids. image: Essy Roz

The grape  leaf cake a moment  before covering and cooking. image: Essy Roz

Grape leaves cake is covered and sealed with aluminum foil before cooking. image: Essy Roz

Grape leaves cake after cooking and resting. image: Essy Roz

Grape Leaves Cake. image: Essy Roz